“No, I don’t believe Niles is stupid enough to do something like that. Try to steal you, yes? That was his way of trying to apologize to you. But hire men to try and kill my father, no. However, I would be a stupid man not to consider all the possibilities.”
“It’s too late for him to apologize,” I say. “I’ll never forgive him for what he did.”
We walk down a pathway I’ve yet to take, along the side of the cliff. The hotel is so big, I could probably take a different direction every day for a month and still not cover the whole property.
“Is being married to me so bad, moró mou?” Kostas asks.
I glance over at him, and for the first time, his eyes scream something that looks like vulnerability, maybe even insecurity. I must be seeing things because Kostas is the strongest man I know.
“It’s not the point,” I tell him truthfully, stopping and facing him. “If I had a child, I would do everything in my power to protect him or her. If I was dumb enough to have an affair with a powerful man’s wife and then drum up a debt worth millions of euros, I would never hand my child, my own flesh and blood, over to him to save myself.” I don’t realize tears have begun to fall down my cheeks until Kostas steps closer and swipes one away. “I would protect my child,” I say through a sob. “A parent is supposed to protect their child.” And then I add, “Like what your mom did for you.”
Kostas flinches. “She killed herself. How is that protecting her children?”
“Didn’t you hear everything she said, Kostas?” I take his hand in mine and he lets me. “Her warnings and apologies? It might’ve not been right the way she went about it, but it was her way of putting you first. All she wanted was for you to fall in love and be happy. While she wanted more for you than this life, mine was handing me over to it.”
“This life is all I know, Talia. You understand that, right?” Kostas’s eyes plead with me to understand. “What my mother said. It’s not going to happen. I will live and die in this life, and now as my wife you will too.”
The burning in his eyes tells me what he says is the truth. And at one time, this life would’ve scared me, but now, I’ve accepted my fate. “I’m okay with that,” I tell him honestly. “I just…I’m just trying to find out who I am in this life. Before you, I was Talia, the college student in Italy. During the week, I attended classes and studied. On the weekends, I attended parties and shows and visited art museums. I just don’t know where I fit in, in this world. Your world.” I raise my barely drunk glass. “I’m not a girl who drinks at ten in the morning.”
Kostas stares at me for a long moment before he takes my glass out of my hand and sets it down on a table. “Come with me,” he commands. Pulling me down the sidewalk, we end up in front of an area of the hotel I haven’t been to yet. It’s quieter over here. The pool isn’t open. The rooms look as if they’re all empty. “Come.” He unlocks a door to the building, and just like the outside, it’s quiet on the inside. Empty.
“Before my mother died, we were expanding. She handled all of the interior design. The rooms are just about done, but the restaurant isn’t yet. We were planning to open in the fall, but we’ll need everything to be finished before we do.”
Confused as to why he’s brought me here, I ask, “What does this have to do with me?”
“You’re an art major, right?” he asks. “You know style, and you’re educated about Greek mythology. You said you’re bored. I’m giving you something to do.” When my brows rise, still needing further clarification, Kostas adds, “I want you to finish what my mother started. The restaurant. You can design it however you want. Money is no object.”
My heart expands at his words. Finish what his mother started. Sure, he could hire someone to finish it, but he listened to me. I told him I needed a purpose and he gave me a solution. I turn in a circle, taking the massive empty space in. It’s filled with so much potential. I can make it anything I want. I can spend my summer creating a masterpiece.
“So,” he prompts. “What do you say?”
“Yes.” I nod emphatically. “I’ll do it.”
“Good.” He threads his fingers into mine and walks us back out, locking the door behind us. “I have time before my meeting, so we can quickly go over the details.”