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He had known exactly what thoughts were running through her mind! Her cheeks flushed as he left the room without a backward glance. She felt as humiliated as if she had let him make love to her. What was it about Theo that attracted her to him, especially considering the way he treated her? It was an indefinable something that drew her to him as irresistibly as a moth to a flame, and she would get scorched in exactly the same way.

The impact of Theo was so great that it was a minute or two before the memory came back of what Georgios had been about to say. Theo was involved more deeply than he admitted. He laid the blame on Georgios, said that his brother was speaking the truth, but Georgios had implied that Theo had something to do with it. And if Theo hadn’t walked in when he did she might have discovered the truth. Damn Theo! Now he was going to talk to Georgios again and make sure she never found out..

She still brooded, her eyes fixed on the door, seeing Theo’s wicked smile as he bent over her, when Katie arrived with her supper. Miranda was not hungry, but she found the sole excellent, and managed to eat some of the salad, though she did not touch the fruit or cheese.

She wondered whether either of the men would come in to see her again tonight. Would she get another chance to speak with Georgios before Theo got at him? Or would she be left alone with her muddled thoughts, feeling more and more confused with every hour that passed?

Katie came and took her tray, pursing her lips at the unfinished food, but there was no sign of the rest of the Alexidis family. Miranda had a feeling that Theo was deliberately keeping them out of her way.

She was almost asleep when Eleni eventually popped her head round the door. ‘
Kalinikta
, Miranda,’ she said softly. ‘I’m sorry I didn’t come up before. Nikos is here. I’ll bring him to see you tomorrow.’ And although Eleni had professed not to love Nikos there were certainly stars in her big ebony eyes. Miranda was pleased for her, but it merely served to emphasise her own unhappiness.

For some reason her ankle was more painful than it had been the previous night, keeping her awake for long hours, so that by daybreak she felt a physical wreck.

She heard footsteps pass her door as the various members of the household got up, but none came in to see her, and when she heard the helicopter she resigned herself to another eight hours at least before seeing either Theo or Georgios again.

After breakfast Eleni came in with Nikos, who proved to be a very likeable person; short, and with more weight on him than either of the Alexidis brothers, but handsome the way all Greeks seemed to be, and with a pleasing personality.

‘Miranda, Eleni has told me about you. How unfortunate you hurt your ankle. It is not too painful, I hope?’

She smiled and shook her head. ‘Not so bad now as it has been during the night. I could not sleep.’

‘You should have called someone,’ said Eleni at once. ‘Mother has sleeping tablets, you could have taken one of those—or at least some painkillers. I’ll ask Katie to leave you some tonight, just in case.’

And who would have heard her call in this great house? Theo, perhaps? His room was nearest. But there was no way that she wanted him in her room in the middle of the night.

Nikos spoke again. ‘It is a shame that you’re confined to your bed. I had intended taking Eleni out, but I think perhaps we should stay here and keep you company. If you like I will help you downstairs. You can sit by the pool while Eleni and I swim. You would like that?’

Miranda smiled and nodded. It would be a long day otherwise, and she really needed something to take her mind off her problems. ‘You are kind. Perhaps Katie could help me dress?’ Lying on a lounger by the pool would be no more exhausting than lying here in bed, and it would certainly be far more interesting.

Eleni swam well and she and Nikos fooled about happily. How Miranda wished she was not compelled to rest! The water looked so inviting, catching the brilliance of the sun as Eleni and Nikos churned its surface. It was difficult to believe that there had been such a devastating storm yesterday.

Katie brought out the iced drinks and when the sun got too hot Nikos moved her lounger into the shade. Tall cypresses gave the landscape an interesting shape and birds of paradise flowers, geraniums, and hosts of other exotic flowers added colour.

Lazily she watched sparrows fight and squabble, was entranced by the enormous leaps of giant grasshoppers, and the small colourful butterflies flitting from flower to flower. Her pleasure was marred only by thoughts of Theo and Georgios.

They ate lunch on the verandah—tomato salad and crusty fresh bread, followed by as much fruit and cheese as they could eat. Miranda found her appetite returning and did justice to the food Katie supplied.

Afterwards Nikos took her back to her room for the usual siesta. She slept heavily and when she awoke felt completely refreshed.

He had said he would help her downstairs again for dinner, and Miranda had agreed, convinced that the doctor was being unnecessarily cautious in making her rest for a whole week. It was not as though she was doing anything energetic. Simply moving from one room to another could surely do the baby no harm? It was boring lying in bed. They all had their own lives to lead, she could not expect them to spend their time with her.

Katie would be along shortly to help her get dressed, so she began to plan in her mind what to wear. It surprised her when the door opened and Theo came in, and the ready smile she had assumed for the maid’s benefit turned quickly to a scowl. But there was no way she could ignore the sudden leaping of her pulses, her response to him was automatic.

‘I’m sorry you’re not pleased to see me,’ he said pleasantly. ‘I thought I would keep you company for an hour before dinner.’

‘Why?’ she shot suspiciously. Never before had he gone out of his way to be nice.

‘Does there have to be a reason?’ The bronze eyes were not so hard as usual, although they still held that piercing intensity that seemed to bore into her.

She desperately tried to tear her eyes away from his face. He could set her on fire without knowing he was doing it, and it was difficult, if not impossible, to hide her feelings. ‘From you, yes. You’ve never made a secret of the fact that you’re anxious to get rid of me. There has to be some devious motive behind your being here now. Don’t try to cloak it with niceties, because it won’t work.’

‘Really, Miranda, your opinion of me is far from flattering.’ But he did not look perturbed, on the contrary his lips curved with amusement.

Miranda could not believe he was genuine, and her frown deepened. ‘It was meant that way,’ she said tightly. ‘Tell me why you’re here and let’s get it over with.’

He was already dressed for dinner, his crisp white shirt with its fine embroidery detail complementing his bronzed skin. For the moment the collar was open, revealing an expanse of tightly muscled chest and the gold medallion on its heavy chain resting snugly against it.

She could smell the freshness of him, noted the way his hair, still damp from a shower, followed faithfully the lines of his well-shaped head, and every nerve in her body responded.

He was compellingly male, and no woman in her right senses would be able to resist him. Even while married to his brother Miranda could not deny the hungering of her senses, and she knew that above all else she wanted to be taken into his arms.

His smile widened. ‘I spoke the truth. Strange as it apparently seems to you, I thought you could maybe do with some company. I’ll go, if that is what you wish.’

‘No!’ exclaimed Miranda before she could stop herself. ‘I—I’d—like you to stay.’ She lowered her lashes as she spoke, anxious to hide her eagerness, glad he could not hear the pounding of her heart as she thought about the pleasure of an hour of his company. If they weren’t arguing it could be very sweet indeed.

She risked a glance at him and saw complacency, masked immediately by indifference, but he had guessed what her reaction would be! It was disconcerting that he knew her as well, if not better, than she knew herself.

He drew a chair up close to her bed and as he did so Miranda slid further down between the sheets, tucking them beneath her chin, only the tips of her fingers and the pale oval of her face visible, her golden hair spread out across the pillow.

‘You act as though I might take advantage of your recumbent state. Don’t you trust me, Miranda?’

She eyed him steadily, mentally crossing her fingers that her quickened heartbeats were not reflected on her face. It was incredible the way she reacted simply by looking at him, as though electric impulses shot from him to her, triggering off a whole host of emotions over which she had no control.

‘I think you know the answer to that,’ she said. ‘You’re hiding something from me. You’re forcing Georgios to deny me. Quite how you’re doing it, what hold you have over him, I don’t know, but believe me, I shall not give up until I receive a satisfactory explanation.’

‘I was not talking about that, as you well know.’ A smile softened the harsh contours of his face, white teeth gleamed in the light from the bedside lamp which had been switched on as she slept. He reached out and touched her fingers which still desperately clutched the edge of the sheet. ‘I was talking about you—and me.’

Miranda’s eyes shot wide as she quickly slid her hands out of sight, the swift current his touch evoked sending rivers of excitement down her spine. ‘If that’s the case, then no, I don’t trust you,’ she cried. Or was it herself she did not trust?

This awakening of her senses was confusing, this leaping response from her to him. She wondered whether he felt it too, or if his was a deliberate attempt to prove she was not in love with Georgios, to make clear that she was as willing to enjoy his attentions as anyone else’s.

Was that behind his visit now? Was that why there was a calculating gleam in his eyes? Or was it merely the artificial light playing tricks?

‘Aren’t you jumping to conclusions?’ he mocked. ‘Because I stroke your hand it does not mean I want to leap into bed, although I’m not saying the thought is unpleasant. But as you’re likely to be here for a few days yet I thought we might call a truce to our constant hostilities.’

‘Why?’ demanded Miranda, hiding her embarrassment behind annoyance. He had deliberately made her feel that she had read more into his suggestion than was meant.

‘Perhaps because I—feel sorry for you?’

‘Like hell you do,’ Miranda snapped. ‘You can’t wait to get rid of me. Exactly what your game is now I don’t know, but ’

‘You’re on your guard?’

There was still that aggravating smile which made him look human. For reasons known only to himself he chose to be nice to her. ‘Every second,’ she declared stoutly. ‘You can sit and talk by all means, but that’s all.’

He shrugged and settled back in his seat, elbows resting on the arms, long fingers linked.

Miranda contrarily felt disappointment that he had given in so easily, and unbidden came memories of his kisses. Quite unconsciously she ran the tip of her tongue over her lips, a vague ache in the pit of her stomach, which told her in no uncertain terms that she was sexually attracted to this man.

She ought never to have invited him to stay. It was sheer madness. She should have known how she would react. He was deeply and disturbingly masculine, with a compelling virility that could not be ignored. No woman could possibly look at those sensual lips or dare a glance into his hooded mysterious eyes without feeling a response of some sort. He was a wildly exciting male animal, with long lethal limbs that at this moment were deceptively relaxed, but could become galvanised into action without so much as the flicker of an eyelash.

No one would ever know what Theo thought, he hid his feelings behind a mask. She had caught a glimpse behind on only rare occasions. It softened when he spoke to his mother, became interested when he discussed shipping with Georgios, but for the biggest part of the time his emotions were hidden.

What had caused the change this evening she had no idea, all she knew was that he created havoc with her own emotions. She was in an extremely vulnerable position, at his mercy almost. If he did choose to exert his undoubted strength there was little she could do about it.

‘The real reason I came to see you,’ he said suddenly, ‘is because my mother is extremely disturbed over your pregnancy. She has asked me to try and trace your husband.’

Miranda’s eyes clouded. ‘I’ve not intentionally misled Mrs Alexidis. I wouldn’t do that, she’s a dear old lady, and I like her a lot.’

‘But you don’t respect her enough to tell her the truth?’ There was hardness in his tone now.

‘Would she believe it, the real truth, any more than you do?’ protested Miranda. ‘I couldn’t tell your mother I was married to Georgios, could I, when he hasn’t told her himself? I wanted to sort it out with him first—except that we rarely have the chance to be alone. He must hate you, Theo, ruling his life. You take him to work with you, you bring him back, you tell him when it’s time for dinner, you probably tell him when to go to bed and when to get up. Isn’t he allowed a mind of his own?’

Theo drew a harsh breath. ‘Georgios needs a guiding hand. I can’t explain now, but believe me, there is. a very good reason why I am keeping you two apart.’

‘So you do admit that you’re deliberately stopping him from seeing me?’ Miranda sat up exultantly, forgetting she was in her nightie. ‘Is that fair? I think I ought to tell him about the baby. It might make him come to his senses, realise that he’s a man and can no longer let you rule his life.’

‘I wouldn’t do that if I were you.’ Theo’s eyes glittered dangerously. ‘There are many things that you don’t know, a lot of reasons why Georgios must not be told.’

‘Such as?’ demanded Miranda loudly.

‘I can’t tell you,’ he said. ‘I just wish you hadn’t come.’ He looked amazingly sad for a moment. ‘Let me send you home. I’ll make sure that you want for nothing. Both you and the baby will be well looked after.’

She eyed him coldly, sick with disgust. ‘Is that an admission that Georgios is the father? Why don’t you want anyone to know? Is it a crime he’s committed? Had you decided who he should marry, the same as you did for your sisters? And now, because he had the guts to make a stand for himself, you’re denying him the pleasure of his wife and child?’