‘You hurt me.’ He winced as though she’d hit him. ‘You did exactly what you’ve spent your whole life telling yourself you wouldn’t, and you hate yourself for that, so you’re trying to fix it. You can’t just say you love me! That’s not the answer to this.’
He shook his head, moving closer again, his body wrapping hers inwards, his arms linking behind her back. ‘I’m not just saying this to make myself feel better. Yes, I hurt you.’ He dropped his forehead to hers. ‘I hurt you and seeing that pain on your face is an image I will never forget. When you looked at Pia, when she kissed me, the look in your eyes...’ He shook his head, the sentence unfinished.
Pain was burning her insides anew. ‘Please don’t.’
‘But your hurt was matched by my own. I have been mis
erable without you, and all I can think about is the rest of my life, spending it like this, and there’s just this huge, dark void. Without you, nothing has meaning. You are my everything, Amelia.’
She sobbed, her eyes pleading when they met his. ‘Please don’t say these things.’
‘Do you love me?’
She swept her eyes shut, her lips parted. ‘Of course.’
‘Then why can’t I say this? Why can’t I say it back to you?’
She sobbed and shook her head. ‘Because I know what you want in life and it’s not this. You shouldn’t have to change who you are because of me.’
‘You changed who I am and what I want. Until I met you, of course I felt that love was a fantasy, a ridiculous construct. Until I met you, I’d never been in love before. You taught me to love—I love you, I love Cameron; you opened my heart. I’m still terrified of hurting you, or not being the father he needs, but you showed me that loving someone isn’t about not feeling afraid, it’s just about showing up and doing your best. Being there for the person you love. All I want in this life is you, Amelia.’
He brushed his lips to hers and she felt as though she were being breathed back to life. Her heart began to sing. ‘That artist in Paris saw something I was too stupid to recognise. Or maybe I recognised it and was just too stubborn to accept it. We are a family—you, me and Cam—and we should be together.’
Her heart was soaring inside her. ‘I can’t believe this.’
He compressed his lips and nodded, lifting a hand and padding his thumb over her lower lip, his eyes following the movement before he dropped his hand and stepped away. ‘I’ve given it a lot of thought. I hurt you and I would be a fool to expect you to simply forgive and forget. I know I need to prove myself to you again, and I’m prepared to do that. Here’s what I want.’ And suddenly, he was the self-made billionaire tycoon success story all over again. Powerful, commanding, completely in his element.
‘The school year has just started—I know you won’t want to leave your students midway through. And Cameron has just started his new school and, while it’s not exactly working out as I’d hoped, I don’t believe in giving up, so I think it’s important he persevere a little longer.’
Her heart skidded to a stop. ‘What do you mean, it’s not working?’
‘It’s a long story.’
‘Is he not happy?’
‘No, he’s not happy. And, while I think he’s struggling with the school and his peers, and the differences of culture and language, ultimately I think he misses you more than he—at six—can put into words.’
Her heart cracked open. Tears ran down her cheeks. ‘I miss him too.’
A muscle jerked in Santos’s jaw. ‘Give me the rest of the school year.’ It was a command but she heard the uncertainty and doubt, as though he was worried she would refuse him. ‘You can fly to Athens on weekends and I’ll come here as often as I can leave Cameron. You can see for yourself how serious I am before you agree to this.’
‘Agree to what?’
He stared at her blankly. ‘To marry me, obviously.’
She stared back, just as blankly. ‘To marry you? Santos, you don’t believe in marriage.’
‘I don’t believe in my father’s marriages, but I believe in anything you and I do together.’
A tremble ran down her spine. He blinked, as if just remembering something, turning towards the sofa and picking up a slim leather document wallet. She hadn’t even realised he’d been carrying it when he walked in.
‘To that end, I’ve had this drawn up.’ He pulled out some paper and handed it to her. His eyes were boring into her so it was hard to concentrate as she skimmed the words.
‘A pre-nuptial agreement?’ Her heart sped up. ‘You’ve had a pre-nup drawn up? I haven’t even agreed—’
‘I wanted you to see it before you did agree,’ he said quietly, the words earnest and husky.
‘If I were to marry you, it wouldn’t be for the money. Do you honestly think you need to protect your fortune from me?’