The Mediterranean's Wife by Contract. Kathryn Ross
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his gaze. ‘And obviously you did that.’
The simplicity of the statement made him laugh. ‘Yes. But the thing is, the deeper you get involved with business, the more the responsibilities spiral.’ He didn’t tell her that he employed a lot of people, that he was backing Theo with an expansion plan for his diving business or that he’d just bought his father a house back on the island of Mykonos.
‘It’s addictive, you mean.’
‘I don’t think I’d go as far as to say that, but I like the challenge.’
She nodded. ‘And I suppose being single and without children it’s easier to immerse yourself in it, take bigger risks along the way.’
‘I suppose it is…’ He fell silent, her insightful remark taking him aback.
‘My father was a wheeler-dealer in his day. But never gave a thought to his responsibility for others.’ She frowned as she thought about her childhood. ‘He was always looking for the next big deal.’
‘And was he successful?’
‘At first—but unfortunately he didn’t know where to stop. Contentment wasn’t a word he understood and risk-taking became a way of life.’
‘He went bankrupt?’
She nodded. ‘Yes. Took one risk too far and lost everything.’
For a moment she fell silent. The personal cost had been even higher than the financial one. Her mother’s health had crumbled and so had their marriage. Carrie had only been ten but she remembered the trauma and the feelings of helplessness as sharply as if it had been yesterday.
She pushed the silky weight of her long hair back from her face, trying to dismiss the memory. ‘However, he was forever the optimist. He’s probably out there somewhere right now looking for the next big deal.’
Andreas frowned. ‘I assumed that your parents were both dead. Jo told me that you grew up together in a foster home.’
‘We did. But my circumstances were different to Jo’s. I wasn’t orphaned. My mother died, but my father decided to go off looking for his fortune elsewhere and having a ten-year-old along with him was a bit of a handicap. So he left me to social services.’
She saw the look of shock on Andreas’s face and shrugged. ‘Some people aren’t cut out to be parents, are they? And in the long run he probably did me a favour.’
Behind the brave words he heard the edge of sadness in her tone. ‘Do you know where he is now?’ he asked gently.
‘I think he’s in the States. I tried to trace him a few years ago and found out he was in Chicago and that he’d remarried. I left my contact details for him, but he never got in touch.’
‘Some men don’t deserve families,’ Andreas muttered.
‘Well, it worked out OK,’ Carrie continued swiftly, ‘because I met Jo and we are like family. She’s the sister I never had, if you know what I mean.’
‘Yes, I know what you mean.’ He smiled.
His phone rang again and impatiently Andreas flicked it open and answered it.
Carrie finished her coffee and tried not to allow her eyes to linger on him. She couldn’t believe that she had just opened up and told him all about her family! It was crazy. One moment he infuriated her…the next she felt as if she could melt in the warmth of his gaze…
He hung up and glanced across at her. ‘Unfortunately I’m going to have to go.’
‘Yes, of course.’ She tried desperately to mask her disappointment. It was for the best—she didn’t want to be a notch on anyone’s bedpost, even someone as good-looking and enthralling as him. And at least by having this coffee together they’d broken the awkwardness between them, so that if they had to meet again due to Theo and Jo it would be tolerable. Maybe that was why he’d wanted to come in.
She stood up and walked with him towards the door. ‘Thanks for an…interesting afternoon.’ She’d been going to say enjoyable afternoon and thought better of it.
‘Maybe we can do it again some time.’
‘Who knows?’ She tried to match his flippant tone. ‘Maybe if you are passing and I’m in, we could fit another coffee between phone calls.’
‘Perhaps, then, I should just say goodbye for now, Carrie. But I’m sure I’ll be seeing you again soon.’
And then he was gone, striding away from her without a backward glance. So damn arrogant, she thought angrily, yet somehow utterly irresistible.
CHAPTER FOUR
CARRIE OPENED THE BLUE shutters and bright sunshine flooded into the cool interior of her apartment.
It was Sunday morning, the last day of her holiday and time to go home. Somewhere a church bell was tolling, the sound echoing down the narrow cobbled streets of the village. Carrie leaned against the window sill and allowed the heat and the tranquillity of the morning to wash over her.
She’d thought Andreas would have come to her last night, that he would have wanted to make the very most of their last evening together—but he hadn’t. Of course he’d happily seen her over the past few days, on his terms! She hadn’t been able to say no when he’d invited her out to dinner a couple of days after their trip to the reef. Nor had she had the strength to refuse his subsequent invitations. The truth was, she was wildly attracted to him, and she’d naively jumped at every chance to spend time getting to know him.
And now he’d seemingly tired of her. She didn’t know whether to feel sad or just plain angry. He could at least have had the decency to phone her and tell her he wouldn’t see her before she left.
But what did she expect, she asked herself furiously, when it was just a holiday fling and Andreas was a busy man?
Carrie raked a hand through the long length of her blonde hair as she thought back over the holiday. So much had happened—including the momentous news of Jo and Theo’s engagement. And Jo had taken the decision to remain in Greece.
The four of them had enjoyed a celebratory dinner two nights ago. It had been a very joyful occasion. Carrie was going to miss her friend, but she was so happy for her.
But she hadn’t seen Andreas since.
After the dinner he’d told her he was too involved with work to make a definite next date, and that he’d ring her.
That was the last she’d heard from him.
She wished now that she had never got involved with him—had never allowed herself to start believing that he might actually care about her. Especially when he’d made it quite clear up front that he wasn’t looking for a serious relationship.
At least she hadn’t been stupid enough to sleep with him.
But how much of that decision had been down to her good sense and how much had been down to his restraint, a traitorous little voice asked her mockingly. Because she did want him, in fact so much so that she ached for him. And he knew that. There had been a few times when he had kissed her at the end of an evening and she had been a whisper close to just begging him to sate her.
She turned away from the view of red-tiled rooftops and shimmering blue sea. It was just as well he hadn’t come to her last night—because she might have done something she would have regretted.
She’d had a narrow escape, she told herself angrily as she glanced at her watch. Obviously the man couldn’t really care less about her! If he did he would at least have phoned her last night to say goodbye.
It was time to start packing. Jo would be here to give her a lift down to the ferry terminal in an hour.
Carrie could hardly believe that Jo wasn’t going to come back to London with her. It was going to be so strange not having