[English] The Greek Billionaire's Innocent Rrincess

The Greek Billionaire's Innocent Rrincess
The Greek Billionaire's Innocent Rrincess Page 20



black leather sofas and silver furnishings. It was a typical bachelor pad designed for a busy

executive and not the sort of place she could imagine bringing up a baby. She remembered the

shabby but comfortable palace nursery where she had spent her childhood: toys strewn across the

floor and the vast bookshelf stuffed with her beloved fairy tales. Tears welled in her eyes when

she recalled how her father had visited the nursery every evening to read to her, even if he’d had

to interrupt important meetings to do so. She couldn’t imagine Nikos doing the same for their

child, and she could not picture them living here together, playing happy families.

‘There will be no need for you to spend much time in here,’ he informed her when he ushered

her into the gleaming, stainless-steel kitchen. ‘My butler and cook, Sotiri, takes care of

everything on the domestic front. I’ll introduce you to him later.’

He continued on down the hall, past the elegant dining room, and three generous-sized

bedrooms, one of which Kitty supposed would be a nursery when the baby was born. At the far

end of the corridor Nikos flung open the remaining door— and Kitty came to an abrupt halt in

the doorway.

The master bedroom overlooked the Acropolis which, now that dusk had fallen, was illuminated

by spotlights and gleamed gold against the indigo sky. It was a breathtaking sight, but Kitty’s

attention was riveted by the enormous bed that dominated the room, with its leather headboard

and black silk sheets. Floor-to-ceiling mirrors covered the length of one wall, reflecting the

bed—and its occupants, she realised, her heart lurching when she spied the bottle of champagne

cooling in an ice bucket. It was a room designed for seduction, and she wondered how many

other women Nikos had brought here and whether they had paused to admire the view before

they had joined him on that huge bed.

She stared at him, her heart hammering in her chest as she wondered if he was anticipating

taking her to bed right now.

‘The maid unpacked the trunks sent over from the palace and put your belongings in your

dressing room. Come, I’ll show you.’ Nikos walked over to a door at the far end of the master

bedroom, and Kitty hurried after him, grateful for the reprieve. The dressing room was spacious,

fitted with oak wardrobes, a matching dressing table, and a large sofa, while another door led to

the en suite bathroom. Slowly some of her panic receded when she realised that she would have a

measure of privacy.

Nikos had opened the wardrobes and was studying their meagre contents with a frown. ‘This

can’t be all your clothes. Why didn’t you send everything over from Aristo?’

‘That is everything,’ Kitty said tightly. ‘I’ve never taken much interest in fashion.’

‘Well, I suggest you start.’ He flicked impatiently through the hangers. ‘I appreciate that you are

still in mourning for your father, but your entire wardrobe seems to consist of black outfits.’

‘They’re not mourning clothes. I wear black because it makes me look slimmer.’ Kitty could

feel the stain of hot colour flood her cheeks at his scathing expression.

‘Black doesn’t suit you,’ he stated bluntly, ‘and I can see we need to go shopping. I do a lot of

socialising, and my diary is already filling up with invitations from people who are all eager to

meet my princess bride.’

Kitty’s heart sank at his words, and she couldn’t help thinking that the ‘people’ Nikos had

mentioned were likely to be disappointed when they met her and discovered that she was not the

glamorous, sophisticated royal they expected.

Nikos strolled over to her, and the butterflies in her stomach leapt into life once more when he

took her hand in his and led her firmly through the connecting door, into the master bedroom. ‘I

approve of the outfit you are wearing now,’ he murmured, his voice so deep and sensuous that

Kitty could not prevent the tremor that ran through her, and she caught her breath when he slid

his hand over her shoulder and down the front of her jacket.

‘Liss chose it for me,’ she mumbled.

He laughed softly, ‘In that case it’s a pity your sister did not choose all your clothes.’

At his words Kitty felt a familiar stab of jealousy. Liss was beautiful and glamorous, and she

had exquisite taste in clothes. If she had been at the royal ball six weeks ago, Nikos would almost

certainly have noticed her, and he would never have walked down to the beach and made love to

a waitress called Rina.

All her old insecurities came flooding back. She hadn’t needed Vasilis to tell her that she wasn’t

Nikos’s type. She was only too aware that she did not have a model’s figure like Liss, or

Shannon Marsh, and she could not bear the idea of him comparing her plump curves with his

American mistress’s gorgeous, toned body.

Nikos had discarded his jacket, and her mouth went dry when he began to casually unbutton his

shirt.

‘I want to sleep alone tonight,’ she told him baldly, her heart jerking painfully beneath her ribs.

‘It’s been a long day and I’m exhausted.’ She felt as though she had been on an emotional roller

coaster and now her limbs were trembling with reaction.

Nikos had stilled at her startling announcement, and now his brows rose quizzically. ‘In that

case why didn’t you sleep on the journey here? Your rather childish pretence to be asleep didn’t

fool me for a second,’ he added.

The note of impatience in his voice triggered Kitty’s temper. It was all right for him. He had got

his own way on everything. Her life had been turned upside down, but their marriage was barely going to have any impact on him at all.

‘You’re right; I did pretend to be asleep—so that I wouldn’t have to talk to you,’ she said

wildly. ‘And the very idea of going to bed with you makes me feel ill.’

Nikos’s jaw tightened as he sought to control his anger. He had no patience for feminine wiles—

or tantrums. ‘That’s not the impression you gave me when I kissed you in the church,’ he said

silkily. ‘What has caused your sudden change of heart, I wonder?’

Kitty blushed as she remembered how she had responded to him. She had been blissfully

unaware then that he had spent the days before their wedding with his American mistress. Nikos

had ceased unbuttoning his shirt but it was open to the waist and her eyes were drawn to his

broad, golden-skinned chest. He was so gorgeous, and she was so very ordinary, she thought

miserably. The idea of undressing in front of him and exposing her body made her cringe.

‘What’s the real issue here, Kitty?’ he demanded, frustrated by his inability to understand her.

It was clear from the determined set of his jaw that he was prepared to wait all night if necessary

for an explanation. Kitty hesitated for a moment and then muttered, ‘At the reception, when I

went to change out of my wedding dress, I met someone—a family friend…’ Her voice faltered

at the idea of calling loathsome Vasilis Sarondakos a friend. ‘I learned something about you ,’ she revealed hesitantly, ‘facts about your background that I was unaware of, such as that you had

grown up in poverty and been in trouble with the law.’

In the tense silence that stretched between them Kitty felt increasingly awkward, and she blurted

out the doubts that Vasilis had planted in her mind. ‘I also learned of the rumours that you owe

your business success to a wealthy heiress, Larissa Petridis, who bequeathed you her father’s

shipping company when she died because you had been her toy-boy lover.’

‘Who was this friend, I wonder?’ Nikos drawled in a dangerously soft tone. His brows arched in

an expression of arrogant amusement but the hard gleam in his eyes warned Kitty that he was

furious, and she took an involuntary step backwards. ‘At least have the decency to name the

individual who has gone *****ch trouble to stab me in the back.’

Kitty hesitated. ‘It was a friend of Sebastian’s— Vasilis Sarondakos.’

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Nikos gave a harsh laugh. ‘Sarondakos is no friend of your brother’s. Sebastian only included

him on the guest list because King Aegeus was good friends with Vasilis’s father.’

That was the reason she had never told anyone about Vasilis’s assault on her, Kitty thought

bleakly. Vasilis had played on his family’s royal connections for too long, but had he been lying

about Nikos?

‘Are the rumours true?’ she asked in a choked voice.

‘The details of my background are no secret.’ Nikos gave a careless shrug. He appeared relaxed

but Kitty sensed his simmering anger, and she took another step backwards until her legs hit the

end of the bed and she had nowhere else to go.

‘I grew up in the slums, in con***ions you cannot imagine,’ he told her harshly. ‘How could you

know—a princess who has spent her whole life in a royal palace enjoying the trappings of wealth

and luxury? My mother worked all the hours she could to feed and clothe me, but she was young

and poorly educated, forced to struggle alone after the man who had seduced her—my father—

abandoned her, and her family disowned her when they learned she was pregnant.’

Nikos’s face hardened. ‘You have no idea what it is like to be hungry, to roam the streets like a

stray dog and steal food *****rvive. I am not ashamed of my background, and the hunger in my

belly fuelled my determination to make a better life for me and my mother. But it’s true that

there was a time in my late teens when I was drawn to the street gangs, and if it had not been for

Larissa Petridis I could easily be in prison right now rather than the head of a multimillion pound

company.’

Kitty stared at Nikos with wide, troubled eyes. ‘So you did seduce a rich older woman and

became her lover in the hope of inheriting her company?’

‘My relationship with Larissa is not open for discussion,’ Nikos said coldly. ‘I admit I inherited

Petridis Shipping from Larissa, but although she was an amazing person, she was an appalling

businesswoman and when I took over the company it was on the verge of bankruptcy. I worked

long and hard to turn it around, and I take all the cre*** for the fact that Petridis Angelaki

Shipping has recently announced record profits.’

While he had been speaking Nikos had moved closer, and now Kitty realised that she was

trapped between him and the bed. She could feel the anger emanating from him and, heart

thumping, she edged sideways and gave a cry of alarm when his hand shot out and gripped her

chin. ‘ Let me go.’

‘What’s the matter, Kitty?’ Nikos demanded grimly. ‘Are you afraid you’ll get your hands dirty

if you touch me now you know I’m of peasant stock rather than a blue-blooded aristocrat?’

‘Of course I don’t think that,’ she denied instantly. She didn’t care about his social status, or

where he came from—it was where he had been for the weeks leading up to their wedding and

the woman he had spent his time with that bothered her.

‘We should never have married,’ she said wildly, her stomach churning at the images in her

mind of him making love to Shannon. ‘I should never have allowed myself to be talked into it…I

want an annulment.’

‘Because you think I’m not good enough for you?’ he queried furiously. ‘I know you are a

princess but I had no idea that you are also a spoilt, over-indulged snob.’

‘That’s not the reason,’ she snapped, stung by his scathing tone. She reached into her handbag

for the magazine that Vasilis had given her, all the anger and misery that had been building

inside her for the past few hours exploding in a torrent of emotion. ‘You’ve made a fool of me,

Nikos—not just here in Greece, but everywhere. Glamorous magazine has a worldwide

circulation and everyone, including most of the guests at our wedding, will have seen these …’

She hurled the magazine at him, open at the page of the damning photos. ‘Everyone must have

been laughing at me behind my back— fat, frumpy Kitty whose new husband spent the weeks

preceding the wedding flaunting his affair with his beautiful blonde mistress.

‘No wonder there’s widespread speculation about the real reason you married me. Most people

will have put two and two together and realised I’m pregnant. Like me, everyone who has seen

those pictures will know you never had any intention of being a faithful husband.’

Kitty took a deep, shuddering breath, shocked to realise that her whole body was trembling and

her heart was beating so hard that she could feel it slamming beneath her ribs. It couldn’t be

good for the baby. She placed a hand protectively on her stomach and her fury drained away as a

wave of nausea swept over her. She could hear a peculiar rushing noise in her ears and suddenly

strong hands were on her shoulders, forcing her to sit down on the bed, and her head was pushed

down towards her knees so that her blood rushed to her brain.

‘Take a deep breath…and another.’ Nikos’s voice sounded harsh with impatience, and silly tears

welled in Kitty’s eyes and slid down her cheeks when he continued savagely, ‘If you carry on

like this you could lose the baby.’

‘Maybe you’d be relieved if I did,’ Kitty whispered. ‘At least then we could end this façade of a

marriage.’

He swore long and hard and leaned down so that his face was level with hers. ‘Accuse me of

whatever else you like,’ he said grittily, ‘but never that. Our child was conceived by accident but

I do not regret it, even if you do.’

‘I don’t—of course I don’t,’ she denied quickly, scrubbing her wet face with the back of her

hand. ‘And I know you want the baby—just as I know it’s the only reason you married me.’

Nikos stared at her, his expression unfathomable. ‘You almost passed out. I’m going to call the

doctor.’

Kitty shook her head frantically. ‘I don’t need a doctor. I’m fine now, I was just upset—that’s

all.’

‘About the photos?’ Nikos glanced down at the copy of the magazine in his hands. ‘Where did

you get this? I’m surprised you read this sort of trash.’

‘I don’t usually. Vasilis gave it to me.’ Kitty flushed beneath Nikos’s hard stare. She felt

horribly embarrassed by her loss of temper, and wished he would go away and leave her alone,

but the determined gleam in his eyes warned her he was not going to let the matter drop. ‘I knew

you had flown to America after I’d agreed to marry you, but I would have preferred you to have

been honest about your reasons for going,’ she said stiffly. ‘Obviously you didn’t go on business,

but to see your mistress, and you didn’t even bother to be discreet about it,’ she added bitterly.

‘You’ve made me a laughing stock, Nikos, and I’ll never forgive you.’

When he made no reply she lifted her head to find him studying the magazine photos intently—

and probably comparing her to the gorgeous Shannon, she thought bleakly. He looked at her, and

his dark eyes seemed to bore into her skull, as if he could divine her thoughts.

‘It’s true that I went to the US with the express intention of seeing Shannon,’ he said steadily.

‘We had enjoyed a relationship for several months before I met you. It was a casual affair; we

both lead busy lives and we met up whenever we happened to be in the same country. But I owed

it to her to end it face to face rather than by a long-distance phone call.’

Kitty’s heart jerked at the words ‘end it’ but the photos still haunted her. ‘In those pictures you

and Shannon are rather more than face to face ,’ she said sarcastically. ‘The two of you are

practically naked and superglued together. I don’t care —you understand,’ she insisted sharply. ‘I just hate the idea that our wedding guests felt sorry for me— Princess Plump who couldn’t hold

onto her man even before the trip down the aisle.’

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‘ Theos, Kitty, why do you have such a low opinion of yourself?’ Nikos growled impatiently.

‘You have a fantastic body and you know damn well I can’t keep my hands off you. If I’d had a

better hold on my self-control the night we met, we might not be in this mess now,’ he added

tersely. ‘These pictures are old .’ He waved the magazine at her. ‘They were taken several months ago, soon after Shannon and I had met, and at the height of our affair. When I visited her three

weeks ago to tell her I was getting married, we met in New York. We were nowhere near the

Caribbean beach shown in the photos.’

‘But the article gives the impression that the pictures were taken recently,’ Kitty said faintly, her head reeling.

Nikos shrugged. ‘Of course. Publications like this print rubbish all the time, and unfortunately

there’s nothing to stop them from digging out archive photos. The written piece is careful not to

suggest that it is actually referring to the pictures above it. I’ll contact my lawyers and see if we can get an apology from the magazine, but to be honest I’ve learned to ignore the paparazzi and I

suggest you do the same.’

That was easy for him to say—he hadn’t been made to feel an idiot. But it seemed pointless to

say so, and Kitty suddenly felt so drained that she could barely think straight. She could not

bring herself to look at Nikos, and she gave a little start of surprise when he hunkered down

beside her and slid his hand beneath her chin to tilt her face to his.

‘I married you today with every intention of being a faithful husband,’ he said with a quiet

intensity that shook her. ‘I admit I did not live the life of a monk before I met you, but now there is the baby to consider, and I will do my duty towards you and our child. Shannon is in my past,’

he continued as Kitty tried to ignore the dull feeling inside her at his emphasis on the word

‘duty’. ‘You are my future, Kitty.’

His hand lay on her thigh, and seemed to burn her flesh through her silk skirt. He looked

devastatingly ***y with his dark hair falling over his brow, and she was seriously tempted to

place her hand on his bare chest and run her fingers through the dark hairs that arrowed down his

flat abdomen and disappeared beneath the waistband of his trousers.

She knew he wanted to take her to bed, could see the feral hunger in his eyes and hear the

sudden quickening of his breath. But did he want to make love to her because he desired her, or

because he believed it was his right to have *** with his wife whom he had only married out

of duty ?

‘But we’re not like most newly married couples,’ Kitty said carefully. ‘We married because I’m

pregnant, and I feel that we should wait a while before we—’ she could feel her face burning

beneath his sardonic stare ‘—before we have relations.’

‘Can I take it that by “have relations” you mean, have ***?’

‘We barely know each other,’ Kitty snapped, stung by the mockery in his tone. In her agitation

she jumped up from the bed, and he straightened up so that he towered over her.

‘Agreed, but we will get to know each other a lot quicker if we share a bed,’ Nikos said tersely.

‘That isn’t the “getting to know” I mean.’ Kitty bit her lip, aware from his grim expression that

Nikos’s desire was rapidly turning to anger. ‘In a few months from now we will be parents.

Surely we should spend some time before the baby comes learning about each other’s thoughts

and feelings? There has to be more to our relationship than just ***.’

The flame that had warmed his eyes died, and now they were dark and icy cold. ‘Actually there

doesn’t,’ he told her harshly. ‘***ual awareness drew us together in the first place, and the child

that was created as a result of our passion is the only other link between us.’

He saw the flash of hurt in her eyes, and for a fleeting second something tugged at his heart, but

he instantly dismissed it. Kitty’s suggestion of sharing their thoughts and feelings was his idea of hell. His thoughts were his own; he’d learned long ago, when he was growing up on the streets,

to keep his own counsel and trust no one—and that lesson had been brutally reinforced by his ex-

wife.

‘We know we are ***ually compatible,’ he continued in a coldly clinical tone, ‘and I believe that

is as good a basis for marriage as any. The chemistry between us burns as fiercely now as it did

on the night of the ball,’ he insisted when she shook her head. ‘But perhaps this will convince

you.’

‘Nikos…’ He moved before she had time to react, and her cry of protest was lost when he

snaked his arm around her waist and lowered his head to claim her mouth in a searing kiss. His

lips were firm, moving over hers with fierce urgency, while his tongue probed the stubborn line

of her mouth with an implacable determination to force her response.

And it was growing harder and harder to resist him. Crushed against his chest, Kitty could feel

the heat that emanated from him, and smell his clean, male scent—a mixture of soap and

aftershave and another, more subtle scent of male pheromones— that inflamed her senses. When

he had kissed her in the church she had wanted him to never stop, and now she felt that same

sense of being swept away to a place where nothing but Nikos and the mastery of his touch

mattered. Her mind and body were locked in a battle where caution waged against the sensations

he was arousing in her and she could feel her resolve slipping away.

He slid his hand beneath her hair and cupped her nape, angling her head so that he could deepen

the kiss to something so flagrantly erotic that Kitty’s will crumbled and she sagged against him,

parting her mouth beneath his. She was barely aware of him unfastening her jacket and sliding it

over her shoulders. And then somehow they were on the bed and he had removed her bra, and

she gasped when he cupped her breasts in his palms and stroked his fingers lightly across her

nipples, so that they swelled to tight, tingling peaks.

He was her husband; they were tied together because of the child they had created during a brief

passionate encounter, and maybe he was right, maybe *** would be a start to them building a

relationship. She was so confused by what she wanted, but the solid ridge of his arousal nudging

her thigh drove the uncertainty from her mind and replaced it with piercing desire that caused

molten heat to flood between her legs. She gave up trying to fight him and the dictates of her

treacherous body, and curled her arms around his neck, but instead of responding to the tentative

foray of her tongue into his mouth, Nikos lifted his head and stared down at her, his dark eyes

glittering.

‘Yes, the chemistry is still there, isn’t it, agape ?’ he drawled, his mouth curving into a mocking smile when she blinked at him dazedly. To her shocked disbelief he rolled off her and sauntered

out of the room, leaving her lying half naked on the bed. He returned almost instantly with what

looked like a pile of laundry in his hands.

‘Sheets,’ he told her. ‘You’ll need them if you’re going to make up a bed on the sofa in your

dressing room.’ He paused and his eyes trailed an insolent path over her flushed cheeks and bare

breasts where her nipples were still jutting provocatively. ‘Unless you’ve changed your mind

about wanting to sleep alone, of course?’

‘I…’ Kitty’s tongue seemed to have cleaved to the roof of her mouth, and she felt sick with

humiliation that she had succumbed so easily to his potent charm.

‘Still not sure, I see.’ Nikos laughed softly as he walked over to the bed, dropped the sheets into

her lap and scooped her up into his arms, blithely ignoring her sharp cry of protest as her battered pride finally woke up. ‘We both know that I could make love to you for the rest of the night, and

you would be willing and responsive in my arms,’ he told her with breathtaking arrogance that

made her want to hit him, ‘but I don’t want a reluctant bride. I have never taken a woman against

her will in my life, and I don’t intend to start with you, agape .’

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He strode though the connecting doors into her dressing room and dumped her unceremoniously

on the sofa. ‘You know where to find me when you’ve admitted the truth to yourself.’

‘The truth being that I find you irresistible, I suppose?’ Kitty said grittily as she clutched the

sheets to her breasts. She hated him, and hated herself more for her pathetic inability to resist

him. ‘You’ll be waiting a long time.’

In reply he dropped a brief, stinging kiss on her lips that left her aching for more. ‘I don’t think so,’ he said confidently. ‘The sofa pulls out to a bed, by the way, and it’s extremely comfortable.

Sleep well, Kitty—’ he turned back in the doorway and gave her another mocking smile as he

murmured ‘—if you can.’

CHAPTER NINE

THEsofa bed was as comfortable as Nikos had promised, but Kitty tossed and turned beneath

the sheets for most of the night as she fought the urge to bury her face in the pillows and cry.

Nikos was so in control, and he made her feel so stupid. She didn’t even know now why she had

made such a fuss about sleeping with him; it was just some deeply ingrained instinct for self-

protection that warned her against giving herself to a man who might be her husband, but was a

man she knew very little about.

Eventually she fell into a fitful doze and when she woke sunlight was streaming through the

blinds. She took her time showering and drying her hair, but she could not put off facing Nikos

for ever, and, spurred on by hunger, and the knowledge that she must eat for the baby, she

ventured out of her room.

She found him sitting at the breakfast table on the terrace, engrossed in his newspaper. Dressed

in pale jeans and a cream shirt that contrasted with his bronzed skin, he was impossibly

handsome, and Kitty halted in the living room while she tried to control her desperate awareness

of him.

He stood up when she stepped onto the terrace, and pulled out a chair for her. She had steeled

herself for a sarcastic enquiry about how she had slept, and she knew from the dark shadows

beneath her eyes that he would guess she’d barely slept at all, but to her relief he made no

comment about the previous night.

‘There is fruit and yoghurt and fresh rolls, but if you would like something cooked I’ll tell

Sotiri,’ he greeted her.

‘This will be fine,’ Kitty mumbled, glancing at the dish of mixed summer berries and the

creamy yoghurt, ‘but no coffee, thank you. I haven’t been able to drink it since I fell pregnant.’

‘Have you suffered much from morning sickness?’

‘Not really—I’ve felt nauseous a few times, but unfortunately it hasn’t affected my appetite. I’m

already bursting out of most of my clothes.’ She broke off, blushing furiously when Nikos’s gaze

hovered on her blouse that was too tight and was gaping over her breasts. ‘No doubt I’ll get a lot

bigger yet,’ she muttered dismally as she resisted pouring honey onto her yoghurt.

Nikos’s eyes narrowed at her rueful tone, and he voiced the question that had been gnawing

away at him. ‘How do you feel about this baby, Kitty?’

‘I don’t know,’ she replied slowly. ‘To be honest, it all seems to be part of a dream and I keep

thinking that one day soon I’ll wake up and find I’m at the palace on Aristo with nothing to think

about other than my research work for the museum.’

‘Is that what you wish?’

‘I would be lying if I didn’t say that part of me wishes I was back there,’ she admitted. ‘Aristo

was my home for my whole life and it was a wrench to leave and come to somewhere new. I

don’t know Athens at all, and from what I’ve seen it looks big and busy, and I’ll probably spend

my whole time getting lost.’

Nikos caught the wistful note in her voice, and for the first time he appreciated just how hard it

must have been for her to leave the island she loved. ‘I will do my best to help you settle here,’

he murmured. ‘I haven’t arranged a honeymoon, but I’ve taken some time off work so that I can

show you around the city.’ He paused, aware that for the first time in his life he felt awkward

about how to treat a woman. Kitty was not any woman, she was his wife, and in a few months

she would be the mother of his child. ‘I was thinking about what you said last night,’ he said

quietly. ‘And for the baby’s sake I think you are right *****ggest that we should get to know each

other better, and to become…friends.’

Friends! Kitty gave a little start of shock. If she was honest she could not imagine being friends with Nikos. He was too remote, too forbidding, and way too ***y for her to believe they could

establish a comfortable, friendly relationship. But wasn’t this what she wanted? she reminded

herself—an opportunity to learn more about the man behind the mask.

‘As for your pregnancy feeling unreal, it may seem more real after we have seen the

obstetrician,’ Nikos continued. ‘He has suggested an early scan to determine the date the baby is

due.’

‘That’s not hard to work out. There is only one possible date that I could have conceived…’

Once again hot colour flooded Kitty’s cheeks and she dared not meet Nikos’s gaze as she

recalled the passion they had shared in the **** on the night of the royal ball. He could have no

idea why she had refused to consummate their marriage last night, and no comprehension of her

shyness in front of him or her insecurities about her body. But if he felt impatient he hid it well, and the unexpected warmth of his smile stole her breath.

‘So what would you like to do today? I could show you the best places to shop in Athens.

Ermou Street has some excellent boutiques.’

‘If we are going to get to know each other better, then the first thing you should understand is

that I hate shopping,’ Kitty said firmly. ‘But I would like to explore Athens. Have you always

lived in the city?’

‘Yes.’ His smile faded. ‘But the streets where I grew up are not on the tourist trail, and I’m sure

you don’t want a tour of the slums.’

Was he ashamed of his background? Kitty wondered. ‘You aren’t responsible for the

circumstances of your birth,’ she murmured. ‘And you must be proud of all you have achieved.

You are one of Greece’s most successful businessmen.’

Nikos shrugged, but her words stayed in his mind. His success was phenomenal, but he had

never stopped to consider his achievements. He had always been focused on the next deal,

planning his next move up the corporate ladder. But he supposed he was proud—the boy from

the gutter who had clawed his way to the top. He had never had anyone to share his success with

before, but Kitty made him feel good about himself, and he realised suddenly that his new wife

might appear quiet and shy, but she was deeply perceptive.

He relaxed back in his seat and smiled at her again, noting how the sun made her hair gleam like

raw silk. ‘If it’s not to be shopping, where would you like to go?’

‘The Parthenon, the Temple of Zeus, the National Gardens.’ Kitty listed the famous landmarks.

‘You are a native Athenian, so I guess you know those places well.’

‘I certainly do, agape .’ He had never thought of himself as a native Athenian; he had always felt rootless and incomplete because he had no knowledge of who had fathered him. But it came to

Nikos then that he was proud of his city and he wanted to show it to Kitty, and one day to their

child who would be born here. ‘Let’s play tourists, then,’ he said as he stood and held out his

hand to her. ‘I understand that you miss Aristo, but I will make you fall in love with Athens.’

Would Nikos also make her fall in love with him? Kitty brooded three days later as they walked

around the National Archaeological Museum. He had been an enthusiastic guide showing her

around the sights of the city, and during the days that they had spent together he had revealed

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some of the real Nikos Angelaki. She now knew that he kept his body in shape by playing squash

and working out at the gym; that he liked sushi, and preferred to eat out with a few close friends

rather than attend the lavish parties he was regularly invited to.

Stavros, his chauffer, and Sotiri, his butler, were clearly devoted to him, and Kitty was

impressed that he engendered such loyalty from his staff. For such a wealthy and successful man,

he appreciated the simple things in life—good food, good friends—and she had discovered a

shared interest in contemporary films and authors, which had led to several long and interesting

discussions when she had forgotten her shyness and chatted to him animatedly.

Away from the apartment at least, they seemed to be developing the friendship he had

suggested, and even though she knew he was making an effort for the future, when they would

be parents to their child, she clung to the nuggets of himself that he was willing to share. But

back at the apartment the tension between them returned, brought about by the fierce ***ual

awareness that smouldered like a sleeping volcano between them and seemed in danger of

erupting at any moment.

It was a situation she had brought on herself, Kitty admitted, thinking of the previous night

when yet again she had been unable to sleep and had stared at the door connecting her room to

his, wondering if she would ever have the courage to walk through it and end the deadlock. But

she could not throw off her wariness. She was not afraid of the physical intimacy of ***, but she

feared that if she gave herself totally to Nikos he would have a power over her that she was not

ready to award him.

‘Where to next?’ His voice echoed faintly in the vast, marble-floored museum and broke into

her thoughts. ‘Shall we carry on into the Sculptures Collection, or do you want to rest now? You

look tired today, and for the baby’s sake you don’t want to overdo things.’

The only reason she was tired was because she had spent the night fantasising about him making

love to her, Kitty acknowledged silently, blushing beneath Nikos’s piercing gaze and praying he

could not read her mind as he seemed able to do.

‘I’d like to carry on,’ she told him. ‘Isn’t it incredible to think that some of these pieces date

back to the seventh century BC? We have a few ancient sculptures from the time of the Roman

and Byzantine Empires in Aristo’s museum, but the collection here in Greece is the most

important in the world, and I can’t tell you how thrilled I am to see it.’

‘I’m glad you find something in Athens thrilling, agape ,’ Nikos taunted softly, feeling a mixture of amusement and impatience when Kitty blushed again. She was staring at him with her big,

wary eyes; reminding him of a nervous deer poised to dash away should he venture too near.

At first, when she had refused to sleep with him, he had thought she was playing some sort of

game. He had met women who used *** as a weapon and had no compunction about withholding

it as a form of blackmail to get what they wanted, and he had cynically assumed that Kitty was

no different. But he had learned these past few days that his wife was different. He had never met anyone like her before, but he was growing more and more convinced that her sweet, shy nature

was not an act.

‘If you are bored, we could go—and I’ll come back another time,’ she said anxiously.

‘I’m not at all bored, agape . Your knowledge of your subject is quite astounding and you make a far more fascinating guide than the guidebook.’ He was surprised to realise that he was

speaking the truth. He enjoyed talking to Kitty and hearing about her work as a researcher at

Aristo’s Museum of History. She was fiercely intelligent and her passion for her work made her

interesting.

He did not often have meaningful conversations with women, Nikos owned. His ex-lovers had

invariably been models or socialites who talked predominantly about themselves or the latest

gossip in the tabloids, and he had allowed them to witter on, and made suitable responses, during

the necessary few dinner dates before he took them to bed.

With Kitty he could not give in to the urgent clamouring of his body and sweep her off to bed.

He did not understand why she was holding back. He knew that she wanted him, and had had as

little sleep as him for the past few nights, but he was not going to jump on her like some callow

youth at the mercy of his hormones. He was determined to wait until she gave some indication

that she had resolved the issues that clearly bothered her— and so he’d had no choice but to talk

to her, and to his amazement he had discovered that he liked her as a person and would value her

friendship.

‘Actually, there’s something in the next room that I want to show you,’ she told him as they

walked past the exhibits. ‘This little figurine was sculpted round about five hundred and forty

BC, and she was found about twenty years ago on Aristo—in the little fishing village, Varna. I

remember you said that your mother’s family came from there, and I thought you would be

interested to see a little piece of your heritage.’

‘My heritage?’ Nikos frowned. ‘I never knew my family in Varna. My grandparents cut off all

contact with my mother when she fell pregnant with me and I don’t suppose they even knew of

my existence.’

‘But even so, you have roots on Aristo,’ Kitty insisted. ‘I was thinking that it might be nice to

trace your family tree. I can trace my ancestors back for generations, but one day our child will

want to know about your side of the family.’

‘You won’t get far tracing my father. My mother took his identity with her to her grave,’ Nikos

said harshly.

‘That must be strange,’ Kitty said softly. ‘I imagine you feel as though a part of you is missing.

But to my mind that is even more reason to research your mother’s side—so that we can give our

child as complete a history as possible.’

She wandered off to look at the next exhibit, leaving Nikos staring after her. She was almost too

perceptive, he brooded. Not knowing the identity of his father had always haunted him and Kitty

had touched a nerve when she had guessed that he felt a part of him was missing. His child

would make him feel whole, but he was unnerved by the realisation that Kitty probably guessed

how much his baby meant to him.

The paparazzi were waiting for them when they walked out of the museum—a group of four or

five sitting astride motor-scooters, who started snapping photographs despite Nikos’s angry

demand to stop.

‘Someone must have recognised the car and tipped them off,’ Stavros growled after he had

opened the rear door for them to scramble inside, and then leapt into the driver’s seat, pulling

away from the kerb with a squeal of tyres.

‘Then it’s time to change the car,’ Nikos replied tersely as he glanced out of the back window at

the press-pack following close behind. He was used to a certain amount of media attention, but

his marriage to a princess had been headline news around the world. Pictures showing him and

Kitty together were selling for big money, and the photographers were growing increasingly

aggressive as they fought for the shot that could make them a fortune. ‘See if you can lose them,

Stavros.’

‘Aren’t we going back to the apartment now?’ Kitty queried, glancing at Nikos’s shuttered

expression.

‘I’m afraid you are not going to like where we are going next,’ he replied dryly, aware that the

camaraderie between them was about to be blown to pieces. ‘But the matter of your wardrobe

has to be addressed, agape , and we are going shopping.’

Stavros was a skilled driver who seemed to know every back street in Athens. Eventually he lost

the bikers and drew up in Kolonaki—an affluent district of the city famed for its designer

boutiques. For the next couple of hours Kitty trailed around the shops while Nikos selected

armfuls of outfits that she could tell from the bright colours and overtly ***y styles were not

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going *****it her.

‘Try them on,’ he bade her, the steely glint in his eyes warning her that arguing would be

useless. The head saleswoman was clearly overawed by him and whisked them off to a private

room so that Kitty could change in comfort. But when she stepped out from behind the curtain in

a tightfitting dress that left nothing to the imagination, she halted abruptly at the sight of Nikos sitting comfortably on the sofa, waiting for her.

‘What are you doing?’ she muttered beneath her breath, supremely conscious of the saleswoman

nearby, and the fact that her breasts were in danger of spilling out of the dress. She had enjoyed

his company at the museum, but shopping was a torture he had instigated, and she glared at him

crossly.

‘Giving my advice on what suits you,’ he replied blandly. ‘And having seen the clothes you

brought from Aristo, believe me, you need help.’ He trailed a deliberate path over her shapely

figure, his dark eyes scorching her, and to Kitty’s horror she felt her nipples harden.

‘Very nice.’ Nikos felt a shaft of desire surge through him as he pictured unlacing the ribbons

that held the front of the dress together and releasing her magnificent breasts. He shifted slightly in his chair. ‘We’ll definitely take this one,’ he told the saleswoman, his eyes still focused

intently on Kitty as ***ual tension crackled between them. She could feel her face grow hot, and

her blush deepened when he gave her a mocking smile. ‘Go and try on the next one,’ he ordered.

‘I haven’t got all day.’

By the time they left the boutique, followed by three of the shop staff laden with bags, Kitty was

flustered and furious. ‘I hope you enjoyed humiliating me,’ she muttered as they fought a path

through the crowd who had gathered to see one of Greece’s richest tycoons, and his royal bride.

‘How did I humiliate you?’ Nikos demanded impatiently.

‘By making me try on all those things and parade around in front of you as if you owned me.’

Kitty had felt excruciatingly self-conscious and convinced that he must have been comparing her

voluptuous curves with his numerous skinny, blonde ex-lovers. ‘None of the outfits you insisted

on buying suited me, and it was a waste of money. They’ll just sit at the back of the wardrobe

because I’ll never wear them.’

‘Oh, but you will, agape .’ He put a protective arm around her shoulder as someone in the crowd jostled her. Startled, Kitty glanced up and her eyes clashed with his mocking gaze. ‘In fact you’ll

wear the red silk evening dress tonight. We’ve been invited to a party in aid of one of the

charities I support, and all eyes will be on my wife.’

Kitty’s horrified protest died on her lips when they emerged from the shop and were half

blinded by the flash of a dozen cameras. The paparazzi had caught up with them. But fortunately

Stavros was there and used his massive frame to shoulder a path to the car where he wrenched

open the door so that Nikos could bundle Kitty inside.

‘Why are they so interested?’ Kitty cried as the car accelerated away and she watched the

photographers weaving dangerously in and out of the traffic on their motor-scooters, in hot

pursuit. ‘It’s not as if I’ve done anything to warrant such attention. I haven’t done something

wonderful for charity, or saved a life. I’m just drab, boring Kitty Karedes, who happens by an

accident of birth to be a princess.’

‘You are Kitty Angelaki now,’ Nikos reminded her, ‘and you are neither drab nor boring. But I

agree that people seem to be increasingly celebrity obsessed.’

‘The people on Aristo aren’t,’ Kitty muttered. ‘Nothing like this ever happened to me there. I

even used to ride around the island on my bike and the most attention anyone ever paid me was a

smile or a wave.’ She leaned her head back against the leather seat and placed her hand

protectively on her stomach, more shaken than she cared to admit by the overwhelming media

fascination with her. She felt desperately homesick for the peace and tranquillity of the palace,

and the freedom that she had taken for granted on Aristo. Of course she’d had her royal duties to

perform, but attending the opening of a new wing of the hospital had attracted only mild interest

from the Aristan press and she wasn’t used to being in the constant glare of the media spotlight.

She wished she could go home, back to where she felt safe. But home was now Nikos’s elegant

but characterless apartment that felt more like a five-star hotel than a comfortable bolt hole, and

her misery was compounded by the news that tonight Nikos was taking her to a party where she

would meet many of his sophisticated friends.

Sotiri greeted them when they walked into the apartment. ‘Some boxes have arrived from Aristo

for you, Miss Kitty,’ he said, throwing open the door to the living room where four huge trunks

were stacked.

‘My books…’ Kitty forgot the horrors of the shopping trip as she tore open one of the boxes and

smiled at the sight of the dozens of books packed inside.

‘ Theos! Are all these crates full of books?’ Nikos picked up a battered hardback. ‘Where are you going to put them all? The apartment is spacious, but it’s not big enough to house an entire

library.’

‘They’re the books that I use for my research work, and I need them here,’ Kitty said

stubbornly.

‘Well, there’s no room for them in my study. I’ll ask Sotiri to move the boxes into one of the

spare bedrooms, and I suppose we can turn it into an office for you if you intend to carry on

working—although I doubt you’ll have much free time, and of course financially there is no need

for you to work.’

‘I definitely want to carry on writing my book about the early history of the Adamas Islands,

and I’d like to continue with my advisory work for Aristo’s museum, certainly until the baby is

born,’ Kitty said slowly. ‘If you are at your office all day, what else will I do?’

‘I assumed you would want to get involved in charity work. A friend of mine, Melina Demakis,

is a well-known social hostess in Athens who organises lunches and other fund-raising activities

for a number of charities. I’ll ask her to contact you.’

Kitty’s heart sank at the prospect of filling her days lunching with wealthy and no doubt well-

meaning doyennes of worthy organisations, and ‘doing her bit’ for charity. There had to be

something more worthwhile she could do with her life, she thought heavily. ‘I was thinking

perhaps that I could volunteer to help out at the local hospital—visiting patients and maybe

working a few hours in the coffee shop like I used to do at the hospital on Aristo.’

‘You mean where you were once subjected to a vicious attack by a mentally ill patient?

Sebastian told me that your father forbid you to go back there after the incident,’ Nikos said in a

scathing tone that showed what he thought of her idea.

‘It wasn’t a vicious attack. The patient lashed out and caught my cheek, but he didn’t know what

he was doing, poor man. My father was always rather overprotective,’ Kitty added ruefully.

‘As I am,’ Nikos replied. ‘How could you possibly work at a hospital with the paparazzi tailing

your every move as they did today? You would be a hindrance rather than a help.’

‘The paparazzi wouldn’t know my whereabouts if I didn’t draw attention to myself by turning

up in a limousine, with a bodyguard at my side.’

‘Well, you are certainly not stepping foot outside this apartment without Stavros,’ Nikos said

tersely. ‘You are pregnant, Kitty, and I won’t allow you to put yourself and our child in danger.’

‘I have no intention of putting me or the baby in any sort of danger. But what do you mean by

“won’t allow”?’ Kitty saw red as the empathy she had felt with him at the museum evaporated.

‘Since when did you have authority over me?’ she demanded furiously.

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‘Since you became my wife—and, more importantly, since you conceived my baby,’ he replied

in a tone that brooked no further argument. He glanced at his watch and strolled down the hall. ‘I

have an hour’s work to do in my study. I suggest you start preparing for the party. From past

experience I know how long it takes women to get ready.’

That final reference to his previous women— with emphasis on the plural—was the final straw,

and Kitty was seriously tempted to fling the porcelain figurine of Aphro***e that stood on the hall

dresser at his head. But Nikos had disappeared into his study, and after a few minutes she trailed

down the hall and through the master bedroom to her dressing room, carried on into the en suite

and ran herself a bath, hoping that a long soak in fragrant bubbles would relieve her growing

tension at the prospect of socialising with a hoard of people she had never met before.

An hour later she stood in front of the mirror and studied her reflection with dismay. The floor-

length evening gown made from rich ruby-red satin had a strapless, tight-fitting bodice, and an

even tighter fitting skirt that clung to her hips and bottom and flared out from mid-thigh, with a

side split that at least enabled her to walk. It was the most daringly ***y dress she had ever seen, let alone possessed— and it made her look like a tart, she decided grimly as she turned sideways

to the mirror and sucked in her stomach. Any woman who wore this dress would attract

attention. But that was the last thing she wanted to do at tonight’s party.

If she had realised how much of her body was displayed by the plunging neckline she would

have sneaked it back on the rail in the shop, Kitty thought fiercely as she tugged the zip down

and stepped out of the dress.

The black evening dress she’d brought from Aristo was not unattractive, and at least it didn’t

make her look as if she walked the streets for a living. Even better, it would draw no attention at

all, and with luck she could slink into a corner and remain there for the evening.

She swept her hair up into a knot on top of her head, exchanged the four-inch stilettos that

matched the red dress for black two-inch kitten heels, and walked through the connecting door

just as Nikos emerged from his bathroom.

He was devastating in a black tuxedo and a white silk shirt, his bow tie as yet unfastened and

hanging open at his throat. He looked every inch the urbane, sophisticated, billionaire tycoon,

with a raw *** appeal that would make every woman at the party go weak at the knees. Kitty felt

a fierce tug of ***ual awareness that made her heart race and her breath catch in her throat. But

from the expression on his face, he was clearly not impressed by her appearance, and his brows

lowered in a slashing frown as he walked towards her.

‘Not quite what I had in mind, agape ,’ he drawled as his eyes slid down from her severe

hairstyle to her prim, plain dress. ‘I thought we had decided that you would wear the red dress?’

‘No, you decided I would wear the red dress,’ Kitty snapped. ‘But I refuse to go out looking like

a hooker you’ve picked up from some bar.’

‘You prefer to go out looking as though you are on your way to a funeral?’ His brows rose, and

Kitty itched to wipe the arrogant expression from his face. ‘You have five minutes to change,’ he

said in a dangerously soft voice. ‘You are my wife, Kitty, and I expect you to dress accordingly,

not wear something that makes you resemble a maiden aunt.’

Kitty’s temper had been simmering since their argument about her working at the hospital, and

it ignited at his heavy-handedness.

‘I feel more comfortable wearing clothes of my choice,’ she began, and then emitted a startled

cry when his hands shot out and wrenched the front of her dress open so that the buttons running

from neck to waist pinged in all directions.

‘What do you think you’re doing? How dareyou ?’ She was breathing hard, her chest heaving so that Nikos’s attention was drawn to her breasts, which were barely contained in a semi-transparent black bra.

‘I dare, Kitty mou ,’ he drawled, his voice no longer sharp with annoyance but thick with ***ual desire that caused an answering shiver of awareness to run down her spine, ‘because you are my

wife.’ With deft fingers he tugged the pins from her hair so that it fell down her back in a river of silk. ‘You now have two minutes to exchange dresses, or risk me removing what is left of this

one,’ he warned her silkily. ‘And if I strip you completely I think it’s a safe bet that we won’t be going anywhere but my bed tonight.’

The determined gleam in his eyes told Kitty that he meant it too. A dignified retreat seemed her

only option, and, head held high, she swung round and marched into her room, venting her

temper by slamming the connecting door, and grinding her teeth when she heard his mocking

laughter through the thin walls.

She hated him, she told her reflection, tears of mortification stinging her eyes as she stepped out

of her ruined dress and squeezed herself into the red ball-gown. He was the most arrogant,

overbearing man she had ever met—and it was a bitter irony that he was the only man who had

ever made her ache with desire.

Because she wanted him, she acknowledged with reluctant honesty. She had wanted him that

night in the ****, and she wanted him now. It was not fear of the physical act of making love

with him that had made her sleep in another room, but the fear of giving herself to him, body and

soul, and receiving nothing in return.

She could very easily fall in love with him, she thought bleakly as she ran a brush through her

hair so that it fell around her shoulders like a curtain of silk. But she would be a fool to lose her heart to him, because his was carved from ice, and he had made it clear that it would never melt.

The connecting door swung open, and for a second her eyes clashed with Nikos’s unfathomable

gaze reflected in the mirror. Quickly she lowered her lashes, praying he had not guessed her

thoughts, but her heart was hammering when he came to stand behind her.

‘I knew the dress would suit you. You look stunning.’

Kitty had spent her whole adult life longing to be told she looked attractive, but Nikos’s coolly

delivered compliment left her feeling strangely deflated. He was just being polite, she decided.

He was probably thinking that her bottom looked huge, and regretting on insisting that she

should wear the dress.

‘It’s really not my style,’ she muttered, her cheeks burning when his eyes slid over her and

lingered on her voluptuous breasts that were thrusting provocatively above the tight-fitting

bodice. ‘I want to wear something else, Nikos— another of the dresses we bought today.’

Preferably one that was less eye-catching.

‘Don’t be ridiculous.’ He could not hide the impatience in his voice. ‘And don’t keep looking

down at the floor.’ He swung her round and caught her chin between his fingers, tilting her face

to his. ‘A dress like this needs to be worn with confidence.’ From his jacket he extracted a

narrow velvet box, which he opened to reveal an exquisite ruby and diamond pendant suspended

on a gold chain. He smiled when Kitty gave an audible gasp. ‘This matches the dress perfectly,’

he murmured as he fastened it around her neck.

His hands were warm against her skin, but Kitty shivered as he swung her back round to face the

mirror. Once again her eyes locked with his and she felt the familiar, prickling tension between

them. The pulse at the base of her throat was plainly visible, beating erratically beneath her skin, and she caught her breath when he lowered his head and brushed his mouth along her collarbone.

‘Time to go, Kitty mou .’ His voice was deep and husky, and sent another shiver of acute

awareness down her spine. ‘Have pity on me tonight,’ he murmured, his mouth curving into a

self-derisive smile as he stepped away from her. ‘Every time I look at you I will be imagining

you wearing nothing but the necklace.’

She swallowed hard at the feral hunger in his eyes. ‘You shouldn’t say things like that.’

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He shrugged. ‘Why not, when it’s the truth? And before much longer the image in my head will

be reality. My patience is wearing thin, agape ,’ he warned her silkily, and turned and walked out of the room, leaving Kitty staring after him, her heart thumping.

CHAPTER TEN

THEcharity gala was being held at an exclusive five-star hotel in the heart of Athens. As the car

drew up outside the front steps and Kitty glanced out of the window at the blinding flashbulbs

from the paparazzi’s cameras she felt the familiar sick dread in the pit of her stomach. Some of

her tension must have shown on her face because Nikos frowned as he leaned towards her.

‘Relax, agape . You look as though you are about to be thrown to the lions rather than attend a party where you are the star guest.’

‘I’d rather be thrown into a lions’ den,’ Kitty muttered.

‘You’re not still worried about your dress, are you?’ Now there was an edge of impatience in

Nikos’s voice. ‘I told you, you look stunning, and all eyes will be on you.’

‘I don’t want everyone to notice me. I’ve always been hopeless at socialising,’ Kitty admitted miserably.

‘But you must have regularly attended parties and functions at the palace.’

‘Yes, but I never enjoyed it. Liss was always the party girl, and she has the looks and confidence

to walk into a room full of strangers. I just get tongue-tied and never know what to say to people.

I’m afraid you’re going to find me a big disappointment, Nikos,’ she finished gloomily.

‘I did not realise you found socialising such an ordeal,’ he murmured, taken aback by her

revelation. ‘But I assure you I will not find you a disappointment, Kitty. And I will be by your

side constantly to introduce you to people. Have you ever thought that they might be nervous

about meeting you?’ he queried.

‘Why would anyone feel nervous about meeting me?’ Kitty demanded, startled.

‘Because you are a princess. I think a lot of people could feel overawed by your royal status, not

to mention the fact that you are intelligent and highly educated. Think about it,’ Nikos murmured

as Stavros opened the car door and he stepped out, turning back to assist Kitty in alighting from

the car.

She was so shocked by the idea that people might be unnerved by meeting her that she barely

noticed the press pack jostling around them, and she gave a shocked gasp when Nikos put his

arm around her waist and dipped his head to kiss her full on the mouth. His lips were warm and

firm and she responded to him without conscious thought, her eyes wide with confusion when he

broke the kiss after a disappointingly short time.

‘Why did you do that?’ she mumbled as he drew her hand through his arm and escorted her up

the steps and into the hotel.

‘We are newly-weds, Kitty mou ,’ he reminded her, his eyes gleaming with amusement and

something else that made her stomach dip. ‘I thought it was about time we gave the paparazzi

something to photograph.’

The moment they walked into the ballroom, they were the centre of attention—Athens’s most

famous billionaire shipping magnate and his princess bride. Glancing around at the female guests

in their couture gowns and spectacular jewellery, Kitty reluctantly had to admit that she would

have stuck out like a sore thumb in her drab black dress. But there was no chance of her slinking

into a quiet corner in the daring red gown, and Nikos stayed true to his word and did not leave

her side. Instead he moved seamlessly from one group of guests to the next, introducing Kitty,

and initiating conversation on topics he knew she was interested in so that she had something to

say.

To her utter amazement she realised that Nikos had been right and that many of the people she

met were not actually stiff and unfriendly as she had thought, but that they felt awkward in the

presence of royalty and did not know quite how to treat her. Anxious to put them at their ease,

she forgot her shyness and chatted to them, and to her surprise she discovered halfway through

the evening that she was enjoying herself.

This really wasn’t so bad, she mused later as she strolled over to the bar and asked the waiter for

a fruit juice. Seeing that her confidence had soared, Nikos had left her for a few minutes to go

and talk to one of his business associates, but Kitty was not alone for long.

‘Princess Katarina? My name is Darius Christakis. I’m a lecturer at the university of Athens.’

She had noticed the man looking at her several times during the evening, and now, as he held

out his hand to her, Kitty smiled and returned his greeting.

‘Mr Christakis.’

He was very good-looking, she mused, and he was attracting interested glances from several

women around the room. But he appeared to only have eyes for her, and she was startled when

faint colour flared in his face.

‘Darius, please.’

‘And I’m Kitty,’ she murmured, wanting to put him at his ease. ‘The whole royal title thing is a

bit of a mouthful, don’t you think?’

‘Actually, I think you are amazing.’ The young man’s flush deepened. ‘I studied your paper on

The Crusades during the twelfth century and the impact on Greece and the surrounding

Me***erranean islands, and to be honest it was one of the most fascinating pieces I’ve ever read.’

Darius grinned sheepishly. ‘I must admit I imagined you to look like a learned scholar with

glasses and a tweed skirt, but instead I find that you are gorgeous—if you don’t mind my saying

so,’ he added, raking a hand distractedly through his hair.

‘I don’t mind,’ Kitty said with a laugh, her self-confidence boosted by his description of her. If

only he knew that a few weeks ago she had been a frumpy scholar, more interested in her books than her looks, but as she saw the undisguised admiration in Darius’s eyes she felt a spurt of

gratitude to Nikos who had transformed her from drab to, apparently, gorgeous.

‘I was wondering if you would consider being a guest speaker at the university?’ Darius

continued. ‘Your work at the museum on Aristo is well known and my students would really

enjoy meeting you.’

Kitty’s heart lurched at the idea of public speaking. But it would be on her specialist subject, and she would enjoy visiting Athens’s university. On a sudden rush of confidence she nodded to

Darius. ‘I’d love to.’

‘Great.’ He beamed at her. ‘Maybe we could get together soon to discuss your visit?’

‘I’m afraid my wife will need to consult her diary before she makes any commitments.’ Nikos

materialised at Kitty’s side, his dark brows drawn into a frown as he slid his arm possessively

around her waist and clamped her so hard against him that she could barely breathe.

‘Nikos, this is Darius Christakis…’ Kitty began, breaking off at the look of open hostility in

Nikos’ eyes as he glared at the younger man.

‘I see that your companions are waiting for you, Mr Christakis,’ he said in a dangerously soft

tone. ‘You’d better go back to them.’

‘Right.’ The younger man backed away, gave Kitty a brief, nervous smile and shot off across the

room.

‘That was incredibly rude of you.’ She rounded on Nikos the moment the other man was out of

earshot. ‘He only wanted to talk about a paper I’d written.’

‘He wanted to dive into the front of your dress, agape ,’ Nikos drawled sardonically, his eyes glinting as he stared at Kitty’s angry face. ‘I’ve noticed the way he’s been looking at you all

night.’

‘Nonsense…’ She paused, blushing when she recalled how Darius had called her gorgeous.

‘Anyway, it was you who insisted I should wear this dress.’

‘A decision I am now regretting,’ Nikos murmured as he led her onto the dance floor and drew

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her into his arms. ‘You are attracting too much male attention, and I have discovered that I am

very possessive. In future you can wear something beige and baggy to hide your delectable body

from everyone but me.’

He was teasing her, surely, Kitty thought, her eyes widening when she realised that the

expression in his dark gaze was deadly serious. ‘Are you… jealous, Nikos?’ She blushed scarlet as the words left her lips, certain that he would deny it. Instead his eyes narrowed and he

tightened his arms around her so that her pelvis came into direct contact with the shockingly hard

ridge of his arousal.

‘It is not an emotion I am familiar with, Kitty mou ,’ he murmured dulcetly, ‘but if you so much as look at another man for the hour or so remaining until we can leave, I will demonstrate in

front of everyone here just how possessive I am of my wife—and how very impatient I am to

make love to her.’

‘Nikos!’ Kitty could not hold back her shocked cry, or restrain the quiver of white-hot ***ual

awareness that ripped through her. This had been building for the past few days, she

acknowledged numbly as she stared at him and saw the sensual gleam beneath his heavy lids.

The drumbeat of desire that she had tried so hard to ignore was now thudding deep inside her,

sending her blood coursing through her veins. They were moving in time with the music, their

bodies locked together so that she could feel every muscle and sinew of his hard thighs pressed

against her softer flesh.

‘You take my breath away tonight—my lady in red,’ he murmured, his voice so low and husky

in her ear that it seemed to reverberate right through her. She could feel the faint abrasion of his cheek against her face and knew that if she turned her head a fraction their mouths would meet.

Her heartbeat quickened when he slid his hand into her hair, and when he exerted gentle pressure

she lifted her face to him and felt his breath warm her skin before his lips claimed hers in a deep, slow kiss—a sensual tasting that she was powerless to resist.

The other guests on the dance floor faded away and the music of the band seemed distant.

Nothing existed but Nikos: the strength of his arms holding her close against his chest, and the

languorous drift of his mouth moving over hers in a drugging kiss that seemed to last a lifetime.

Kitty responded to him helplessly, her wariness and insecurities forgotten as the fire inside her

flamed into urgent life, and she murmured her protest when at last he lifted his head.

‘Time to go home,’ he growled as he whisked her off the dance floor and headed determinedly

in the direction of their host.

It was on the tip of Kitty’s tongue to tell him that it would be impolite to leave halfway through

the party, but her brain seemed to have stopped functioning, and her body was burning up. In the

car on the way back across town she tried to remind herself of the reasons why she had held out

against making love with Nikos—but he no longer seemed the remote stranger he had been on

their wedding day. He had been a kind and charming companion for the past few days when he

had shown her around Athens, and she had found herself falling under his spell. As for her

worries that he could not really be attracted to her when he had previously dated beautiful blonde

models—he had only had eyes for her tonight, and his self-confessed jealousy when she had

chatted to the university lecturer had made her feel like a desirable woman.

She was a mass of confused emotions when the lift whisked them up to the apartment and she

dared not look at Nikos even though she knew he was staring at her with his dark, brooding gaze.

The tension between them was tangible, and she gasped when the lift doors opened and he

suddenly scooped her into his arms as if she weighed nothing.

‘What are you doing?’ She clutched his shoulders and looked into his face, her heart pounding

when she saw the determined glint in his eyes.

‘What I wanted to do when we first arrived here on our wedding day,’ he told her as he strode

down the hall and into the master bedroom, where the blinds were drawn and the room was

bathed in a soft apricot glow from the bedside lamps. ‘And what we both want now,’ he added as

he set her on her feet. ‘Your body has been sending out signals all night, agape .’ And for the past few days if she had but known it, Nikos brooded, recalling every shy smile she had given him,

the way she often moistened her lips with the tip of her pink tongue in an unconscious invitation

and the way she stared at him with her big brown eyes when she thought he wouldn’t notice. For

the past few nights he had lain awake aching with frustration, fighting the temptation to walk

through the connecting door and snatch her into his arms.

‘I want you to be my wife in every sense, Kitty,’ he said deeply, running his finger lightly down

her cheek and noting how her pupils had dilated so that her eyes seemed too big for her delicate

face. ‘I want to recapture the passion we once shared, and I dare you to deny that you want that

too.

‘Your body has already given you away, agape ,’ he growled when she made no reply.

Following his gaze, she looked down and saw the stiff peaks of her nipples straining against her

silk dress, and she caught her breath when he cupped her breasts and caressed them, brushing his

fingers across their swollen crests so that sensation pierced her. Her dress was an intolerable

barrier. She was desperate to feel his hands on her naked flesh, and suddenly nothing else

mattered except that he should appease the desire that was flooding through her in an

unstoppable torrent.

But she did not know what to say—how to tell him that she was ready to be his wife. Actions

seemed easier than words. Her heart was thudding painfully beneath her ribs as, eyes locked with

his, she reached behind her and drew the zip of her dress down from her neck to her waist. For a

second he did not react, and tension screamed between them before he brought his mouth down

on hers in a kiss of utter possession that told her clearer than any words that she had made her

decision and there would be no going back.

The bodice of Kitty’s dress was boned, meaning that she hadn’t needed to wear a bra. As Nikos

drew the red silk down lower and lower her breasts emerged like plump peaches and spilled into

his hands. Instantly he felt his body stir, and for a second he was tempted to rip the dress from

her body, throw her down on the bed and take her hard and fast. But with formidable will power

he curbed his impatience. He could sense her lingering uncertainty, and he knew he must take it

slow and arouse her fully until she ached as he ached with hot ***ual frustration that clamoured

for release.

He pushed her dress down over her hips and tugged it down her thighs until it slithered to the

floor. Through the lacy panel of her knickers he could see the dark shadow of silky hair that

shielded her femininity, and he heard her swift indrawn breath when he hooked his fingers into

the waistband and stripped her completely.

When he had made love to her that first and only time in the **** she had been half hidden in

shadow. But now her body was exposed in all its voluptuous glory and he feasted his eyes on

her, gently moving her hands down when she tried to cover her breasts. ‘Why do you want to

hide yourself from me?’ he queried softly. ‘You are beautiful, Kitty, and I have never wanted

any woman the way I want you.’

Kitty trembled at his words, and watched, wide eyed, as he deftly removed his own clothes,

dropping his shirt and trousers carelessly to the floor to reveal his hard, muscular chest and

thighs. His silk boxers could not disguise the jutting length of his erection, and she snatched a

sharp little breath when he stepped out of them and stood before her, his awesome arousal

sending a flicker of trepidation through her.

But then he caught her to him and crushed her soft, pliant body against the hardness of his as he

slanted his mouth over hers and kissed her until she could think of nothing but him and her

desperate need for him to touch her between her legs and soothe the throbbing ache that began

low in her stomach. His tongue delved between her lips, taking the kiss to a deeper level, and she

responded mindlessly, matching his fierce passion until he groaned and lifted her onto the bed,

The Greek Billionaire's Innocent Rrincess
The Greek Billionaire's Innocent Rrincess Page 29



coming down beside her with one thigh across her hip to anchor her to the sheets.

‘You have magnificent breasts, Kitty mou .’ There was no hint of teasing in his low tone, just raw, feral need that sent an answering shaft of desire through her and made her arch her back

when he traced his mouth down from her lips to the deep valley of her cleavage. The flick of his

tongue across one dusky, swollen nipple and then its twin was so exquisite that she cried out and

dug her fingers into his thick black hair to hold him to her breasts. His soft laughter feathered her skin, and when he took each stiff crest in turn into his mouth and sucked hard she twisted her

hips restlessly and felt damp heat flood between her legs.

‘Nikos…’ The last shadows in her mind were blown away when he slid his hand over her

stomach to her thighs and rested there, tantalisingly close to where she longed for him to touch

her. She held her breath when he gently parted her, and when he slid his finger into her and

caressed her with rhythmic strokes she spread her legs a little wider so that he could continue his

erotic foreplay.

She could feel the solid length of his erection pushing against her thigh, and a tremor of shock

ran through her when he took her hand and placed it on his arousal. He was so hard and

powerful, and any second now she was going to have to take him inside her. She had done so

once before, she reminded herself as panic fluttered in her stomach. But then he moved over her,

slid his hand beneath her bottom to lift her slightly, and there was no time for doubt because he

eased forwards and entered her with one sure thrust that made her gasp as he filled her.

For a moment he stilled and stared down at her, his dark eyes burning into hers. Then he began

to move; firm, steady strokes as he drove into her, setting a pagan rhythm that echoed the

drumbeat of her heart and sent her blood thundering through her veins. She could feel the tension

inside her spiral with each exquisite thrust, and now he moved faster, harder, taking them

inexorably towards the edge. Kitty felt as though she was losing her grip on reality, lost to

sensation and the pleasure that was building and building. She clung to his shoulders and

anchored there while the storm raged. Little ripples were starting deep inside her and radiating

out as her hovered tantalisingly close. Desperation made her sob his name, and she

pleaded with him to never, ever stop. And suddenly she was there, suspended for timeless

seconds while he withdrew almost fully, and then with his next powerful thrust the dam broke

and she was racked by spasm after spasm of intense sensation that dragged a sharp, animal cry

from her throat.

Still he continued to move, each thrust more forceful and urgent than the last. But the feel of her

vaginal muscles tightening around him, squeezing him, shattered his formidable control, and

with a harsh groan Nikos spilled his seed inside her, his big body shuddering with the power of

his release and his chest heaving as he dragged oxygen into his lungs.

In the aftermath Kitty lay still, and stared dazedly at the ceiling. His head lay on her breasts and she crossed her arms around his back, swamped by the same feeling she’d had in the **** when

she had lost her virginity to him: that their souls were inextricably linked. It was an illusion of

course, she told herself firmly, brought about by the intensity of the passion they had just shared.

For Nikos it was simply good ***—a fact that he emphasised when he rolled off her and

stretched his lean body out on the silk sheets, tucking his arms behind his head as if he were a

sultan who had just enjoyed the services of his favourite concubine.

‘You see, agape ,’ he murmured lazily. ‘Our ***ual compatibility is not in doubt.’ He drew a ragged breath, waiting for his heartbeat to slow and wondering why he had felt so reluctant to

withdraw from her. He would have liked to pillow his head on her breasts and simply lie with

her. But the curious feeling of closeness that had swamped him in the aftermath of their

lovemaking wasn’t real, he assured himself. It was just good *** that he hadn’t wanted to end.

Fantastic ***; the best he’d had in a long time. Perhaps ever, his mind taunted him. It didn’t

mean anything. He had married Kitty because he wanted his child, and the fact that *** with her

was dynamite was an added bonus that left his body satisfied and his heart untouched.

Kitty’s skin had quickly cooled without the heat and welcome weight of Nikos’s body pressing

down on her, and she longed to curl up against him and lay her head on his chest. But now that

he no longer filled her she sensed a distance between them far greater than the width of the bed.

For her own self-protection it was vital she rebuilt her defences against him. She did not know

what he expected now that he had made love to her. He seemed suddenly remote, lost in his

thoughts, and she wanted to escape to the privacy of her own room, but when she sat up and

swung her legs over the side of the bed he reached out and curled his arm around her waist.

‘Where are you going?’

‘I thought I would sleep in my room.’

His eyes narrowed on her flushed face and he sensed the tension that once more gripped her.

‘It’s too late to run away now, agape . You are mine, and from now on you will sleep with me.

Besides,’ he murmured as he drew her back down and moved over her, ‘I intend to make love to

you several times during the night and it would be most inconvenient if I had to trek backwards

and forwards to fetch you.’

Beneath his teasing tone was a wealth of sensual promise that caused a tugging sensation low in

Kitty’s stomach. ‘Several times?’ she murmured faintly.

‘Certainly, agape ,’ he assured her, ‘starting now.’

Kitty watched their reflection in the wall of mirrors; Nikos’s dark head bent to her breast, and

she inhaled sharply when he painted moist circles around one areola with his tongue and then

drew her nipple into his mouth. She ran her fingers through his hair, and then paused when she

noticed for the first time the tattoo of a scorpion on his shoulder.

‘What is this?’ she asked, remembering how Vasilis had said that Nikos had once been part of

the criminal underworld.

He followed her gaze to his reflection in the mirror, and his face hardened. ‘A reminder of my

past—it is the mark of the street gang I used to belong to when I was a youth. Stavros and Sotiri

were members of the same gang, and we used to make money from illegal bare-knuckle boxing

in back-street clubs.’

‘Dear God!’ She could not keep the shock from her voice. ‘How old were you?’

He shrugged. ‘Fifteen—but as I was bigger than most of my opponents, none of the sharks who

organised the fights cared too much.’

‘You mean you fought men, even though you were not much more than a boy?’ Kitty felt sick

and her horror must have shown in her eyes because Nikos grimaced.

‘Many things in my past are not pretty, agape . I had a tough childhood—but our child will not have to fight *****rvive,’ he vowed fiercely, placing a hand on her stomach as if to protect the

tiny life she carried. ‘I grew up knowing hunger and deprivation, and there were many times

when my mother had no money to pay the rent and we were evicted onto the streets. But even

though life was hard I never doubted her love for me. She worked herself quite literally to death

to feed and care for me.’

The words were torn from his throat. Words he had never spoken to anyone before, and he

wondered why he felt this urge to unburden the memories of his past to Kitty. Her brown eyes

were gentle and velvet soft, and she made no comment, simply waited patiently for him to

continue.

‘My mother was terrified I would fall into a life of crime,’ he admitted grimly, ‘but when I was

sixteen she was offered a job as housekeeper for Larissa Petridis, and I was allowed to live with

her in the staff quarters of the Petridis mansion. Stamos Petridis had died some years before and

had left Petridis Shipping to his only daughter. Larissa had never married and had no children of

her own but she took an interest in me. She offered to pay to send me to college, and, although it