Tiana (Starkis Family #3) (20 page)

“I love you so much, baby.”

They weren’t hollow words when he said them. Every other time a man had claimed to love me, it had been superficial because no one had ever gotten to know the real me. Damon was the only one who knew my darkest secrets, who understood the reason for my fears and insecurities.

“Don’t tell me. Show me,” I teased.

He growled, rearing back. He invaded me with renewed determination, quickly taking me to that place between rapture and stupor where my words were incoherent and my body commandeered common sense. It felt like a fraction of a second before I throbbed around him, giving him no choice but to submit to the powerful demand. We clung to each other when I would have clawed for release from anyone else. His arms encircled me, and instead of feeling smothered, I felt protected. It was a new and wonderful feeling, one I could definitely get used to.

Finally he rolled over, giving me freedom to breathe, but instead of lying on my back to catch my breath, I curled into his warm body, not wanting to lose the connection we’d shared.

“I love this side of you,” he said, a smile in his voice as his lips brushed my damp forehead.

“What side is that?” I felt like a contented cat as I curled my limbs around his.

“This sweet, soft, vulnerable side.”

I tensed at the word I’d come to despise. I’d always associated vulnerability with weakness, and I’d sworn I’d never be weak.

“Poor choice of words?” he asked, sensing my tension.

I kissed his chest, wanting to put his mind at ease. “My issue, not yours.”

“It’s okay to be vulnerable, sweetheart. I am too. That’s what falling in love is all about, right? Opening yourself up to the possibilities.”

He was right, but this was all so new to me, and I knew there would still be times when fear would engulf me. But that didn’t mean I would run. I couldn’t imagine anything ever making me want to leave him.

“Let’s get some sleep.” He rolled me over to my side and curled his large body around mine.

I’d never slept at a man’s home before. Another first. While part of me screamed that it was too much too soon, I silenced that voice by linking my hand with his and reveling in the sound of his shallow breathing as sleep claimed him.

***

Damon

I was stunned when I woke to the sound of Andra’s ringtone. Slowly extricating myself from Eleni’s arms so as not to wake her, I slipped out of bed and grabbed my cell off the nightstand.

I connected the call just before I lost it, hoping it wasn’t too late. If she was calling at this hour, it must be important, and I couldn’t quash the fear something may be wrong with Dalia.

“Thank God I caught you,” Andra said, sobbing. “I’m sorry to call so early, but I didn’t know what else to do. I had no one else to call.”

I tossed the throw on the couch and wrapped myself in it when I sat down. Keeping my voice purposefully low, I said, “Is it Dalia?” My heart hammered as I silently prayed Andra would tell me everything was fine, that my daughter’s well-being wasn’t at stake.

“He left me.” Her sobs got louder as she struggled to catch her breath. “My husband left me.”

“What?” I sat forward, raking my hands through my hair as I tried to process her news. I’d gotten very little sleep. Between making love to Eleni and talking to her until the sun came up, I was physically wasted. “What are you talking about? What happened?”

“I told him the truth… that you didn’t know about Dalia until recently.”

“Oh.” I was the wrong person to comfort her, though I took no pleasure in her pain. Andra wasn’t a bad person, just misguided in her attempt to protect her daughter. “Maybe he just needs some time to cool off?” I hoped that was the case. I didn’t particularly like Nic, but it was obvious Andra and Dalia loved him.

“He took the baby.” Her breath was coming in short gasps. “We’re getting thrown out of our home. The bank is foreclosing. He said he wouldn’t allow his son to live in some car or shelter, so he took him.”

“Where did they go?” I couldn’t believe they were losing their home and still their pride prevented them from accepting the money I’d offered. Obviously, my private investigator hadn’t done his job if he’d let this kind of information slip through the cracks.

“They went to stay with his parents. Obviously, my daughter and I aren’t welcome there.” She took a shaky breath. “His parents don’t really like me. They thought their son was crazy for wanting to raise another man’s child.”

“Then they knew the truth all along?”

“Yes.” She sighed. “Since they lived here, we couldn’t tell them the same story we told my parents.”

“I guess not.” I still couldn’t wrap my head around all the lies surrounding this sweet and innocent child.

“Damon, I don’t know what to do. I have nowhere to go.”

I thought of the story Eleni had told me about her mother being scared and alone with nowhere to go and no one to turn to. “I’ll send you money, help you find a place to stay.”

“Actually… the reason I finally told Nic the truth was because I wanted to give you the opportunity to get to know your daughter.”

“Really?” I’d been praying for that for so long I was almost afraid to believe it was finally happening.

“Yes.” She covered the earpiece and spoke to someone in hushed tones. “Sorry about that. Dalia just woke up.”

“She’s there?” I wanted to know that she was okay, that she wasn’t terrified at the prospect of losing the man she considered her father, not to mention her baby brother. “Is she okay?”

“She doesn’t know what’s going on yet. All of this happened overnight. I’ll tell her as soon as I get off the phone with you. She’s watching cartoons, but I’ll have to go soon.”

“You said you wanted her to get to know me. I want that too.” I leaned forward, glancing down the hall when I heard my bedside alarm going off.
Damn it!
I’d forgotten to turn it off last night. “What did you have in mind?”

“I need to give Nic a little time to process what I told him, and if I’m here, I won’t be able to give him the space he needs. He loves us. I know he does. He’ll come back to us. I have to believe that.”

Since I knew how desperately she wanted it to be true, I said, “I’m sure you’re right.” I held my breath, fearing Eleni would walk down the hall and hear me on the phone.

“Dalia’s out of school for summer vacation and…” She cleared her throat. “Well, I can afford to take a few weeks off work.”

“What are you suggesting?”

“Maybe we could come and stay with you?” Before I could respond, she rushed on. “I know it’s a lot to ask. If I had family here, I would go stay with them, but my mother and siblings are in Greece and—”

“I’d love to have you and Dalia stay with me.” In all honesty, I wasn’t thrilled at the prospect of having Andra as a houseguest, but she and Dalia were a package deal.

“Really?” she asked, sounding relieved. “You mean it?”

“Of course. I’ll call and ask them to gas up the jet. Can you be ready in a few hours?”

“Yes! Oh, you don’t know how much this means to me. This’ll give me time to look for a new place, and hopefully Nic will come to his senses and realize he doesn’t want to break up our family over one little lie.”

I wanted to remind her that her
little
lie had impacted countless lives, but I’d have plenty of time to share my feelings when she was under my roof. “I’ll text you the flight details and make sure there’s a car to pick you up at the airport.” My mind was racing, trying to figure out how I would explain the situation to Eleni.

“How much can we bring?” she asked. “The bank is foreclosing. We have to be out, but I can’t afford movers. Hell, I can’t even afford a storage unit.”

I wanted to know how this had happened and why they hadn’t been willing to accept my help, but now wasn’t the time to demand answers. “I’ll take care of everything. Don’t worry about a thing.”

“Thank you so much, Damon.”

“I’m doing this for…” I listened carefully to make sure Eleni wasn’t awake. “Our daughter. Don’t misunderstand, Andra. I’m not doing this for old time’s sake.” Though I was a sucker for someone in need. Especially when that someone was a beautiful woman.

“I understand. I guess I’ll see you later.”

“Yeah, later.” Great. Now I just had to figure out how I was going to tell my girlfriend that my daughter and former lover would be living with me.

Eleni

I popped a bite of fluffy scrambled eggs in my mouth while my man tried to pretend everything was fine. It wasn’t. I could tell. But every time I questioned him about what was bothering him, he changed the subject, and it was really starting to piss me off.

I let my fork fall on my plate with a clatter that caught his attention. “I thought we weren’t going to do this.”

“Do what?” he asked, tossing his tablet aside before reaching for my hand.

“Lie to each other.” My eyes narrowed, watching him carefully for any sign I’d hit the mark.

He swallowed, withdrawing his hand before reaching for his coffee mug. “What are you talking about?”

“You’ve been acting weird ever since I woke up. I tried to lure you back to bed, and you were having none of it.” To say that had been a shot to the ego would have been an understatement. “Are you having second thoughts about us?”

“What?” He looked stunned. “Where the hell did that come from? Of course not!” He pushed his chair back, scraping the kitchen’s tile floor. Wandering to the window that afforded a breathtaking view of the city, he said, “I just have a lot on my mind. I’m sorry if it seems like I’m distant.” Turning to face me, he smiled. “It has nothing to do with you. I swear.”

I wanted to believe him, but in my experience, men shut down when they already had one foot out the door and were trying to find a way to let you down gently. Not that I had a lot of personal experience, but I had girlfriends who’d held on long after they should have let go. I didn’t want to be one of them. I crossed my arms as I pushed away from the table. “Then tell me the problem.”

His eyes darted to the left and right before landing on mine, giving me the sense he was trying to dodge the question. “A friend called earlier with a problem. I guess I was just thinking about how I could help.”

“What kind of problem?”

He sighed, wandering off toward the living room. I jumped up, intent on following him. If he thought I would let him off the hook that easily, he didn’t know me was well as I’d thought.

“You didn’t answer me,” I said, sitting on the edge of an armchair while he paced the large room. “I asked about your friend’s problem…”

“Her husband left her.”

I straightened, fixating on his eyes as I tried to read his mind. “This friend of yours is a woman?” I didn’t know why I was surprised. Damon probably had friends, both male and female, on every continent. You couldn’t party as much as he had without making a lot of connections.

“Yeah.” He stopped pacing long enough to look me in the eye. “But it’s not what you think, baby. We haven’t been involved in…” His voice trailed off when my eyes widened.

“So she’s not just a friend. She’s an ex-girlfriend.” I felt like one of those cartoon characters with steam coming out of their ears, but I’d be damned if I’d let him know how upset I was. Trying to keep my voice neutral, I asked, “Do you keep in touch with all of your old girlfriends?”

“Andra wasn’t a girlfriend.” He shrugged. “Exactly. We just spent some time together a few summers ago when we were both in Greece visiting family.”

“She’s Greek?” I didn’t know why, but the sound of a nail being pounded into a coffin rang in my ears.

“Yeah.” He cleared his throat, his gaze dropping to the ground. “We’re from the same village, but she moved to Boston for school. She’s been living there ever since.”

I’d borrowed his T-shirt when I’d climbed out of bed that morning, and it was riding up my thigh, reminding me of the intimacy we’d shared last night. I pulled it down. “I don’t understand why she’d call you to complain about her marital problems. Unless there’s still something between you?”

He frowned when I grabbed a cushion and held it against my breasts. “I told you, we’re friends.”

Something about the way he said that made me think there was a lot more to the story. “Did you have anything to do with the break-up of their marriage?” I closed my eyes when I saw the truth reflected in his. “You did.”

“Her husband hates me, but he didn’t leave her because he thinks she still has a thing for me, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“When was the last time you saw this woman?” I wanted him to say that he hadn’t seen her in years, that their relationship had consisted of little more than the odd email or phone call.

“Why does that matter?”

I didn’t have to hear the words to know he’d seen her recently, but I needed the answer. “It matters to me. Answer the question.”

He tipped his head back, looking at the high ceiling. “When I went out of town on that unexpected trip, it was to Boston.”

I felt deflated, as if the enthusiasm I’d felt when I’d woken up had been a figment of my imagination. “You went to see her?”

I thought about what had happened the night he’d returned from that trip. We’d made love for the first time. He’d acted as though he needed me and couldn’t wait to have me. Was that because his ex had stirred up feelings he was having a hard time dealing with? Was I just the consolation prize, the woman who could help take his mind off her? It killed me to think that, but his evasiveness told me something was very wrong and this woman was at the heart of the problem.

He held up his hands. “I did see her, but it’s not what you think. Her husband was there too. We were never alone together.”

“That was the call you got,” I said, thinking back to the day he’d rushed out of my apartment, leaving me high and dry. “It was from her, wasn’t it?”

He didn’t have to ask which call I was referring to. I could tell from his guilty expression that I was right.

“I don’t believe this.” Unable to face the anguish on his face when I was battling my own turmoil, I walked slowly to the window. I stared at the people rushing to get somewhere, the cars fighting the early morning traffic… while my life seemed at a standstill. I had a choice to make. Could I really trust this man with my heart when he’d already withheld so much? I heard his heavy footsteps behind me, and when his arms closed around me, I tensed.