The Greek Tycoon's Tarnished Bride (Men of the Zodiac) (2 page)

Throwing the damp towel on the back of a chair, she wrenched open the curtains and then two steps brought her to the front door before the voices in her head talked her out of it. “Who is it?” she shouted through the draughty mail slot. There was no such thing as a security peephole on this property. There was no reply.

Hmmm.

Irritated that she couldn
’
t make herself heard—or her caller was deaf—she flung open the front door without even thinking to put on the security chain. Blocking the early morning light with all six foot plus of his muscular frame was the strange, sexy guy from the club. Strange in that she had never seen him in there before, and he looked far too wealthy and attractive to have a need for such entertainment. It wasn
’
t just her who had noticed him either; the other girls in the dressing room had been extremely keen to catch his eye even if he did look like a miserable bastard. His perfectly straight nose and high cheekbones couldn
’
t fail to attract attention; he was beautiful if that description could be properly applied to a man. But he hadn
’
t smiled once, not even when he had his fingers in her underwear.

“Erica Silver?”

His deep, accented voice cut like a scimitar through the center of her body, and her heart kicked like a trapped rabbit against her rib cage. Eyes the color of candied limes fringed by thick black lashes questioned her further as his words hung unanswered for what seemed like minutes.

She swallowed hard and pulled the edges of her bathrobe tighter across her chest. “Never heard of her.”

His olive features set like concrete. “You
are
Erica Silver.”

Perhaps he had somehow followed her back from the club, but how did he know her real name? Unless one of the other girls had been persuaded to part with the information… “
I don’
t know who you are or what you want, but you must have the wrong address.”

His foot jammed the door open, and he wedged a shoulder inside her flat. “We need to talk.”

“How dare you! If you don
’
t leave immediately—”

His voice dropped to a murmur and the corner of his full mouth quirked up a millimeter or so, but not enough to qualify as a smile. “I
’
m not going to hurt you.”

“
Have we met?
”

“You were stunning a few hours ago in the Ruby Unicorn, so yes we have. Kind of.” He pushed a large, tanned hand through the door as if he expected her to shake it. “But you look prettier without the mask and all that make
up. Makris. Tito Makris.
”

She recoiled from his greeting and swallowed down a stab of fear. “
I don’
t work outside the club, it
’
s against the rules for both me and you. And…and that suits me fine because I don
’
t do
extras
.”

He raised a dark eyebrow. “Not even at a price?”

“No. Never.”

He tipped his dark head to one side and rested it nonchalantly against the doorframe. His voice was husky. “I
’
m not sure I believe you.”

Erica didn
’
t like the shiver that had stroked up and down her spine at the way he
’
d just spoken to her. He oozed sex, and she couldn
’
t forget how exciting his touch had been. “Believe what you like. Now bugger off, or I really will call the police.”

His short-nailed fingers slid down the wooden doorframe toward the handle she was clutching and their fingers brushed. “I
’
m sorry, that was rude of me,” he said. “It
’
s not what you think.”

The renewed contact stole her breath, and she flicked her forearm away as if she received an electric shock. It certainly felt as if she
’
d been erotically tasered. “Yeah, right.”

“I
’
m not here to—”

“To what? Try to shag me in some unspeakable way that your regular prostitute won
’
t agree to?” She muffled the wicked voice inside her head that said this man could get whatever he wanted from most women for nothing. All he needed to do was click his immaculate fingertips. “I
’
m not for sale or hire.”

“
Yannis sent me.
”

Her blood ran cold.
“You
’
ve come all the way from Greece on his behalf?” A fiery mist of fury suddenly descended and she flung the door wider in her anger. “Yannis and me are over, didn
’
t he tell you? Have been for the last eighteen months since he deactivated all his social networking accounts, turned off his phone and…and well, I can take a bloody hint!”

“Please. May I come in?” Her gaze was drawn to the slow movement of his Adam
’
s apple and the dark stippling of beard that was visible on his sleek-boned jaw. He was at least six foot two, if not taller.

“I haven
’
t got any money, if that
’
s what you
’
re after. He can settle his own debts.”

He shook his head and lowered his eyes to the floor, as if he was hiding something that she might spot in the depths of those green irises. “No, nothing like that.” He sighed wearily and then looked up hopefully into the tiny flat. For some reason he suddenly seemed less threatening. “May I? Please?”

“I
’
ll probably regret this.” She frowned and opened the door completely. “Okay, come in, you
’
re letting all the cold air in standing there.” She closed the door behind him and crossed her arms. “So what does Yannis want? What
’
s so important that he
’
s getting in touch after all this time but can
’
t be bothered to come himself? Don
’
t tell me he
’
s in prison or something!”

“Perhaps you should sit down,” he said flatly and rammed his hands into his coat pockets.

She coughed lightly and loaded sarcasm into her reply. “Perhaps I should stand, considering I have to leave the building in five minutes, and I
’
m not even dressed yet.”

His emerald gaze flickered over her like a searchlight. “If you want to put some clothes on—”

She shook her head. “I want you to say what you
’
ve come to say and then leave.”

“Okay. I
’
m here regarding the child you have, the year-old baby that is Yannis
’
s only child. Your son.”

It felt like the Victorian plaster ceiling had suddenly caved in on her, but she did her best to hide the sickening anxiety rising in her by tossing back her head and sighing loudly. “
I don’
t know what you
’
re talking about.”

The tall Greek picked up a packet of baby wipes from the kitchen table and made a show of turning it over in his hands. “Yes you do. Births, marriages, deaths…all public documents. And you named Yannis Frangos as the father on the birth certificate even though he wasn
’
t there to countersign.”

“Okay…” Panic was now building like a silent toxin inside her. “I only did that for Nick, for when he was older and in case his useless father ever took an interest in him. I couldn
’
t deny him his heritage, a path to his roots if anything ever happened to me.”

He looked down at her with a questioning expression. “You called him Nick?”

“Short for Nikolaos, Yannis
’
s father. It was sentimental of me, I realize that now…”

He blinked slowly, and she noticed for the first time how very long and thick his eyelashes were. “It was a selfless, thoughtful thing to do.”

“Yes, it was considering Yannis broke off all contact when I was three months pregnant. The money dried up, his promises turned out to be a bloody joke… I tried everything to contact him, which wasn
’
t very dignified, but my conscience is clear on that front. So why now? What does he want?” She let out a hollow laugh. “Marriage?”

“
Yannis died.
”

“What do you mean he
died
?”

His jaw tightened, and she could see tension bunching in the muscles of his shoulders beneath his coat. “A bomb at a wedding eighteen months ago.”

Shock kicked in and her voice became shaky. “That
’
s when the contact stopped.”

“Yes.”

“But I left messages on his phone, his Facebook account—”

He stepped forward and lightly touched her forearm with the broad palm of his hand. “The phone was with him when it happened, and it was felt that all his social networks should be closed under the circumstances. It has taken this long for the lawyers to sort out the family estate and allow access to his personal effects. I
’
m sorry.”

She looked down at where their bodies were joined in a gesture of comfort and solidarity. She didn
’
t shake him off immediately; her limbs felt like water. “It
’
s a lot to take in.”

“You must be shocked, but there was no other way to do this.”

Her throat tightened. “No, I understand. So we missed his funeral…”

He nodded. “But it was an empty coffin anyway.”

Erica eased back so that his hand fell away, and then every part of her felt as cold as ice. “
I feel sick.
”

“I
’
m sorry.”

“Thank you for coming all this way to let me know. It means a lot.” She rubbed at her forehead, willing the fuzz of incomprehension to clear. “If there
’
s any way our child, Nick, could maintain some kind of link to his father
’
s family—”

“That
’
s the reason I
’
m here.” His chin jutted up and his green gaze fixed hers for a tense moment before he continued. “There is a legacy.”

“A legacy?” This was another bolt out of the blue. “But Yannis told me he was a student with no assets and no permanent job, that
’
s why there could be no
us
. His family would disown him. A good marriage with a good Greek girl had already been arranged…”

“The world is now a different place. It
’
s turned on its axis for Nick. Four generations of the male side of the Frangos family were wiped out that day. He is the sole heir to a multi-billion euro fortune.”

She shook her head and let out a harsh laugh. “
I don’
t believe you. This is some kind of sick joke.”

“No.” He pulled a sheaf of documents out from his inside pocket. “Here is a copy of the death certificate and…if not exactly an official will, Yannis
’
s wishes if he should die.”

Erica took the pieces of paper with shaking hands and checked the date. “This was the day before I was due to go for the first pregnancy scan. He
’
d said he
’
d try to get over for it once he
’
d seen to some family business. He said he was so excited…”

“He would have been,” he replied, his tone grave.

“But he never came and ever since I just assumed he
’
d been lying to me.”

“And now you know the real reason why. I
’
m sorry, but he never abandoned you like you must have thought he did. He wasn
’
t like that. He…he just couldn
’
t. He was no longer with us. Yannis asked me to look after you both.”

She folded her arms across her body and glared into his impassive but beautiful face. “So what took you so long?”

“I only found out you both existed a week ago. It took months for the lawyers and court system to establish who was the ultimate heir after the atrocity in Athens. The entire male line was obliterated at that wedding. And the Frangos dynasty only recognizes the males as legitimate heirs. There was a lot of groundwork to do.”

“Is that kind of sex discrimination even legal these days?”

“I have no idea, but Nick is the nearest male relative left alive.” He took a deep breath and looked out the window at the rain now lashing down outside. “His mother and sisters kept Yannis’s room like a shrine until it became clear he was where the trail stopped. They couldn
’
t bear to go through his things themselves, so I offered to help and found
that
.”

Erica followed his gaze to the bundle of documents he had laid on the kitchen table. “
I don’
t suppose he
’
d ever thought about a proper will, not being so young and healthy.”

“I guess not, but clearly the news he was to become a father did force him to take at least one practical step. He left us guidance. The Frangos women are not contesting Nick
’
s right to inherit once his claim has been verified. They are respecting Yannis
’
s wishes.”

She was suspicious at the edge to his voice. “Verified?”

“DNA test.”

Erica frowned as her brain whirred in different directions. “So Nick has aunties and a grandmother who are interested in him?”

He loosened the top button of his coat, and she caught a glimpse of the pewter-colored tie he
’
d been wearing in the club. That garment alone should have made her suspicious about why he was there on his own. Watching her every move. “More than interested,” he said, his tone lightening. “They
’
re desperate to meet him and guide him into adulthood when he will assume control of his legacy. They are devoted to him already.”

“What is this legacy?”

Tito shrugged, and the movement of his shoulders made her notice how broad they were. “Cash, investments, property…the Frangos Empire currently provides thousands of Greek families with jobs and incomes. It
’
s important all this is protected in these hard economic times.”

“Nick is only just over a year old! He can
’
t possibly—”

“There are trustees to look after his interests and care for the businesses until he is old enough to take control. And that won
’
t be before he
’
s twenty-one.
”