Choosing Him: A New Adult International Romance Serial (Angelique's Greek Book 1) (2 page)

“I’ve got an idea!” said Carla, jumping up out of her seat.

“What is it?” Angelique asked.

Carla turned to Atreus. “Invite Theo to go with Angelique! He can accompany her in case they want to begin to put any deals together. You need a legal person for that, right?”

“Well, sure, I guess,” Atreus said, though he looked unconvinced. “But it’s a little early for that.”

“Maybe,” said Carla. “But maybe, just maybe, Angelique might find the perfect piece of land for a Kostas Hotels Spa Resort sooner rather than later.” She flashed a winning smile at them both. “You know I’m right.”

*****

“Wow,” Carla said as Angelique stepped into the hallway of the suite. “You’re dressed to impress!”

That was no lie. While Carla had been playing with Dios, Angelique had used the sprawling marble bathroom to prepare for her lunch meeting with Theo, her stomach fluttering all the while. First she’d sunk into a deep bubble bath, her dark braids piled on top of her head, then she dried her brown skin with the soft, white hotel towel before smoothing coconut oil onto it.
 

She slipped into the most formal dress she had, a powder blue Grecian gown that cinched around her toned waist and blossomed out into a full skirt. She placed her tiny braids into an arrangement that twisted back from her hairline in seven sections into a top knot. She left a section of braids down at the back of her head and they hung down to her waist. Her favorite gold chandelier earrings hung in her ears and matched the stud in her nose.

She took a deep breath and applied some clear lip gloss, her eyes wide as she shot Carla a nervous look.

“You look
incredible
,” Carla said. “You know, when I first saw you I was jealous because of how beautiful and sexy you are. I was worried Atreus would fall for you.”

“Get out of here!” Angelique said a little shakily, hitting her with her lip gloss.

“Your taxi has arrived, Miss Felix,” the butler at the door said.

“Oh, gosh,” Angelique said, and reached out to squeeze Carla’s hand. “Wish me luck.”

*****

Chapter 2

“So Atreus tells me we’re jetting off to some exotic location to scope out a hotel spot,” Theo said with a smile as the waiter shook out his napkin and laid it down on his immaculate suited lap.

“That’s right,” said Angelique.
 

She had been afraid her nervousness would cause her to shut up like a clam but she found herself giggling like a schoolgirl when he complimented her dress and she hadn’t stopped since. Her mouth kept talking even when she begged it to shut up, and she barely even listened to what she was saying. It was something about his eyes that got to her, like she was standing in front of him naked.
 

“I was thinking about Nevis,” she continued, “then Bahamas—that’s where I’m from by the way—then St Lucia, St Vincent, St Croix, you know, all the Saints, but I’ve finally decided on Hawaii.”

“Wow,” said Theo, taking a sip of red wine. “Lorenza will be pleased.”

All the giggling stopped.
 

“Who’s Lorenza?”

“My personal assistant,” said Theo. “She’s always talked about going to Hawaii.”

“Great,” Angelique said flatly. All her dreams of intimate chats on the plane and sunset walks on the beach were distinctly less romantic with some clipboard holding secretary lurking in the background.
 

“Does she come with you everywhere?” she mumbled.

His face stretched into a wicked smile that made Angelique tingle all over. “Everywhere except the bedroom.”

*****

Lorenza was stunningly sexy and had the haughty look of a woman that
knew
it. Angelique noticed her as soon as she stepped into the airport terminal—along with the most of the men present. Lorenza tossed her deep mahogany curls back as she straightened up after retrieving some papers from her case, then pulled her impossibly tight pencil skirt down over her slim thighs.

“Angelique!” Theo called out. He wore a stunning light charcoal suit that accentuated his pale skin tone.

She gave Theo a wave and adjusted her maxi dress. She’d chosen the most comfortable dress in her wardrobe, a white canvas that bloomed with blue tropical flowers. She also wore a white linen jacket tied around her waist. She knew that white was always stunning contrast to her dark skin.
 

Theo greeted her with a handshake. “Morning,” he said. “You look fantastic.”

“Thank you,” Angelique said with a smile. “I love your suit.”

“Thanks,” said Theo, pulling out a lapel and posing with an exaggerated model face, squinting his eyes and jutting out his chin. “It’s Italian.” He laughed at himself.

Lorenza pushed her designer glasses back into her hair like a headband and looked Angelique up and down with her large dark eyes.

“This is Lorenza,” Theo said.

“Hi,” Angelique said. She leaned in for a hug but Lorenza intercepted her and shook her hand.

“Good morning,” Lorenza said. “So you’re the masseuse?” Her tone was dismissive.

“Yes,” Angelique said, holding her head high. She was proud of the work she did, helping people to heal and relax. “And now we’re going to start a spa hotel. I heard you’ve always wanted to go to Hawaii.”

“Yes,” Lorenza said, and stretched her lips into a smile that didn’t light up her eyes.

Theo clapped her on the back. “Always going on about how romantic it is,” he said teasingly. “Now let’s go and check in.”

After checking in their luggage and passing through customs, they decided to head to a restaurant for breakfast. Lorenza angled her chair slightly away from Angelique as if to exclude her, but Theo turned his chair away from them to watch a cricket match on the restaurant’s television.
 

“You ladies will permit me the indulgence?” he said, sipping on an orange juice, his hazel eyes piercing right into Angelique’s.
 

Caught up in their intensity, she could not find many words, and the ones she could find got stuck in her throat.

“Men and their sports,” Lorenza said, leaning over and running her fingers under his chin. “Obsessed.”

He grinned. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

Once he’d turned back, Lorenza sat back in her seat and nibbled on a pain au chocolat with a smug look on her face. She glanced up at Angelique, who stabbed at the chunks of her fruit salad.

It was no better on the plane. Their seats were 24E, F, and G, Angelique in E, Lorenza in G, and Theo in the middle. Angelique watched Lorenza wiggle down the corridor to the plane like a model on the runway, her curls bouncing behind her as every single man she passed turned to stare.
 

Angelique knew that she herself was beautiful, for all the times she had been told so. But Lorenza’s beauty was different. While Angelique had sculpted, ebony curves, and a vivid sex appeal that shone through her almond shaped eyes, full lips, and vibrant personality, Lorenza had a darker, more sophisticated look. She was polished from head to toe, dressed all in black, and strutted along as if she owned the whole world and wasn’t about to be kind to it. She reminded Angelique of temptation, a full black lace negligee, the sort of woman men cheated on their wives with. Her allure was magnetic.

Once they were in the first class section of the plane, Lorenza crossed her stockinged legs as she sat down in her window seat and flicked her impossibly high black heel against the floor as she looked around impatiently. Theo took the seat in the middle between the aisles and Angelique sat in the seat by the opposite window.

He seemed to be totally oblivious to the tension between them, or at least pretended to be. As soon as he was in his seat he had his laptop open on the seat tray, tapping away at the keyboard.

“I can take care of that,” said Lorenza, reaching over for the laptop and deliberately showcasing her cleavage. “Go ahead and dictate and I’ll type it up for you.”

He held onto the laptop firmly. “No, no, it’s okay. This isn’t work.”

Lorenza leaned over him for a little longer than Angelique thought was necessary, her perky breasts deliberately at his eye line. But, he didn’t seem to pay any attention. His eyes were glued to the screen.

“What is it you’re doing?” Angelique asked.

Theo looked up at her and smiled. “I’m writing a novel.”

“Wow, really?” Angelique asked. She heard Lorenza tut in the background but ignored her. “I didn’t know you write. What about?”

“It’s my first one,” he said, “so it’s probably all crap. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned about life, it’s that if you want something badly enough and you’re willing to stick with it, you’ll get it eventually.”

Angelique looked into his eyes, which were now filled with an enthusiasm she had never seen in them before. “I sure hope so.”

“It’s kind of about my story,” he said. “My life as a child in the slums, how I managed to start my company and how my life changed. But I’ve fictionalized it, so it reads like a novel.”

“I’d love to read it,” said Angelique.

“You can be my first reader,” he said.

Angelique beamed. “Please.”

“Do you know anything about writing?” Lorenza cut in.

“Well, no,” Angelique admitted. “I’ve read a lot, though.”

Lorenza snorted. “I’ll line up some experienced contacts in the industry to read it for you, Theo, no problem.”

“Great,” Theo said. “I think we should have a good mix of readers.”

Without another word or look at either of them, he got back to typing, his fingers speeding at a hundred miles an hour. He sighed when an air hostess asked him to put it away during takeoff, though he smiled at her and did as she asked. He kept tapping his fingers on the armrest while he waited for the seatbelt light to go off, clearly wishing it was a keyboard.
 

Angelique loved how passionate he was. Inspired by his hardworking attitude, she fished a pad of paper and pencil out of her hand luggage and sketched out layout ideas for the spa hotel, dotting quaint villas onto a bay and setting tropical gardens in bloom. She tired long before he did. He even ate his meal with one hand while typing with the other.

 
Lorenza kept asking him if he wanted anything and he was polite at first but eventually snapped at her.
 

“Stop bothering me,” he said.

She sniffed and put headphones on to watch a movie, her expression hard as stone. Angelique couldn’t help but smile into her crème brûlée, though she knew it was mean-spirited.

When they landed at the Lanai airport, they had first passage out of the airplane. Angelique was amazed to find their baggage was already waiting for them in the limousine the hotel had sent, so they didn’t have to join the fray at the baggage carousel. She studied Theo and Lorenza’s faces, but they seemed distinctly underwhelmed, so she guessed they were used to this sort of treatment.

As soon as they stepped out of the airport, Angelique felt like she was at home. They were greeted by a creamy blue sky, palm trees rocking gently in the breeze, and a mountain range in the distance flanked by steaming jungle.

“As good as you thought it would be?” Theo asked Lorenza.

She looked up into the distance, her eyes wide with wonder, her smile genuine, almost innocent. Angelique felt an unexpected rush of affection toward her then, like a sister, but soon Lorenza’s gaze fell back upon her, heavy with hostility, and the warmth turned ice cold.

Lorenza linked her arm in Theo’s as they walked to the limousine. “I couldn’t think of anyone I’d like to share it with more than you.”

Angelique tried to ignore her and to take in the beauty of the view and the warm air caressing her skin, but it was not an easy task. She opened the limousine window throughout the journey, hating the dark film the tinted window cast upon the majestic views of sky blue upon green and sea blue.
 

She’d hoped Theo would whip out his laptop and delve back into his memoir but he chatted away with Lorenza and her tinkling laugh filled the limousine and made Angelique’s skin crawl.
 

She hummed a song that always comforted her, the song her father used to play after anyone in the family had argued.

Don’t worry about a thing, ‘cause every little thing is gonna be all right.

She hummed it over and over, until she could not hear the warm conversation that made her feel so lonely, only the soothing melody of the song. She felt tears sting in the back of her eyes and was mortified with herself.
How could she be crying over this?
A tear streaked down her face and she wiped it away furiously.
 

She glanced back at them and caught Lorenza staring at her, that smug look of victory emanating from her as she smirked and raised an eyebrow. Angelique turned back to the window with a new resolve. Lorenza had made herself perfectly clear.
 

It was war.

*****

Chapter 3

The rest of the afternoon Theo locked himself in his room working on his book, saying he’d order room service instead of come down to dinner. Angelique ended up doing pretty much the same, sketching hotel ideas while she watched movies and munched on a pineapple beef burger and sweet potato wedges that a hotel waiter delivered to her.