She’d learned, on the helicopter flight over from Athens, that the island’s name roughly translated to ‘never-ending green’, and she had to say how well it had been named. The ocean was a rich shade of turquoise, but it was more than that. The island itself was incredibly verdant, filled with olive groves, vineyards, a full citrus orchard that included several rows of pomegranates, and an eighteen-hole golf course to the eastern side.
As if Alice hadn’t already been impressed by Thanos’s obvious wealth, it was this island that encapsulated how successful he’d been in his quest to rebuild his family’s empire. The house on the island was not so much a mansion as a palace. She knew from one of the housekeepers—there were three!—who took care of different aspects of the running of the place that the house boasted twenty-seven bedrooms, each with their own bathroom and sitting area attached,
‘Mr Stathakis likes to entertain,’ the woman had explained with a smile.
Alice hadn’t really wanted to think about that.
Ever since their conversation in Italy, she’d found it hard not to think of what Thanos’s life had been like before their marriage, or what it would be like afterwards.
It really wasn’t any of her business, and yet she’d come to hate the idea of him picking up where he’d left off, throwing lavish, decadent parties for all of Europe’s elite, for film stars and rock gods. It wasn’t because she was jealous. She wasn’t.
But she’d come to care about Thanos and she wanted him to be happy. And the more she thought about it, the more she felt as if that wasn’t making him happy at all. If anything, it was simply a way to hide from the real world—to make enough noise that no one notice
d you weren’t saying anything.
He sought shallow interactions.
But why?
He was an intelligent, interesting man, and the more she’d got to know him, the more she could see how worth knowing he was. Did he realise that? Had anyone ever told him how worthwhile he was?
She frowned, the thought incongruous in some way. Thanos Stathakis could hardly be suspected of lacking confidence or ego. After all, look at the life he’d made for himself! All that he’d achieved, his latent power and appeal, his strength and charisma...
‘There you are.’ She shifted her gaze over her shoulder in time to catch Thanos striding towards her. He was casually dressed in shorts and a shirt and his already deep tan had been burnished by the amount of time they’d spent outdoors during their honeymoon.
‘I’m admiring the view,’ she said, her breath a little shallow as he approached. They’d never agreed, at any point, that their marriage would be real, in the sense of intimacy. They’d never so much as had that conversation. It had been completely organic, but, one way or another, Alice was spending every night in Thanos’s bed, and every day by his side. Despite that, the sight of him still had the power to make her body tremble with anticipation and longing.
As though they hadn’t seen each other in a decade, not a few hours.
‘It’s quite the view,’ he teased, coming to stand at her side, his frame providing a little shadow.
‘I like it here,’ she said with a wistful smile, turning back to the ocean. ‘I feel like I could be anywhere in the world, at any point in history.’
He sat down beside her. ‘We will be back soon.’
‘Just a weekend?’ she prompted, turning to face him, a hint of worry playing about the corners of her eyes.
‘Two nights,’ he agreed with a nod.
‘So.’ Alice expelled a soft breath. ‘It’s show time?’
He shifted his head to show his agreement. ‘You’re nervous?’
Alice thought about that. ‘Not really.’ She reached down and plucked a blade of grass between her fingers, feeling its smoothness slowly. ‘I’m sorry your business acumen alone isn’t enough for him.’
‘I think it has less to do with my proficiency in the corporate world and more to do with the scandal that trails the name Stathakis.’
Alice lifted her knees to her chest and propped her cheek on them, angling her face to his. ‘It’s in your power to change your reputation, even without the drastic step of getting married.’
His eyes swirled with emotions. ‘I wasn’t referring to my lifestyle, so much as my father’s crimes.’
‘Ah.’ Alice made a noise of comprehension. ‘But you’re nothing like him.’
Thanos laughed. ‘That doesn’t particularly matter. His name is my name. Leonidas and I will live in the shadow of what he did for ever, no matter how we pull away from his choices.’
Alice’s heart constricted with pain for him, for how limiting that knowledge must make him feel.
She reached her hand out, laying it gently over his shoulder.