A week later…
“Hi. Where’s Diego?” Samantha asked when Amaya opened the door for her.
“He’s in his room painting. I told him you’d be here for therapy,” Amaya said, moving a couple of boxes out of the way. “Coffee?”
Samantha lifted the Starbucks cup in her hand. “You’re too late.”
Amaya sighed. “I could have used one.”
Samantha made a face. “Sorry. I was running from one job to the next. By the way, what are you doing messing with these boxes? Shouldn’t you pay for someone now you’re Ms. Money Pants?”
Amaya rubbed the back of her neck. She knew her friend teased her, but the mention of the money always put her at unease. Money had provided so much for her—and it also linked her to the man who didn’t give her mind a break. Her heart tightened.
She hadn’t been able to sleep since she’d left Theo. Not during the flight he found for her, not after she’d arrived home. She missed his arms around her, his smell, his smile.
Samantha grabbed Diego from his room and reappeared in the living area. “We’re going for a walk. Are you sure you don’t wanna come?”
“We go walk,” Diego said, excitement flickering in his eyes. “Come?”
Amaya kissed his cheek. “Not right now, buddy. I have to pack all these boxes,” she said, pointing at the boxes spread all over her small apartment.
“Okay, pack away. We’ll be back in an hour,” Samantha said, then closed the door behind them.
Amaya sighed. She’d been back from Greece for seven days, and she’d done so much it seemed the time she’d spent there was an eternity ago.
Except…when she thought of Theo.
She had a hard time forgetting how his lips felt on hers, and how she could get lost in his arms. Her body roared with need, missing him like an addict in rehab.
She grabbed some items she’d placed on the kitchen table and began to place them in the boxes. She’d move to a nicer apartment, in the same area where Diego would move in a few months. She’d be within walking distance of him. The idea brought some comfort to her broken heart.
Theo had betrayed her—he’d never have told her about his uncle’s implication. Or maybe he would later, whenever it was convenient for him. He’d behaved just like his uncle—prioritizing self-interests, power, and money.
When she’d returned to Nevada, she’d paid for a private detective to garner evidence about what happened that night—and he’d told her someone else had been looking into the case too. A Greek lawyer based in Vegas.
How convenient.
A part of her wanted to believe Theo had hired the lawyer, for the same reason she had hired her detective—to search for loopholes and ways to open a case which would grant an extradition. She grabbed the duct tape from the counter and closed one box. I can’t keep fooling myself.
Even if he had done all this as a sign of atonement, he’d never looked for her. Never called her with the words she longed to hear. I’ve fallen for you. I’m no longer getting married. Be with me. Stay with me.
He had an empire to run and possibly a wedding ceremony to attend in Greece. What guarantee did she have he’d really cancel the agreement to marry Talia? Why would he give up all that because of her?
A knock on the front door startled her, and she placed the box on the floor. She opened the door and found the last person she’d thought she’d see—Madame Alexa herself.
“Hello, dear. May I come in?” she asked.
“Of course.”
Goose bumps rose on her arm. What if Theo had complained about her? Or maybe he wanted to get his money back? Ever since her arrival, she hadn’t contacted Madame Alexa yet—because there’d been one more week to go.
“How was Mr. Rhodes?” Madame Alexa asked, glancing around, taking stock of her place.
Amaya fidgeted with her neckline. “Good.”
“Good?” Madame tossed her lustrous black hair to the side. “He paid for the other half a week ago. I told Jackie to get in touch with you and transfer, but she had some personal problems and got a little busy. So, I’m making a little house visit today.”
“Oh.” He’d paid the day she left. She swallowed. What did it mean? “Do you want something to drink?”
