The Greek Tycoon's Lover (10 page)

“Okay, break time,” he said after they’d been working for perhaps three hours. “Go put on something glamorous and meet me in the dining room,” he said. “Do you want me to show you to your cabin?” he asked. “The ship is pretty large. You could get lost,” he said.

Helen noticed the wicked gleam in his eye and shook her head, not understanding any of this. “No,” she replied, almost breathless and eager to escape his sensuous touch that was turning her mind to mush. “I’ll find it,” she said.

“Are you sure?” he asked, stepping behind her and taking her hands in his. “In fact, I’ll follow you, just to help you pick out something appropriate for the night.”

Helen bit her lower lip, then regretted the action as he turned to face her, his thumb reaching up to caress her lip. “Don’t do that,” he said. “Your mouth is beautiful. Don’t abuse it.” His finger was hot and heavy as he tenderly applied a slight pressure to her full, bottom lip.

Helen could barely breathe by the time he opened her stateroom door and walked in. He walked immediately to her closet and pulled out a stunning evening gown of red velvet. “Here, this will work,” he said and laid it on the bed. “And wear these,” he said, pulling out a pair of strappy sandals that looked incongruous in his large, masculine hands.

“I’ll see you in about an hour? Will that give you enough time to get ready?” he asked gently, taking her hand and lifting it to his mouth to gently kiss the knuckles.

“Yes, of course,” she said, trying to understand his intent.

When he left, she almost fell onto the bed, her knees giving out on her. She stared up at the ceiling and wondered what was going through his mind. Was he after just a simple fling? And if so, would she care? The man had been the center of her fantasy world ever since she started working for him. Could she deal emotionally with a casual affair, then continue to work for him?

The simple answer was no. The man was too sexy and wonderful to just love and then walk away from. But would she be able to say no?

What was she thinking anyway? Helen felt foolish as she considered this issue. The man was just more relaxed than normal out here in the sea air. She was completely misunderstanding his intentions and making more of his actions than she should. Laughing to herself, she walked to the en suite bathroom and turned on the showers, amazed that there were four different shower heads. Luxuriating in the warm water, Helen allowed her fantasies to take flight, knowing that she’d never be able to act on them, but loving the dream which wove around Dimitri and herself.

She dried her hair and pulled it up into its normal chignon, then applied a little more makeup than usual, using more mascara, a darker lipstick and soft powder to tone everything more evenly. Pulling on the gorgeous red velvet dress, she was fascinated by the way it hugged her figure, enhancing her tiny waist and seeming to increase her bust line. Her breasts were almost too large for the dress, which hugged her rib cage and pushed her breasts up higher. She was just about to unzip the dress, afraid of the amount of décolletage showing when the knock sounded on the door. Since she was past the mentioned hour, Helen knew that it was Dimitri coming to collect her. Opening the door slightly, she peered around the side. Sure enough, Dimitri was standing there in a tuxedo, looking more stunning than any man had a right to do.

“I’m not quite ready,” she said, hiding her body behind the door.

Dimitri’s eyes showed his amusement. “Are you in the dress?” he asked.

Helen hesitated for only a moment before confirming, “Yes.”

“Let me see you in it,” he said and put a hand to the door, gently pushing his way inside.

When he simply stopped and stared down at her, Helen’s hands moved up to cover the skin showing over the top of the dress. “I know, I look silly,” she said, turning away and walking toward the closet. “I’ll find something more appropriate.”

“Define appropriate, Helen,” he said, grabbing her wrist and pulling her back to face him. “I think you look perfect.”

Helen blushed and shook her head. “No, this dress is indecent.”

Dimitri groaned and laughed as he tucked her hand in his elbow. “The only thing indecent is not showing it off, and you as well, so come along and let’s eat. I’m starving,”

Helen would have to agree, but it had nothing to do with food. She glanced surreptitiously up at Dimitri as they walked along the decking toward the dining room. He looked magnificent in a dinner jacket and white shirt, open at the collar. Goodness where did the man find the time to work out? And why, oh why was she so in love with him?

The rest of the group was already assembled and chatting over lovely appetizers when Helen and Dimitri joined them. The chef had outdone himself with dinner. Dimitri served her a cocktail that tasted like lemonade but, after her second one that slid down her throat too easily, she suspected that they were much more potent than they tasted. When he offered her a third, she laughed and shook her head. “I don’t think it would be a good idea,” she laughed.

“Ah, we’re back to the definitions are we?” he asked with a mischievous look in his eyes. “Define ‘good’,” he replied, his eyes looking down into hers for a long, pregnant pause.

Thankfully, dinner being served relieved her of the need for answering and he took her hand, pulling her closer against his side as they walked in to dinner. Because of that contact, Helen was barely able to swallow the first course, her mind spinning with thoughts of how much her body wanted to feel him against her.

By the time the main course was placed in front of her, Helen was able to concentrate more completely on the food, and could even smile somewhat during the conversation. But looking across at Dimitri, she had to constantly sip wine in order to wet her throat.

“I think we need to dance off some of this food,” Dimitri said after a delicious dessert of chocolate fondue with fresh fruit and cake was devoured.

Dimitri led the six of them to the dining room where soft music was already playing. Helen fiddled with her bracelet, wondering why she was here and wishing she could just slip down to her stateroom and hide. But Dimitri was having none of that. When the other two couples moved slowly onto the dance floor as if nothing were amiss, Dimitri stared at Helen. “Are you going to join me?”

“Shouldn’t we sit this one out?” she suggested quietly so the others couldn’t hear.

“No way am I going to miss an opportunity to hold you in that dress,” he said, taking her hand and pulling her inexorably toward the dance floor. The lights were dim and the music slow and soft and Helen tried to keep her distance, but Dimitri wouldn’t allow her to keep the several inches between their bodies that she needed. Slowly, he pulled her closer, moving her in and out of his arms and each time he pulled her closer so that eventually, they were touching from shoulder to hip.

“Why do you pull away all the time Helen?” he asked softly, saying it low in her ear so only she could hear.

“Because I don’t understand what is going on,” she said.

“Why is it so hard for you to accept that you are a beautiful woman?”

She wished she could believe him. But he was only being nice. She just didn’t understand why he was being so nice to her. “Because I’m not.”

He pulled her closer, his arm wrapping around her back so she was touching him from knee to chest. “You are. You’re sexy and pretty and I can see the desire for me in your eyes. So why not give in to it?”

Helen gasped. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I don’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” she said, looking straight ahead which mean she was staring at the buttons on his dinner shirt.

“Make me uncomfortable,” he said, rolling the phrase around on his tongue. “I think that is a completely accurate phrase but I don’t think you understand how uncomfortable. Or why.”

Helen ripped out of his embrace and pulled away. “I’m sorry,” she said, her head looking down instead of into his eyes. “I should never have done this or accepted this position, knowing…” she stammered out an apology and then rushed out of the room, leaving Dimitri to stare in her wake.

Helen rushed to her room and closed the door, tearing off the ridiculous dress and hiding it in the back of the closet. She pulled on a robe and slipped into the large, fluffy bed then pulled the covers over her head, burying her head in the pillows and wallowing in the tears and self pity that flowed so easily down her cheeks into the soft linen of the bed sheets.

Over her sobbing, she heard the knock on the door and froze. Was it Dimitri? Who else would it be, she wondered and knew it was the one and only. She didn’t answer the door, preferring the coward’s way out and eventually, she heard the footsteps recede down the hallway.

Helen didn’t sleep until the early hours of the morning and even then her mind refused to release her fantasies despite her attempts to block them out of her consciousness. When she woke up, Helen found herself curled up in a ball and her eyes almost swollen shut from the amount of crying she had done throughout the night. She suspected that she’d even cried in her sleep, remembering the dreams she’d had and how traumatic she had felt throughout the night.

Chapter 6

The knocking on her door woke her completely and she pulled herself out of bed, tying the sash on her robe as she mindlessly opened the door.

“Dimitri!” she gasped, her hand instantly flying to her wild hair as she looked at the immaculately dressed man standing with his arms braced on either side of her door. “I’m sorry! I’m late for work, aren’t I?” she gasped. “Just give me fifteen minutes and I’ll be ready,” she begged.

In response, Dimitri walked inside slightly and reached out one finger to touch her eyes. “You’ve been crying, haven’t you?” he asked, but it was more of a statement than a question.

“I’m so sorry about last night. I know I’m being a nuisance but I guarantee that my feelings will not interfere with our working relationship,” she promised.

Dimitri sighed and put his hands on her shoulders. “Helen, I think we need to have a long talk about what this position is about,” he said. “Meet me up on deck. Take your time and I’ll see you when you’re ready.”

Dimitri left her standing in the doorway, her eyes watching his strong, muscular back walk out to the main deck, wishing she could just erase the last twenty four hours of her life and start over.

As she showered, her eyes teared up again and she knew Dimitri was going to fire her. What else could he do? He could obviously see that she was emotionally involved with him. But how could she help herself, she wondered? The man was sex personified and he was nice and charming to boot! Who wouldn’t fall for him? The man could give Clark Gable lessons on charm. Dimitri was genuinely the nicest man she had ever met in her life, despite his wish that no one see the kind side of his personality. Good grief, he didn’t even need to pay her as much as he did. He was so generous, she had worked for her previous employer for half of what he paid her. And now he’d provided her with a complete wardrobe and what had she done? She’d made a cake of herself. A complete fool, letting her emotions run free and embarrassing both of them in the process.

She had no one to blame but herself since she’d allowed herself to drink so much last night. The cocktail and the wine, not to mention the brandy during the dessert was much more than she was used to drinking and she obviously couldn’t handle it. She hadn’t thought she was too far gone last night, but what other reason could she put towards what had happened?

Putting her hair in to a bun, she smoothed down the business suit she’d put on, preferring the shield of professionalism versus the ambiance of the wardrobe that left her vulnerable and terrified, unsure of herself.

She swung out of the door and immediately ran into a brick wall. “Ooomph!” she heard herself say, raising her hands and feeling the strong arms wrap around her, supporting her but still keeping her close.

He looked down at her black wool skirt and cream silk shirt with one eyebrow raised. “I see you’ve retreated instead of coming onto the attack,” he said, amusement and something she thought was resignation in his voice.

Quickly moving out of his arms, she straightened her shirt, re-tucking the tails to appear unaffected by his touch. “I’m sorry, Mr. Theopolis. I didn’t know you were out here.”

Dimitri grimaced. “So we’re back to my last name again, eh?” Sighing heavily, he took her hand and led her out of the hallway, down the decking to a pretty parlor she hadn’t seen the previous day. “Okay, let’s get this out into the open,” he said, turning to face her. “What do you think my intentions are?” he asked.

Helen looked up into his handsome face and shook her head. “It was my fault last night. I let my imagination run away with me and I pushed my affections onto you,” she said with painful honesty, unable to look at him and the hated blush heating her cheeks. “I stepped out of line, but if you’ll just give me another chance, I’ll make sure I don’t consume more alcohol than I can deal with and will never let myself get so out of hand. I honestly can’t imagine what happened but can guarantee that it won’t happen again.”

Dimitri looked at her, his hands on his hips and ground his teeth in frustration. The two of them were back to square one, with her denying everything she was feeling and, if he allowed it, she would revert back to painful professionalism. Damn if he was going to allow that. He’d made progress last night and he wasn’t going to allow himself to fall back into the cold shower mode.