“Because you are engaged to Damen Leventis?” The news had made today’s headlines but unfortunately he had not known about it until he came into his office minutes ago and saw Mairi’s face on the newspaper’s front page.
If she was indeed about to marry Damen Leventis, then this was all for nothing, Cleon thought with bitter disappointment. He had a healthy fear of the Kokinos but even more so of the head of the Leventis empire. He had no problems believing that Damen was the type of man to have him murdered if he so much as looked at his woman the wrong way.
“The press misunderstood,” Mairi lied and chose that exact time to tuck her hair behind her ear, a way of drawing attention to her ring-less fingers. She did not want this job if it was only being offered because she was about to marry Damen Leventis. She never wanted him to be in a compromising position because of her again.
His dick throbbed at her words. Chuckling, Freon could now afford to joke, “So that rock you wore that got photographed by the reporters was more like a parting gift?”
She nodded, not wanting to add to her lies.
“That’s good.”
Mairi suddenly had a bad feeling. “Sir—”
He licked his lips, his eyes moving slowly down towards her br**sts and staying there. His gaze alone was enough to make her feel dirty. “We can come to an understanding then—”
Fear caused a temporary paralysis to take hold of her body. “No, I’m sorry, this is not what I want—”
He answered with a cruel laugh, “Don’t worry. I can make you want it.” He unbuttoned his pants. “Just give it a try…”
Chapter Six
“Welcome home!” Mairi’s voice was bright and perky as she greeted Damen the moment he came through the front door. A second later, she was hurtling herself into his arms, her arms tightening around his neck.
The extremely warm welcome pleased him, but it also bemused him, leaving Damen looking down at Mairi with a faintly puzzled smile. “You make me feel like I have been gone for months, matakia mou.”
It did feel like that, Mairi thought painfully. She had showered three times, even used Damen’s credit card for the first time to pay for a mind-bogglingly expensive fee for a spa treatment, but she still felt unclean.
Sensing Damen’s curious regard but unable to speak, Mairi just hugged him more tightly. She knew now was the best time to tell Damen about Dean Frangos’ degrading proposition to her, but she also knew she would do everything she could to prevent Damen from learning about it.
Damen’s lips touched her hair. “I missed you, too.” He gently pulled her away from him. “Now, what have you been up to while I was at work?”
“Nothing,” Mairi managed to quip. “Just enjoying life as a billionaire’s fiancée.” She turned away then, thus missing the look of disquiet on Damen’s face. As she headed to the kitchen, which was a good distance away considering how palatial his Athens’ home was, she asked over her shoulder, “Would you like to grab something to eat?”
“Only if you join me,” he said after a beat. He hated how his thoughts were often filled with doubt and suspicion. Following Mairi to the kitchen, he wondered if his money had indeed changed Mairi and if it had, was it truly for the worse?
She loved him. That he was completely certain of. Was it wrong that she had so quickly gotten used to being able to spend his money as well or be used to the comfort and luxury that came with it?
“Damen?”
He looked up, realizing that he had been standing at the doorway all this time with a frown on his face. He moved forward, summoning a penitent smile. “I am sorry. I was thinking about work.”
She waited for him to speak about it, but he didn’t. As he sat on one of the stools surrounding the breakfast counter, she asked softly, “Would you like to talk about it?”
A shuttered expression fell over his face. “It is nothing.” He would never let Mairi know how much his decision to love her was costing him. The entire business world might be laughing at him behind his back, but Damen knew whatever he lost was worth having Mairi by his side.
His voice was curt and dismissive, and she took the warning to heart. Did he think she was too stupid to understand the way his business worked? Biting her lip, she prayed silently that Damen didn’t think he was engaged to a ninny.
The microwave sounded off behind her, and trying not to sound relieved at the chance to change the subject, she said cheerfully, “The pasta’s ready.”
The smell was delightful, and the taste even more so. After enjoying a forkful of the pasta, he was impressed enough to say, “It’s very good – enough for me to wonder if perhaps you’d like to start a restaurant?”
“A restaurant?”
He said smoothly, “It won’t mean you have to work every day. You’ll simply be in charge of creating a menu and setting the overall theme.”
A restaurant…
Only Greek billionaires like Damen Leventis would think that opening a restaurant and putting a schoolteacher in charge of it was an investment worth risking, Mairi thought dazedly. “I don’t think I’m ready for that kind of undertaking.” If she failed, it would mean causing him to lose thousands of euros – or even hundreds of thousands, and she wasn’t ready for that kind of failure just yet.
“Well, it was just a thought.” He paused. “In case you become bored with your life.”
“Oh, I’ll never be bored.” Her lips curved into another smile. “You’re with me, Damen. It’s all I ask for.”
He shook his head. “You never fail to surprise me, with how open you are about your feelings.”
Her smile almost faltered. She wasn’t as open as he thought she was. There were so many things she had yet to tell him, but her love for Damen made her scared to risk it.
After dinner, they went straight to the bedroom, Mairi waiting in bed while Damen took a shower. Her iPhone sounded a beep, indicating a new email.
Congratulations! You have successfully passed our test. We will start sending you writing assignments tomorrow at the rate of $.002 per word or $1 per 500-word article.
Hearing the door of the en-suite bathroom open, Mairi quickly deleted the message before looking up at Damen. “Feel more relaxed now?”
Deciding not to comment on how flustered she seemed, he answered casually, “Yes.” Joining her in bed, Damen wordlessly pulled her into his arms and took her lips for a kiss.