The Greek Tycoon's Lover (16 page)

She took her pen and paper and walked down the hallway. “You wanted to speak to me, Mr. Theopolis?” she asked in Greek, stopping in the doorway of his office. She was proud of her language skills, which she’d been working on secretly for the past month.

He smiled his pride in her tackling his language and beckoned her into his office. “How many times do I need to tell you to call me Dimitri?”

Helen raised one shoulder and shook her head. “It just seems more appropriate here in the office.”

Dimitri chuckled softly. “You’re assuming that no one knows about our relationship, Helen. I can guarantee that everyone suspects, if they aren’t sure of it already. Hell, some of them have even been to the house for dinner and since you’re sitting at the opposite end of the table from me, it is a pretty good guess that there’s something more between the two of us. They know,” he said, his eyes slumberous as he watched her walk closer to the desk, sitting primly in the chair in front of his desk.

He enjoyed the soft color that entered her cheeks with his statement. He thought it was amusing that she was so prim and proper here in the office. The difference between her demeanor here versus the moment he closed the door to his penthouse was dramatic. As soon as they were in private, she was a tigress sexually. He was amazed and ecstatic that the one woman he’d been waiting for had turned out to have a sexual appetite equal to his own.

He watched in fascination as her lashes covered her pretty blue eyes in embarrassment. “Well, that’s neither here nor there,” she said, sitting down and raising her pen in anticipation of his comments or questions.

He waved her notebook back down. “No need for notes, Helen. This is strictly personal.”

Her eyes twinkled as she said, “Do you think the boss would mind you spending company time on personal business?” She laughed at his reaction, lowering her pen and letting her spine touch the back of the chair. She crossed her legs, enjoying the way his eyes watched her as she moved.

His eyes went back up to hers, noting the confidence in her expression and thinking she was much more desirable now than she was before, but that was hard to believe, considering all the cold showers he’d taken before he’d gotten her into his bed. “I think the boss would be hard pressed to avoid personal conversations with you. You’re too sexy.”

“Does that apply to others in the office?”

Dimitri sat up quickly, not liking the joke at all. “Who else has been stopping by your office, Helen?”

Helen blinked rapidly, shocked at the jealousy that was instantly evident in his eyes. “Many people stop by, Dimitri. Why wouldn’t they? You have a very friendly group of workers. It doesn’t mean they are making a pass at me which is exactly what you’re thinking, isn’t it?”

“Give me names, Helen,” he grated out. He knew his staff and they were generally too busy to give someone the time of day. If they were stopping by her office, then they were trying to flirt with her, or worse. And dammit! She still didn’t understand her appeal!

Helen just waved that aside, knowing how his mind was working. “Dimitri, don’t be silly. You just said that everyone knows about our relationship. No one on this floor would dare to step onto your turf,” she laughed, both at his expression and her acceptance that she was his woman, both inside and outside of the office.

“Names, Helen,” he demanded again.

She was flattered, but still stunned that she could instill that kind of jealousy. She quickly moved to reassure him, knowing how awful that feeling could be. She hated the idea of another woman coming onto him, much less the knowledge that another woman would soon know the pleasure of his touch, his kiss, his love. She wouldn’t put him through that, no matter how flattering it felt.

“Good grief, Dimitri, don’t get stuck on something so irrelevant. No man has been talking to me and if he was, it would be entirely business. I discourage any kind of personal conversations,” she said and quickly changed the subject. “Do you think that roast duck will be appropriate for dinner Friday evening? I was going to do something more interesting with the other menu items, but duck seemed simple and elegant as a main course. And it is a small enough crowd that it will be easy for Elsa to prepare,” Helen said, referring to Dimitri’s full time cook who was thrilled with the new Dimitri who was more than ready to entertain. Apparently, before Helen came along, Dimitri would be out most nights at other functions, rarely at home to sample his cook’s delicacies.

He relaxed slightly at her sincere assurance that no men were standing on the sidelines, waiting for her to be a single woman again. That wasn’t going to happen if Dimitri had anything to say about it. “Duck will be fine,” he said. “Who stops by your office, Helen?” unwilling to let the small little niggle of doubt go free. Helen was just too innocent to know if someone was hitting on her and he meant to nip that in the bud immediately.

Helen ignored his question, preferring to reassure him tonight that she was his, and only his for as long as he wanted her, which would be forever. “Was there some reason you wanted to talk to me other than to berate me about office politics?” she queried.

Dimitri sighed, knowing that he would have to question her more subtly later on. “Yes,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck wearily. He’d never been jealous of any woman in his life before but he’d known all along that Helen was different. He relaxed when he felt her soft, sweet hands rubbing the tense muscles in his shoulders and neck.

“What was it that you wanted to talk to me about?” she asked when he didn’t continue but closed his eyes, obviously enjoying her ministrations.

He took her hand and pulled her around to the front of his chair, seating her firmly in his lap. “That’s better,” he said, his hands resting on her hips. “I can’t think with you touching me like that,” he said.

Helen laughed delightedly. “And this is a position more conducive to productive thoughts?”

“Well, I’m definitely thinking of something, probably not exactly what I wanted to talk to you about,” he said, his hand slipping up her hip, underneath her skirt.

Helen gasped and wriggled in his lap, almost squealing in pleasure as his hand covered her bare hip. “Dimitri!” she inhaled. “Not in the office,” she said.

He chuckled and kissed her neck, loving the way she wriggled in his lap and shivered at his simple touch. She was so responsive, he knew he could have her right here and now on his desk and she wouldn’t be able to say no. Already, she was losing thought as he touched her in all the secret places only he knew about. “No one would dare to come in without being announced,” he said, his mouth bending to nibble on her neck. “And you were too sleepy this morning for more than a good morning kiss.”

She sighed with pleasure as his mouth nudged the silk blouse farther apart. Her arms slipped up to wrap around his neck and she leaned her head back, enjoying the feel of his touch. All thought of someone walking in was fast losing a grip on her consciousness. “Well, if you didn’t keep my up all night maybe I’d be more lucent when you get out of bed.’

“Lucency isn’t exactly what I would ask for,” he laughed and took her ear lobe between his teeth.

“Dimitri!” she laughed, and jumped out of his hands before things went too far.

“Okay,” he chuckled, relenting for the moment. “Back to the business at hand,” he sighed. “My mother wants to meet you,” he said. “We don’t have plans tonight, do we?” he asked.

Helen’s body tensed and her mind blanked. “Mother?” she asked. His mother wanted to meet her? That definitely wasn’t a good idea, she thought.

“And father. I have one of each,” he teased.

“Yes,” she said, pulling out of his arms and walking several feet away. She turned away from him so she could hide her face, knowing the man had an uncanny ability to read her mind. “Of course you do.”

She almost jumped out of her skin when she felt his hands resting against her shoulders. “What’s wrong, Helen? You’re not nervous about meeting my mother and father, are you?”

“No, of course not,” she replied. Nervous wasn’t a good word to describe what she was feeling. Terrified was more like it. Meeting his parents meant more than just a meal. It signified something much more significant. “But shouldn’t we put it off for a while? I mean,” she started, her mind frantically trying to come up with an excuse to avoid the meeting, “shouldn’t we have a night off? We’ve been to many functions this week. Don’t you need to relax and get a good night’s sleep?”

Dimitri smiled. “Well, my family isn’t that stressful to me but I can pretty much guarantee that spending a night alone with me wouldn’t mean a sleep filled evening.”

Helen blushed and he chuckled softly, hoping she never overcame her blushes. He thought they were lovely. “Helen, my family isn’t scary. I promise. I’ll be right there with you,” he said.

“Family?” she asked, choking on the word. She spun around to face him, frantic that his sisters might also be at the dinner. “That implies more than just a mother and father.”

Dimitri leaned against the desk and crossed his arms over his chest. “I believe that my sisters are all in town tonight for once. That’s one of the reasons my mother was so intent to have us all together this evening,” he explained.

“All of them?” she whispered, her terror growing exponentially.

“Yes.” He laughed and walked closer, kissing her gently on the mouth. “Don’t worry, Helen. They’ll love you.”

The intercom buzzed and Helen jumped visibly, her nerves instantly strung out. “I’m sorry to interrupt,” his PA said, “But the call you’ve been waiting for has come through,” she said.

“Thank you, Alessandra.” Turning to Helen, he kissed her again. “Don’t worry. It will be okay,” he said. “I’ll call my mother and tell her we’ll be there early so you can meet them before the chaos starts.”

“Chaos?” she squeaked out, her body so tense she was shivering.

Dimitri smiled to reassure her. “When my sisters bring their kids, things can get a little crazy,” he explained a moment before pressing the button to take the conference call.

Helen nodded and smiled, but as she walked out of his office, she couldn’t help thinking that this was the beginning of the end. Meeting the parents was a big issue and she didn’t think she could lead Dimitri on the way she must be.

Helen pulled her chair up to her computer, her stomach feeling very queasy all of a sudden. She buried her head in her hands and fought the tears that threatened. Was it only thirty minutes ago that she was thinking that things couldn’t be more perfect? She should have known that the world couldn’t continue on as it had been. Life wasn’t that fair, she knew.

Maybe meeting the parents wasn’t as big of a deal as she thought. Maybe he brought all of his girlfriends to meet them. That thought made her feel slightly better, but her stomach didn’t recover quite as easily. Her nerves were still tense and she pushed her coffee away, the smell actually bothering her now with the stress overwhelming her.

The day progressed and the more she thought about it, the more she was able to relax. By the middle of the afternoon, she’d rationalized away most of the problems of meeting his parents and was okay with the prospect. Her stomach even started to feel better. So when Dimitri called to ask if she was prepared to close down for the night, she was more than ready. Closing down her computer, she packed up her notes and straightened her desk, not bothering to take anything home with her, knowing from experience that Dimitri would not give her the time to work. When she was with him, he took over all of her senses, leaving her exhausted, only able to fall asleep in his arms.

Unfortunately, her peace of mind from the afternoon didn’t come with her into the evening. Once they entered Dimitri’s penthouse, she walked straight to her dressing room filled with clothes Dimitri had bought her, mostly over her protests. The queasy stomach returned as well and she wished she could just curl up into a ball of misery.

Instead, Helen changed into a casual, white sundress with pink flowers covering it, pulling her hair into a clip on her neck. At least she looked cool and composed, which was as far from the truth as possible.

Dimitri looked just as casual, wearing a pair of khaki slacks and a white, polo shirt. “Ready?” he asked, seeing her standing in the middle of the main room, wringing her hands nervously. He walked over to her and took both of her hands in his large, warm ones. “Relax,” he said. “I can’t believe you are able to stand up to me but are afraid of my parents. Of the three of us, I can guarantee that I’m the scarier,” he laughed.

Helen tried to smile, but she just couldn’t shake the feeling that this meeting was going to change everything. “Yes. I’m sure,” she said lamely.

Dimitri drove his powerful car through the streets of Athens, eventually leaving the city behind and speeding across the countryside. It took less than thirty minutes before they were pulling up outside an enormous house. Dimitri led her up the front steps and pushed open the door. “Good evening, Simon,” he said to the butler as he walked with her into the large foyer.

“Good evening, Mr. Theopolis,” the butler replied, bowing slightly. “Your parents are awaiting your arrival in the blue salon,” he explained.

“Thank you,” Dimitri said. “May I introduce Ms. Helen Miller? She’s terrified of meeting m parents. Hence the anxious look on her face,” he said, pulling Helen against his side.

Simon smiled politely but there was more amusement in his eyes as he said, “Perhaps she is only wary of your presence, sir,” he said.