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‘And because I’m a mere woman I’m supposed to have no feelings,’ Eleni continued. ‘I’m supposed to meekly accept everything that has been arranged for me. You’re behind the times, Theo. I’m going to pick my own husband and you can do nothing about it.’

‘It was Father’s wish,’ said Theo firmly, ‘and I have every intention of carrying on as he would have wanted.’

Eleni clamped her lips, but her eyes were wide and hostile, and Miranda knew that she had no intention of giving in easily. She had simply realised that arguing with Theo would get her nowhere. Once he had an idea fixed in his mind nothing or no one would alter it.

She drank her orange juice and tasted a
loukoumas,
which was a kind of doughnut smothered in honey, but it was not her idea of breakfast, so she settled for a croissant with butter instead. There was instant coffee this morning, as well as the thick black stuff Theo and his sister drank, and she treated herself to a second cup, all the time wondering how she was going to get the better of Theo when his sister could not.

There was no way she was going to go back to England without seeing Georgios, but exactly how she was going to manage it, she had no idea.

Then Theo had an urgent call from his office. There was a sudden crisis that only he could deal with. ‘Are you ready?’ he asked abruptly. ‘I must leave at once.’

Which meant he wouldn’t have time to see her on to a plane! Or would he? Would he delegate the job to someone else? It would be far better to make her own way, she thought quickly.

She widened her eyes and shook her head. ‘I’ve not packed.’

‘In that case, I’ll come back for you once I’ve sorted this lot out.’

He left immediately, and a few minutes later Miranda heard the unmistakable throb of the helicopter’s engine and saw the giant bird soar away across the sea.

‘Sometimes I hate Theo,’ said Eleni vehemently. ‘Father was a hard man, none of us dared cross him, and Theo’s just as bad. I pity the poor woman he ever marries! My mother never complained, but she put up with a lot. Father ruled her the same as he ruled us kids. Theo’s wife will need to be a very strong woman if she doesn’t want her life made a misery.’

Miranda smiled. ‘You said that you were looking for a man like Theo to marry. Have you changed your mind?’

Eleni shrugged and pulled a wry face. ‘Maybe I ought to marry Nikos after all. He does love me, I know, and I could do worse. But how would you like to be told that you’d got to marry someone? I want to choose for myself.’

‘And would you have picked Nikos had the choice been yours?’

‘I might,’ grinned Eleni self-consciously. ‘He’s very charming and very eager to set the date. It amuses me, though, to keep him in suspense. I suppose one day I will marry him, but why should Theo feel he has to lay down the law?’

‘Would you have defied your father?’

Eleni shook her head. ‘I wouldn’t have dared. And Phrosini and Cleo are quite happy in their marriages, so I’ve no doubt I will be too. Our husbands are chosen very carefully.’

‘I suppose,’ said Miranda thoughtfully, ‘that in such cases you fall in love after you’ve married, which is not a bad idea. I fell in love before, and it seems to have gone wrong.’ And because of Theo there had been no chance so far of sorting it out.

‘I’m sure it will have a happy ending,’ said Eleni. ‘Aren’t you disappointed that Theo’s gone without you and you won’t be seeing your husband as soon as you thought?’

Miranda smiled secretly and shook her head. ‘Actually, I’d prefer to make my own way there. I need time to think.’

‘And with my handsome brother at your side he would take your mind off your husband?’ said Eleni impishly. ‘Don’t think I haven’t seen the way you look at him.’

Miranda shot her a startled glance. She had not realised that in her unguarded moments she had given away the strong attraction she felt for Theo. ‘You’re mistaken. I can’t stand him. That’s why I didn’t want him to take me. To tell you the truth, I’m packed, but this was a beautiful opportunity to get out of it.’

‘I’m sorry,’ said Eleni. ‘It was my idea. I never realised. I’ll ask Petros if he’ll drive you down to the village—there’s sure to be someone there who’ll take you across to Corfu on their boat. Oh, and just in case things don’t turn out the way you want, here’s Phrosini’s address. If you’re stranded she’ll be delighted to put you up.’

Miranda could not contain her delight as she took the slip of paper. It was all working far better than she expected.

She fetched her case while Eleni found Petros, but when she went outside she discovered that Theo had left instructions with the boy not to take her anywhere. Nor was he to let her have the Land Rover herself.

'I guess there’s nothing you can do but wait for his return,’ said Eleni matter-of-factly. ‘I’ve promised to sit with Mother for an hour now, so I’ll see you later.’

But Miranda had no intention of hanging around waiting. Once Theo had her in his clutches she would be home in England before she knew it.

She took her case to her room, sorted out a pair of comfortable walking shoes and repacked a few overnight things in a large handbag. With a bit of luck she would be back here with Georgios tomorrow.

Feeling a bit like a criminal she let herself quietly out of the house, glad the long journey would be downhill most of the way. It got hotter and hotter as she walked, a humid kind of heat that took every ounce of energy and caused her clothes to stick uncomfortably to her skin.

But it was not until she came to a break in the olive trees that she discovered the sun was nothing more than a pale hazy disc, and the sky more grey than blue.

It was stiflingly hot and all around yellow stormclouds had gathered. Miranda began to regret the impulse that had driven her to try and leave Salamyndros alone, and sat for a moment on a tuft of grass, aware of a mild panic creating havoc in her stomach.

The question was whether to go back or soldier on hoping she would reach the village before the storm broke. It was nearer to the villa, but it was uphill and already the sticky heat had sapped her energy. Besides, once at the villa it was doubtful she would get away again.

In the far distance came the low rumble of thunder, accompanied by brilliant flashes of lighting. Black clouds appeared on the horizon, even the birds stopped singing. There was a silence which was all the more terrifying because she did not know what to expect.

She searched the sky for signs of Theo’s helicopter, surprised to feel concern that he might get caught in the storm. Except that it was too soon for him to come back. And wouldn’t a man like him be aware of the weather anyway? He would not attempt the flight if he thought a storm was brewing.

With a deep sense of foreboding she made herself get up and continue her downward course. She half ran in her haste, only slowing after she had fallen a couple of times. Breaking her leg would get her nowhere.

Through the silver leaves of the olives she caught glimpses of the sea that was no longer an inviting blue. There was a line of clear sky on the horizon, but above that, and getting nearer, were the heavy rain clouds.

She quickened her steps as much as she dared, but there was still a long way to go. In the Land Rover it had not seemed far, on foot the journey was endless and fear of the approaching storm made it worse.

Perversely Miranda blamed Theo. If he hadn’t made Georgios stay with Phrosini there would have been no need for any of this. By now everything would have been sorted out.

After covering a further few hundred yards Miranda sat down again. She had a clear view of the Ionian Sea and watched in fascination as the surface was whipped into a frenzy of white-topped waves.

There was no hope now of reaching the village. She might as well sit it out here. The olives would afford some protection, and once the storm had passed her clothes would soon dry. She would look a mess, but that could not be helped.

She became hypnotised by the spread of clear sky in the distance, and the dense black clouds growing ever nearer, but until her teeth started chattering she did not realised how cold it had become.

All the time the thunder rumbled, growing louder by the second—and then the rains came. The first drops touching the olive leaves caused them to shiver and tremble, but as it increased to a torrential downpour they became bowed with the weight.

Miranda was soaked in seconds, the leafy branches giving no protection at all. The lightening and thunder, now directly above, made her cover her head with her hands and close her eyes.

She was not afraid of storms, but this was like nothing she had ever experienced. To be alone in the middle of it, in a strange land as well, was the most terrifying experience of her life.

And then another sound joined the claps of thunder and constant drum of rain. A different kind of rumble. She lifted her head and listened. It came from higher up the mountain slope.

Looking in the direction of the noise, she was horrified to see that a whole section of the hillside had come away and was sliding with ever-increasing speed towards her.

Even as she watched several of the smaller stones bounced at her feet. For a few terrified seconds she was incapable of moving, fascinated by the sight of great boulders bouncing down the hill. Some were arrested by the trunks of trees, other heavier ones pushed everything out of their way.

Miranda cried out and shot into action, running for her life along the now treacherously slippery mountain track. The rain blinded her and her own heartbeats deafened her.

When her foot caught in a pothole she was flung forward on to her face. Instinctively she covered her head with her hands, bracing herself for the inevitable shower of stones on her body.

She could hear them, but none touched her, and when she dared to look she had escaped by mere inches a boulder large enough to crush her. It had stopped on the track, caught by two sturdy trees at the roadside. Miranda shuddered at the thought of her narrow escape, but was more concerned that she might have harmed the baby than herself.

Not until she tried to stand, though, did she discover she had hurt her ankle. The cold and wet had numbed it and until she put her weight on it and felt agonising pains shoot up her leg she did not realise it was injured.

She sat down and nursed it between her hands. Already it was swelling at an alarming rate and clearly she would not be able to walk—at least not without a great deal of suffering. What a situation to get herself into, particularly when she was desperate to avoid Theo!

The storm stopped as suddenly as it had begun. The clouds disappeared as if by magic and the sky became a clear innocent blue. Steam rose from the earth as it dried beneath the powerful heat of the sun. Birds twittered in the tree-tops.

But the beauty of it all escaped Miranda. The important issue was—what was she going to do? If she managed to get down to the village there was no way that she could make it to Athens. Going back to the villa would be a feat in itself.

As she deliberated she heard a helicopter and watched as the tiny object drew near enough for her to see its red and white markings. Theo! Home already!

He disappeared round the side of the mountain, and she knew that it would not be long before he came looking for her.

In fact it was only minutes when she heard the Land Rover being driven much too fast down the mountainside. Several times it skidded as he braked to avoid fallen rocks. She had visions of him careering off the track and following the course of the boulders.

Mentally she crossed her fingers for his safety, then wondered why she should care about him. Wasn’t it his fault this had happened? In a flash of wry humour she wondered whether he was Zeus in disguise, creating this storm to deliberately stop her getting to Georgios.

He screeched to a halt a couple of yards away from her and leapt out. ‘What in thunder’s name do you think you are playing at? You could have got yourself killed!’

‘Was I expected to know there was going to be a storm?’ Her voice was rebellious, but inside she was pleased to see him. An odd feeling of excitement coursed through her as she looked up at the harsh angular lines of his face.

Exactly what it was about him that made her feel this sexual awareness, she did not know. Even when he was furious, perhaps even more so when he was in this frame of mind, she experienced a peculiar reaction that she had never felt for Georgios. It worried and disturbed her, yet there was nothing she could do about it.

‘You look a mess,’ he said coldly. ‘And what the hell are you doing sitting there?’ His fingers closed about her wrist and he yanked her to her feet. ‘You didn’t really think you’d get the better of me?’

Miranda winced as she put her foot to the ground, instinctively clutching at Theo. He frowned abruptly when he saw her swollen ankle. A stream of Greek followed, and the next moment she was in his arms.

She felt oddly vulnerable as his compelling maleness threatened to overwhelm her. His hands were firm and strong as they moulded her to him, and she wrapped her arms about his neck and rested her head on his shoulder. She felt weak and slightly sick, and the pain in her ankle started to spread up her leg.

But Theo was strong and dependable, and pressed against the rock-hardness of his chest she felt the ripple of muscle as he carried her to the Land Rover, stepping with effortless ease over the boulder which could have knocked her senseless, but had fortunately missed.

He was surprisingly gentle when he eased off her shoe and examined her ankle. ‘I don’t think there’s anything broken,’ he said brusquely, ‘but it’s badly wrenched. You certainly won’t be able to walk on it for a few days.’ Miranda’s eyes widened in dismay and Theo smiled humourlessly. ‘I thought you might see it as a blessing in disguise.’

‘Why should that be?’ she snapped. ‘I came here to talk to Georgios. There’s no point in staying with him away.’

‘I’ll say one thing for you.’ His smouldering bronze eyes studied her face disturbingly. ‘You’re sticking to your story. I thought by now you’d have given up and realised there was no point in hankering after the unobtainable.’