Kidnapped the Wrong Sister (6 page)

His
brother’s phone call not only angered him, it made him feel so guilty.  Alexis told him on the phone that he had a problem that he had to sort out before he could come home. Nikias heard the pain in his voice, knowing that he was looking for the woman he had so nearly made love to; the woman he still yearned to make love to, her face coming to his mind.  He stood with determination, and for one of the few times in his life he decided that he was going to put his needs before those of his brother.  He wanted the women upstairs, and with certainty he knew that he had to have her, no matter how much it might upset Alexis.

Moving up the stairs he
gently tapped on her door.  Hearing no sound he moved inside, seeing her asleep on the bed.  As he stood over her, watching her sleeping form, he held in the groan as he thought how child-like she looked as she lay so innocently.  He frowned at this thought, knowing what she was, but still feeling the need for her invading his whole being.  With a small sigh, he left the room, needing to think carefully about how he approached Diona Brown.

After several hours of blissful
peace, Diona awoke, feeling refreshed from her sleep.  Looking at her watch, she gasped, seeing that it was nearly 6:30 and feeling the telling pangs of hunger in her stomach.  Moving into the shower, she washed before dressing.  As she started to pull her hair into its usual knot, she stilled her hands before pulling her hair around her shoulders, seeing how it softened her lovely features.  Not fully understanding her own feelings at that moment, she let it hang down around her as she dressed in a red shirt and black skirt, seeing in the mirror how lovely she looked. 

Diona
never really bothered about her looks before, leaving that to her sister, who was beautiful and knew it.  She preferred to slip quietly into the background, although given that she was every bit as attractive as her sister, this had not always been possible.  Many men tried to get to know her better, but she never encouraged them and most gave up fairly quickly.  However, Nikias had completely breached her usual defences and she was confused and more than a little shaken with her reaction to him.

S
he had been a little late going downstairs, and moving into the dining room, she frowned seeing no food or Nikias in evidence.  As she looked around and was about to go into the kitchen, she backed into him as he at that moment walked into the room.  Off-balance, he caught her by the waist, steadying her.  She quickly moved forward away from him, her senses once more in turmoil at the feel of his hands on her.

“It’s a nice night, I thought we could have dinner on the veranda”, he said, his voice a little husky, as she turned to look at him, her eyes bright, her face a little flushed.  Diona nodded, dropping her head so that he would not see the smouldering look in her eyes.  “Thanks”, she said raggedly, as he turned to lead her to the veranda which was lit with candles and small fairy lights. Diona looked over at him suspiciously, seeing the romantic trappings everywhere as the soft music began to play.  With wariness she took her seat, as he poured her a large glass of wine.

“Good sleep?”, he asked, as her eyes flew up to meet his. “How did you know that I was asleep?”, she asked sharply, as he looked over at her with no change to his easy expression.  “I went up to talk to you… you were asleep”  Diona caught her breath, her eyes full of shock.  “I would appreciate it Mr Dranias”, she said haughtily, “if you would not just wander into my room when the whim takes you, you told me the first day we met that you were a civilised man, please behave that way”

He
looked back at her with a mocking look in his eyes which made her feel even angrier.  “I’ll bear that in mind Miss Brown”  He laughed gently at her prickly expression.  “It can be very tiring walking around this island”, he said softly, “And the heat can get to you when you are not used to it”, he added gently.

“You must be hungry - from what I hear you didn’t have any lunch”, Nikias suddenly feeling a little guilty at not ensuring that somebody had provided her with food.  Diona shrugged her shoulders, feeling a little flustered at his consideration, as she dug into the moussaka in the centre of the small table.

As the two
ate, he talked easily, not once mentioning the incident that morning or the phone call from his brother.  Diona, however, was not able to fully relax, still feeling the way his closeness affected her.  As they finished their meal, she made to leave.  “I think I’ll have an early night...read something”, she added, planning to visit his library which she noticed on her first day which seemed to be well stocked.

However, he
stopped her.  “There is something I would very much like to talk to you about”, he said gently as he rose, taking her hand in his, causing Diona’s whole body to jump to attention.  “What?”, she asked. “I have no idea where your brother is”, she added warily.  Looking at her with a thoughtful expression on his face, he shook his head.  “It’s not that … Although it does involve my brother”, he said with a small frown.

Still holding her hand
, he began to walk through the gardens at the front of the house, before reaching a small seat shielded within a lovely secluded area in which the moonlight shone down on them.  Looking at him as he sat down beside her, she waited to hear what he had to say.  “Why are you with my brother Diona?”, he asked looking intently at her.  “You have nothing in common…you are not his usual type”

Diona
looked back at him with annoyance on her face.  “I have told you countless times that I am not with your brother”, she replied impatiently.  Nikias looked stonily on her, before looking away sighing, ignoring her comment.  “You see, I know that you see my brother as a good catch.  Rich, young, he must be very tempting” 

He
raised his hand for her to let him finish, seeing how she opened her mouth to protest.  “But as I told you the first day we met, he has no money of his own.  I own everything. I control all of the money”  With a small pause he looked deeply into her confused eyes.  “So it seems to me that you would be far better off if you switched brothers”, he said looking intently at her.  Diona gasped in shock. “Are you asking me to stop seeing your brother and start seeing you?”, she asked wide-eyed.  He smiled.  “Obviously not on the same terms…I have no desire for a wife, but as my mistress”

Diona
jumped to her feet, her fists clenched at her side, her whole body shaking with the angry indignation which arose within her.  “I have no wish to become your mistress”, she cried at him, her tone full of contempt.  “What kind of man are you? My God - you would do that to your own brother?”

He
stood up to tower over her.  “Let’s not play games Diona, I will make it financially worth your while”, he said softly, as she gasped again.  “So now you see me as some kind of prostitute?”, she cried, as she stepped back from him, the shock clearly showing on her lovely face.

Nikias
frowned down on her knowing this was not going the way he had planned.  “You cannot tell me that you love my brother, Diona”, he said. “You and he are totally incompatible which tells me that you are after his money.  I am telling you that he has no money, but that I am willing to make sure that you are well taken care of in a deal which will be more honest for everybody”

Diona
took another step back, glaring at the man before her.  “Stay away from me Nikias”, she cried at him as she saw how he made to come closer to her.  With another frown he continued, “Name your price Diona; I will pay it to have you in my bed”  Lifting her chin proudly, Diona stared back at the man before her.  “I am not for sale Nikias”, she declared through trembling lips, feeling the tears rising in her eyes, as she turned to run from him.

Standing totally still
, Nikias stared after her disappearing form, totally confused.  She had not even given his offer consideration, and were those real tears in her eyes?  He could even now feel the way his body yearned for her, cursing her for making him feel that way, and with a small angry sigh he made to follow her into the house, knowing that she would have fled to her room and also knowing that he could not follow her there.

The next morning Diona woke a little later.  Jumping into the shower, her mind was once more full of what he had proposed to her the previous night.  Again she could feel both the hurt and anger at his words, knowing that he thought of her as some kind of prostitute that he could buy to satisfy his desires.  Although with a small groan she remembered how he felt against her, sending little shivers of pleasure down her spine, as she chastised herself for feeling anything for such a person. 

Eventually she
moved downstairs to the kitchen, frowning slightly at not seeing Nikias anywhere, helping herself to some tea and toast. As she sat there, the housekeeper entered smiling warmly at her.  “Where is Nikias?”, Diona asked, seeing the look of confusion on the woman’s face.  Slowly she repeated his name, miming ‘Where is he?’ as best she could.  The older woman laughed before pointing to the sea and making driving noises.  With a feeling of anger coursing through her she realised that he had taken a speedboat over to the mainland and she felt the white hot rage rising within her at once again missing the chance to escape.  However, there was also a disappointment at knowing that he was not there, a feeling which she pushed down ignoring the message it sent out to her with a scowl.

With little else to do
, Diona moved back to her room and fished out her bikini, which she put on under her shorts and t-shirt before moving out of the house to take a walk down to the beach.  She spent several hours happily exploring the other side of the island, which she was unable to reach the previous day, before returning to the house for lunch. 

As i
t became clear that Nikias was still not back, Diona once more left the house to move back down to the beach.  She enjoyed swimming in the warm clear aqua waters, finding herself completely relaxing in the warmth of the sun, with the sound of the waves lapping the sand, relaxing her whole body as she sighed with contentment.  Lying there she even found herself forgetting about her sister as the hours slipped quickly by, thinking with a small content twist of her lips that she might as well go home with a tan for her troubles, her hand making lazy circles in the sand as it slipped sensually through her fingers.

Suddenly
, the peace was broken with the sound of screaming which had her eyes flying wide open.  As she leapt to her feet, her eyes scanned the shoreline for the source of the terrified cries; she saw a woman running up the beach holding a small child in her arms and Diona ran towards her, reaching her in seconds.  Grabbing the woman, who she recognised from two days earlier, she pulled the small wet child from her panicking arms, laying her down on the sand, as the woman continued to scream in terror, her wailing now causing others to come running towards them. Diona looked over the little girl who was no more than six years old, quickly realising the child was not breathing.  Lifting her into a sitting position, she raised her giving her the Heimlich manoeuvre, as the woman screamed trying to pull the child from her, sobbing at her something in Greek, which Diona could only assume related to the fact that she had been in the water and not choked.  As her professional persona kicked in, she calmly pushed the woman aside, with instructions to step back, the mother finding herself obeying the younger woman before her, as she stopped crying for a second, seeing the determination in Diona's eyes, as the little girl coughed up water which had been sitting in her lungs.

Seeing this, and with a sense of relief
, Diona laid the small child on her back and raising her head, began to give her mouth to mouth resuscitation covering the child’s mouth and nose, careful not to overfill her small lungs.  She was totally unaware of the three other people who stood silently around her, all holding their breath as she worked on the little girl who lay so small and silent on the sand.  After several taut seconds she smiled with relief seeing the little girl’s chest rising as she started to breathe on her own, moving her head as her eyes began to flutter open.  Relief flooded her body seeing Nikias standing so quiet and pale watching her every move, as she began to bark out commands to him, telling him to translate to the people standing around, all smiling with relief.

“I need a blanket and you need to get a paramedic team here now”, she demanded of him, her tone and expression calm but tinged with unwavering authority.  “She needs to go to the hospital right now Nikias”, she instructed before turning her attention once more back to the little girl. 

From the corner of her eye she
saw him pull the mobile phone from his pocket quickly dialling a number while translating her instructions to others standing around, seeing a flurry of activity as people ran in different directions.  Soon she felt a blanket being thrust into her hands, as she wrapped the small girl warmly against the shock, which was even now showing on her small face.  The woman who had been carrying the child was looking at her with wonder, the gratitude shining from her whole face, as she spoke with such warmth in her voice.  Diona was not able to understand what she was saying, but smiled gently back. 

At her side a
deep voice spoke.  “She wants to thank you for saving her daughter”  Diona looked up, meeting Nikias’ eyes as he looked down on her.  In them she saw such confusion, along with what looked like great respect. “Thank you Diona”, he said softly, kneeling down to look at the small girl, now breathing so easily, her face still confused as to what had happened.  “My pleasure”, she responded, her eyes meeting the warmth of his, as his mouth smiled, his eyes holding such deep emotion within them. 

Just at that moment she could hear a helicopter overhead, seeing how it
soon landed on the sand a little distance from them.  The paramedic team quickly joined them, listening intently as Diona talked to them, giving them details which they nodded at as they secured the little girl to a stretcher, placing oxygen over her small mouth.  As they asked if she was joining them, she shook her head, ensuring that the girl’s mother was taken on the only other spare seat, before once again watching as the helicopter took off and headed towards the mainland. 

The whole thing
happened so quickly, and as the helicopter disappeared out of sight, Diona sighed with relief, smiling at the people who all moved forward to shake her hand with such sincerity on their faces before they moved off to where they came from, until there was only her and Nikias left.

As she
stood, now a little uncomfortable wearing only her bikini, Diona wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly so aware of being half naked, while he stood fully dressed.  She could see the way he was looking at her, with eyes which were burning with a strange glow.  “I...I’m glad you were back”, she said softly, her voice unsure and nervous.  “She needed to get to hospital as soon as possible”

“I don’t know how to thank you… you saved her life”, he said, his voice so soft as she looked down at the sand with a little shrug to hide the inexplicable pleasure his words were causing her.  “It’s what I do Nikias, it’s my job”, she murmured, not able to look up to meet his gaze, as her whole body became so aware of him moving in even closer towards her.  She felt his finger hook under and lifting her chin, raising her head to look into his eyes, those beautiful eyes, which caused her to swallow nervously.

“Well you do your job very well”, he spoke so sensually, as she stood frozen to the spot, her whole body suddenly on high alert, aware of his smell and of the way his eyes were sweeping down her face, until they rested on her lips.  With a soft groan, she watched as his head bent down until his lips touched hers, her body once again erupting with such wonderful sensations as she heard him groan gently against her mouth, before he pulled her harder against him to deepen the kiss.  As she felt his tongue softly explore her mouth, and the hardness of his body against hers, she sighed gently as she cupped her hands to hold his face, feeling his arms snaking around her.

By now her to
ngue was parrying with his, as he began to playfully nip her lower lip, as she moaned with his actions.  His hands moved across her, feeling as her skin became goose-bumpy under him, as she reacted to every sure movement of his hands.  Pulling back to look down on her impassioned face, he dropped his head to move his teeth to graze against the visible nipples which strained against the material of her bikini as she moaned so loudly, causing him to make such a masculine throaty sound, making her shiver even harder.  As she felt herself slowly sinking under his mouth’s onslaught, she suddenly remembered where they were, and with a sob, pushed him away, her eyes so full of the horror of what she was doing.

“Stop…stop, please you shouldn’t”, she cried, as she turned on her heels and ran back to the house, stopping only to grab her clothes which lay on the sand.  Standing completely motionless in shock at what had just happened, Nikias could not believe his reaction to her, once more knowing that he wanted her with every fibre of his being, with a rawness which even now ached within him.  This woman, this little schemer who had set out to trap his brother was driving him wild, and he could not understand it.  No woman ever caused him to lose control, but he could feel the way the blood in his very veins boiled so as to want her back in his arms. 

Clenching his hands by his side he wondered what the hell was going on.  This was
Alexis’ girlfriend, the woman he planned to marry.  The woman who had refused to become his mistress and finally he understood how she had bewitched his younger brother, how even now she was affecting him, a strange jolt of jealousy passing through him.  With a set to his mouth, he moved back towards the house.  No woman was going to get the better of Nikias Dranias he thought, and certainly not her.

However, as he came closer to the house, he remembered how she
saved little Maria, how she took control of the situation, working so professionally and calmly to save the little girl’s life.  As all around stood totally transfixed and shocked - unsure of what to do, she took control, calmly directing those around her to work together to help save the child, and he knew that Maria would have died had it not been for her, and he frowned, totally confused by Diona Brown.

As he
entered the house, Nikias moved into his study.  Something was just not right.  As good looking and charming as his brother was, he failed to understand how he could ever attract such a woman, although he had to admit that perhaps Alexis was just the perfect mark for a clever schemer like her.

Lifting the phone he
spoke with his detective giving him orders to find out about Diona Brown and if there truly was such a person as Daryle Brown and which of them was involved with Alexis.  With that done he sat back to rethink that afternoon, a small frown on his face.

In her room Diona
sat shaking, remembering the way he kissed her, moaning gently at the way she kissed him back.  She could no longer deny the incredible attraction she felt for the enigmatic man downstairs.  How he only had to touch her to set her whole being alight with a desire which was so strange and foreign to her.  She sat groaning knowing that she needed to avoid him for as much time as possible.  To him she was some little gold digger and perhaps another notch on his bedpost, but to her…

Looking at her watch
, she saw that it was after six already and with a small groan she moved into the shower to wash away the salt she could taste and also the smell of his aftershave which still clung so tantalizingly to her body.  As she pulled on a coral summer dress which showed off the lovely tan she had developed over the last couple of days, she twisted her hair into a tight knot, suddenly feeling the need to hide behind her more controlled professional persona.

Moving
down to the dining room she found Nikias already waiting for her, frowning slightly seeing her hair tied up so tightly.  “Why do you wear your hair like that?”, he asked, moving towards her.  Diona stepped away from him quickly. “I like it this way”, she replied, her eyes warning him away, as he smiled at her with understanding.  Just at that point the housekeeper once more entered the dining room, again pushing the trolley.  On seeing Diona, she rushed forward grabbing the young woman’s hand, as she spoke so quickly, her voice warm as her eyes filled with tears.

Diona
looked over at Nikias, her large blue eyes pleading with him as he translated for her.  “She wants to thank you for saving her granddaughter, she wants you to know that her whole family will be forever in your debt and if you ever need anything then you have only to ask”

Diona
smiled back, nodding kindly as the other woman moved back out of the room, still smiling.  “Seems you have a fan for life”, Nikias drawled sensually behind her as she jumped slightly, not realising that he was so close.  “Erm…yes”, she replied, quickly moving over to the table to sit down.

“Diona”, he said softly, as she refused to meet his eyes.  “I’m sorry about yesterday.  I didn’t mean to insult you, it was not my intention…it seemed a solution to our situation”, he said. She raised her eyes finally to meet his.  “For the last time Nikias… I am not involved with your brother and I am not some kind of prostitute that can be bought”  She saw as he flinched.

“I didn’t mean to imply that you were any such thing”, he said softly, “and I’ve asked my detectives to check out your story”  Diona looked at him with surprise.  “Thank you”, she replied softly, lifting her fork.  He joined her and the two ate the delicious food, with the atmosphere between them stilted at first.  However, soon they once more relaxed into each other’s company, once more telling each other jokes.  After finishing their meal they again moved to the sitting room, where Nikias put on soft music, offering her another chance to try to beat him at chess.  With a soft smile she laughed.  “Throwing down the gauntlet; you’re on”, as she once more took her seat.