Paying Her Debt (4 page)

The girl he’d just fired had his wallet. But she had more than
that. She had his
Yiayia’s
ring. The one he was supposed to give to the
woman she insisted he would find in this small town. The one he’d promised his beloved
grandmother he would look for.

The woman he meant to take as his wife.

Chapter
Five

When her alarm sounded at half past one, Andy wanted to pretend
it wasn’t there. She pulled the thin blanket a little tighter around her
equally thin frame and snuggled into the bed. But the constant buzz would not
be ignored. It wanted her up, and she had no choice.

She yawned and stretched. Her back, as always, ached intolerably.
Carefully, still lying down, Andy took herself through the exercises she’d been
shown at the hospital, stretch and pop, flex and move. The dull pain did not
desist, and Andy gritted her teeth against the pain. Worse her head was still
muggy, tiredness settling over her like a cloud.

Andy couldn’t work how she could be even more tired than when
she’d fallen asleep, and why nothing ever eased the ache. The thought of never
feeling healed again gnawed at her but like everything unpleasant she pushed it
to the back of her mind.
Think about it later.

She groaned, pulled herself up, and reached out for the bottle of
water, taking a deep swig. Her mouth felt like the inside of a jock strap, her
head fuzzy—she shook herself and checked the clock. One in the morning, she had
an hour to get ready and make her way to the hotel. The thought of scrubbing
the bathroom floors made her shiver, but what other option was there?
You’re
one job down, Andy. No way can you afford to lose this one too.
If anything,
she needed more hours. She’d have to ask the manager if she had any going.

She stood up and stumbled her way to the bathroom, only just
avoiding tripping over her bag in the process. Shivering, because damn it was
cold, Andy splashed her face with water before checking her reflection in the
small mirror over the sink. Her heart dropped when she saw her sleep scrunched
face.
I looked so different a year ago….

And wasn’t that the truth. A year ago Andy was filled with
confidence, and it showed. Her fiery locks were wavy and luscious, her emerald
eyes full of spark, her skin clear and bright. Today’s picture was drastically
different. Her hair was lank, her eyes dimmed and her skin looking far too pale
for her own good. It had to be the lack of sleep, not to mention a lack of
food.

Andy hoarded every single penny she earned. She had to. The debts
were monstrous, and she had promised herself to get them paid off as soon as
possible. The very idea of spending the next decade weighed down by them made
her feel sick. So Andy worked every spare hour and put every spare penny
towards them. Of course that meant going without things she’d once taken for
granted.

She turned around, casting her eyes about the small apartment. It
was in one of the worst neighborhoods, rife with crime and anti-social
behavior, but it was cheap—and that was the main thing. The rent barely put a
dent in her paycheck from Finest Foods, the utilities were as low as possible,
and Andy no longer had a car. Just the thought of getting in one again made her
shiver.

She missed eating well. That she could admit. It had been so
difficult walking past the stock in Finest Foods day after day and knowing all
she had to go home to was a pot of noodles or some toast. But then even in her
heyday, she wouldn’t have been able to afford Finest Foods groceries. The
prices were outrageous, and even now, weighed down with anxiety, Andy was glad
she’s given Iannou a piece of her mind.

How could it be right that the people working in the damn store
couldn’t afford anything from it?

You can’t afford anything now….
Andy shuddered and pulled
her bag onto the bed. The enormity of losing her job hadn’t quite sunk in yet,
nor had the fact that the change in her pocket was all she had left for the
rest for this month and, according to Iannou, the next. She wouldn’t even be
able to afford the bus to the hotel, meaning an early hours walk through some
of the nastiest streets in the area. And breakfast, not to mention lunch or
dinner? Andy pulled her dirty uniform from the bag and threw it on the bed.
She’d be asking for a smaller size before the month was out. Not that she could
afford to lose any more weight, but it looked like two meals a day was about to
shrink to one.
If you’re lucky.
 

Out of the blue, she found herself wondering what Iannou thought
of her appearance. Had he even noticed her in that way? She blushed and rubbed
her tired eyes. His face once again filled her mind. How on earth had it taken
her so long to realize just how hot he was? His pictures showed him in an
entirely different light, more forbidding than anything else. So it was no
wonder it had taken a moment for the truth to hit. Though even now, replaying
the moment she’d awoken with him bending over her she could see how good
looking he was. It was impossible to go back to the pictures she’d held in her
mind the last year.

She shivered slightly, surprised by the jolt of desire fizzing
through her. It had been over a year since she’d so much as noticed a man. Why
him? Why now? The man fired her for crikes’ sake. She should be cursing him to
hell not lusting after him! But Andy was too fair not to understand why. Has
she been in his position, she might well have acted in the same way. She
had
been asleep on the job. She understood now, after the distance of a few hours,
that the anger she’d felt had been for herself, not him.

Lust all you want, you won’t be seeing him again.

Andy looked into the bag and frowned at her wash kit. Might as
well remove it, too. After all, it wasn’t like she’d be going to Finest Foods
afterwards.
What the hell is that?
Something brown and leathery looking
was peeking through her apron. She pulled the object out and felt her jaw drop.
It was a wallet, a man’s wallet.

Curious and bewildered, Andy opened it up. A huge wad of cash was
stuffed in the back, and she fingered it lightly; her heart raced. There had to
be a few thousand pounds, equal to three months wages.
Or one of your debts.

Turning the wallet around, she noticed a number of cards in the
thin slots. Debit and credit cards… and she gasped, they belonged to Iannou.
Fucking
hell.

How the heck had Iannou’s wallet gotten into her bag? Andy sat
down on the edge of the bed, heart pounding. Worry wormed its way through her
entire body. It must have fallen in at some point. Maybe when she was picking
all her bits and bobs up? Her face one again flamed with shame as she recalled
her scramble around on the floor for tampons and keys.
I have Iannou’s
wallet…a wallet filled with cash….

A lump in one of the pockets caught her attention, and Andy
unzipped it, removing whatever it was inside. Wrapped in tissue paper, it
unraveled in her fingers before falling into the palm of her hand.

A ring, delicate in its beauty, perfect it its loveliness, the
stones shimmered in front of her. Andy held it up to the light, watching as the
diamonds, the many diamonds, sparkled. The square emerald sat in the middle of
the diamond halo was almost the exact color of her eyes, and Andy smiled as it
flashed in front of her.

It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. The sort of
ring a man presented when down on one knee and with that thought Andy knew immediately
what it was for. Why else would Iannou be carrying it around?

It was the ring meant for the woman he loved, and that meant only
one thing. As much as the thought panicked her, as much as she’d have loved to
keep the cash, Andy knew she never would. Neither the money, nor the ring were
hers, morally she had no choice. Over the last year, she’d seen firsthand the
pain dishonesty could cause, and would never do that to anyone else. Rich or
no.

Which left one course of action. She had to return the wallet,
which meant she’d have to see Iannou again.  Why did that thought cause her
heart to race?

Chapter
Six

“Are you serious?”

Alex nodded. His hand clenched tightly around his coffee mug.
“I’m certain of it.”

George helped himself to a large slice of ham and another egg,
before attacking them with gusto. “Don’t you think you would have noticed it
fall?”

“I was a little preoccupied with Miss Jones and her tampon,” Alex
replied, taking another sip of his coffee. How George ate so much first thing
Alex couldn’t understand. But they always took breakfast together so he was
used to seeing his friend clear the table. Unwanted Alex’s mind skipped back to
Miss Jones. He’d dreamt of her last night. The most erotic dream he’d ever had
in his life. He’d woken up feeling hot and hard, the head of his cock slick
with pre-cum. It was ridiculous, hadn’t he decided he didn’t want her in that
way? He shifted uncomfortably in his chair as the dream replayed itself in his
mind. She’d been naked. Her slender body wrapped around his, her fiery hair
flowing over the white pillow. He’d pounded into her tight, wet pussy,
desperate to lose himself in it. Then, just as his cock was ready to explode
he’d woken up, panting and hard—aghast with his errant mind. Alex couldn’t understand
it. He had no way to explain why his subconscious had put Miss Jones in that
role, or even what it meant.

Alex was not a man who liked mysteries.

Even worse, the dream had left him feeling even more damn guilty
than yesterday, and her appearance began to niggle at him again. He was certain
now; convinced in fact, that Miss Jones had fallen on hard times.

He eyed the food piled high on the table and wondered what
exactly was on her plate for breakfast. The thought did not sit well with him.

“You’ve checked everywhere else?”

“Yes.”

George paused, fork in mid-air. “Well there’s no harm in asking
her I suppose. Though you realize if she has got it she might not admit to it.
After all you did fire her,
Vre
.”

Alex poured more coffee before answering. “For a start, she all
but fired herself. She handed me her card before I even asked for it.”

“You’d have fired her anyway.”

“I know that damn it. I’ve thought of little else since last
night.”

“Did you have much cash in there?” George asked, bringing the
subject back to the wallet.

Alex shrugged. “A couple of grand.”

“That might be too much temptation for sleeping beauty,” George
said. “She’s clearly got money issues. I can’t see her willingly handing it
back.”

“Sleeping beauty?”

George grinned. “Well you can’t deny, Alex, that she’s a pretty
stunning woman.”

Frowning, Alex played yesterday’s scene, then the dream, back
through his mind. Stunning? Pretty? He shook his head and shot George and
incredulous glance. “She looked like a little waif. All thin and pathetic, not
to mention rude.”
Why do I need to keep telling myself that?

George shook his head, his eyes dancing with laughter. “True, she
needs feeding up. I won’t deny that, but just think what she’d look like with a
bit of flesh on her bones,
Vre
.”

“You’re out of your mind George,” Alex replied. “And besides why
do you assume everyone is inherently dishonest? For all we know she might bring
it back, money and all.”

George picked up another slice of ham. “Most people are dishonest,
Alex. The years have taught me that much, but maybe sleeping beauty will
surprise us, no?”

“And why are you assuming she has money issues?” Sure, the
thought had occurred to him, but as always, Alex was interested in George’s
take on the situation. He’d watched the whole tableau unfold without being
involved in it. That gave a man a different perspective.

“Two jobs?” George began. “The store and a maid somewhere? Not to
mention her shoes.”

“Shoes?”

“They were mended, more than once. Did you see the bottoms? Holes
right through one, and it looked like she’d stuck cardboard in them.”

Alex stood up, suddenly and unaccountably uncomfortable, and
began to pace the floor. “Why didn’t you mention this yesterday?”

George shrugged. “Why would I?”

“If she’d fallen on hard times to the point that she’s mending
her shoes….”

“She was sleeping on the job, Alex. You were right to let her go,
whether she instigated it or not herself. You can’t be responsible for her
finances. Besides, she’s probably got a boyfriend somewhere she can turn to.
Thin or no she is beautiful, and we both know beautiful women are always taken.”
He paused and placed his fork on the table. “A shame now I think about it,
because I was giving serious thought to finding her myself and taking her out.
Did you see those creamy thighs when her skirt was riding up? I wouldn’t mind
wrapping my hands around them….”

“You’ll do no such thing!” Alex was shocked by the anger George’s
words caused. He clenched his fists and tried to clam down, unable to
understand why he should be so offended by his friend’s words. Or why he was
worrying about what Miss Jones’s response to them would be. George was
heartless where women were concerned. He fucked and chucked them one after the
other, but there was always a willing queue just waiting to be next.

“Oh, it’s that way is it?” George said, a knowing look in his
eyes.

“What the hell does that mean?” Alex demanded.

 “You’re feeling guilty because she’s cute. Admit it Alex,
there’s no shame in it. Hell, I was planning to get in her pants myself.”

A growl threatened and Alex had to grasp at his self control to
keep it inside. “That’s not it all damn it,” he said. “It’s just something
about this whole situation isn’t sitting right with me. I don’t know what the
hell it is. Why I feel bad about it, it’s not like me—you know that.”