The Greek Tycoon Box Set: The Complete Serial: Books 1-10 (33 page)

“Nothing,” he repeated after her.

She pulled the top of her dress down, exposing her breasts, then held onto the back of his head and guided his lips onto them. He sucked, and slid his hand down between her legs, rubbing over her dress. She moaned and giggled alternately, slapping at him one moment, then thrusting her nipple deeper in his mouth the next.

“We should be at the party,” she said, her voice full of guilty thrill. “What if someone comes in here and catches us?”

Tom was thinking the same thing, and how disastrously that might be. He wanted everything to go exactly as planned.
 

As he flicked her nipple with his tongue, pretending to enjoy it, he glanced down at his watch. It was ten minutes before seven o’ clock. The day was darkening. He knew Brian and the rest would be waiting until he gave them the signal. The only problem was, he did not know if Jules and Felix Swanson-Jessup had yet arrived. He had not seen them before Cressida had asked him to accompany her to the library.

She put her hand on his forehead and pushed him away from her, a haughty smirk crossing her face. She lifted the hem of her gray dress, revealing her stockinged legs and black lacy panties. She hooked her manicured finger into them and pulled them to the side, spreading her legs a little wider, then pushed his head downward until he was forced to fall to his knees.

“Come on, darling,” she said. “Kiss it.”

*****

“Who’s that?” Carla whispered to Atreus.

It seemed that every other minute Bentleys and stretch Limousines crawled up the drive and circled the fountain to pull up at the grand entrance. The most expensive looking car so far, a Rolls Royce Phantom, had rolled to a stop just in front of them, and the chauffeur walked around to open the door.

Atreus placed his hand on her back. “Let’s see.”

An immaculate couple stepped out. The man, strong and broad shouldered, wore evening dress with a black bowtie, while the woman wore a tight fitting black dress.
 

“She looks fantastic for her age,” Carla whispered.

“That’s Jules Swanson-Jessup,” Atreus whispered back. “A very successful businesswoman. Her husband is a composer of classical music.”

“Wow.”
 

Carla watched in awe as they walked toward the steps. Jules strode ahead of Felix, clearly the more outgoing of the pair.

Atreus called out to them in a confident voice. “Good evening. Welcome to Westling House.”

Jules smiled. “Finally I get to meet the illustrious Atreus Kostas,” she said in a sing-song Scottish accent. “What an honor this is. I’ve been admiring your bold business decisions from afar.”

“Oh, you mean to start the hotel chain?” Atreus said, then gestured at Carla, beaming. “That was Carla’s idea. This is my fiancée, Carla Simpson.”

“Wonderful to meet you.” Mrs. Swanson-Jessup smiled as she shook Carla’s hand. “And this is my husband, Felix.”

“Good evening,” he said with a wave from his place a few feet away. He looked a little nervous, Carla noted.

*****

Brian sat in the driver’s seat of the people carrier he’d hired under a false name one of his shady friends had provided for him. Richie, Sam, and Macauley sat in the back, all of them wearing black clothes, gloves, and balaclavas.

“I’m sweating like a pig,” Macauley complained. “Ain’t he ready yet?”

“Just wait a bleeding minute,” Brian snapped. The truth was, his nerves were on a knife’s edge. He’d started to doubt whether they could really pull off such an audacious plan.
 

The phone trembled in his hands as he texted Tom:
Are you ready?

The few moments it took to get a reply seemed to stretch into forever. When the screen flashed, he rushed to open it:
Wait a min.

Brian sighed deeply and peeked through the trees toward the hotel. Tom had told them exactly where to park, at a certain vantage point that allowed them to see out toward one of the main fountains, but prevented them from being visible from the grand country house.

We’re ready when you are
, Brian texted back, making so many mistakes with his shaking fingers that it took him twice as long as usual.

*****

Tom winked at Cressida across the busy hallway. She ducked her head, blushing.

Perfect
. She was exactly where he wanted her. He excused himself from the conversation he’d been wrapped up in, hamming his posh voice up for all he was worth, then slipped over to her.

“What do you say we ask the Swanson-Jessups out front to see what we’ve done with the garden?” he whispered in her ear.

Cressida giggled and looked up at him, sex in her eyes. “I don’t see why not.”

He guessed he could have said, “What do you say we run and jump off the nearest cliff?” and she’d have agreed.

“Mrs. Swanson-Jessup,” she called out.

Jules spun round with her glass of champagne. She looked like she was thoroughly enjoying the party.
 

“Yes?”

Cressida hurried up to her, Tom behind her. “I’m Cressida Maher, the hotel brand manager, and this is Thomas McClean, part of the management team. We’re so glad to welcome you to the flagship Kostas hotel.”

Jules shook her hand.

“It’s absolutely gorgeous,” she said. “Felix and I love what you’ve done with it. And the harpist is extremely talented, Felix mentioned.”

“Indeed she is,” Tom said.

“My congratulations to you both,” Jules said, beaming.

Tom gave Cressida the tiniest little nudge.

“Thomas and I would like to invite you to view the ornamental gardens before the sun sets,” she said. “We’ve had a world class gardener to assist our team and we’d love to hear your opinion on his work.”

Jules smiled. “I’m afraid I don’t know all that much about gardens, so I’m not sure my opinion would be worth much, but I’d be glad to take a look.”

“I trust your husband will accompany us?” Thomas asked.

“Oh, yes, Felix is far more knowledgeable than I on such subjects.” She looked around, then spotted Felix by the harpist, closing his eyes in appreciation of the music. “You’ll have to excuse me while I fetch him.”

“Absolutely,” Cressida said, then turned to Tom as soon as she had pushed her way through the crowd. “Oh, Thomas, what a marvelous idea. I’m sure they’ll rave about the gardens, and tell all of their wealthy friends. It’s sure to glean us more bookings. You’re ever so clever.”

“Well, I did go to Oxford,” Tom lied, then chuckled.

She thought that terribly funny, laughing right along and slapping at his arm.

Before long, they were leading the Swanson-Jessups through the library, out through the double doors and into the garden, where the sun was beginning to set. Once they were outside, Cressida glanced toward the library, then at Tom with a sultry expression. He returned it, then turned to the Swanson-Jessups.

“So, what do you think?” he asked.

“Exquisite,” Felix said. “Truly exquisite. I would enjoy seeing this in daylight.”

“You must come back then, Mr. Swanson-Jessup,” Cressida said. “Our Garden Suite leads directly onto the flower garden at the rear. I think you might particularly like that.”

Jules’ face lit up.

“I’d love that.”

She began to drift in that direction and alarm bells went off in Tom’s mind. If they went that way, the plan would be ruined.

“Yes,” he said, thinking quickly, “we must show you that. But, first, please accompany me to the fountain.” He walked toward it before anyone could argue.
 

It was really a spectacular affair, with water cascading over in five tiers reaching up to the height of a man. Flowers were planted around its stone pool.

“It’s jolly nice, isn’t it?” Cressida said.

“I do like it,” Felix said. “Though I am more partial to flowers and trees and such. Water features are not my forte. Do you have any topiary?”

“Oh, yes,” Cressida exclaimed. “We have some wonderful topiary on the front lawn, designed by Albert Briggs himself.”

Felix gasped.
 

“Goodness.”

Before they could go anywhere, Tom said, “They are absolutely wonderful, as is all of his work. If you would be so kind as to wait here, we’ll locate the book of his work and bring it for you to peruse. You could compare the work he’s done here with his former work. I believe the work here is far superior to anything he’s done elsewhere, but we’ll let you judge for yourselves.”

He hurried back into the library. “Come along, Cressida.”

She did, much to his relief.

When they were safely inside the library, he slipped his phone into his pocket and called Brian.
 

“We don’t have a book of Albert Briggs’ work,” Cressida protested.

“No,” Tom said, his eyes full of lust. “I just wanted a moment alone with you.”

A slow smile crept across Cressida’s face. “Oh, Thomas, you’re a devil.”

*****

Carla walked up and down the hallway upstairs that stretched from the stairs to the window at the opposite side of the building, the doors to the suites open. She’d felt terrible nausea, something she’d so far managed to avoid, and figured she could get a couple of moments to herself before the elite crowd trooped upstairs for their tour of the luxury suites.

After the talk she’d had with Atreus that morning, she felt much more relaxed about the prospect of becoming a mother. She knew she’d do the best she could, and would keep working on her own self-development and growth—just like Atreus.

Nausea surged through her, and she felt the need for fresh air. She hurried over to the window at the far end of the corridor and pulled it open a little then leaned over and breathed deeply.

“Carla?”
 

She turned to see Atreus on the stairs, his face creased with concern.

“Baby, I’ve been looking for you everywhere,” he said. “Are you okay?”

“I feel sick, but I think I’ll be fine. I’m just getting some space and fresh air.”

“You’re sick?”

“Just nauseous. I think it’s morning sickness. Funny name for it, if you ask me, when I’m getting it in the evening.”

Atreus sighed in sympathy, walking over to her. “Is there anything I can do for you, my love?”

Carla shook her head, feeling miserable. “Not unless you’ve got a magic wand.”

She stared out the window when suddenly she saw something so crazy she rubbed her eyes to see if she was seeing right.
 

“Oh my gosh,” she gasped.
 

*****

Chapter 4

Atreus came to the window beside her and looked out.
 

“What the hell?” he yelled.
 

They watched the horrible scene unfold in front of them, as the Swanson-Jessups were grabbed and dragged away by three men dressed in black. Their screams muffled by the hands of the men clamped over their mouths.

“We’ve got to go down there and tell everyone!” Carla said.

“No,” Atreus said. “I doubt the hotel’s reputation would ever recover.”

Carla felt more sick than ever. Two guests were being kidnapped and all he could think about was the hotel?

“I’ll go pursue them. Ring the police.”

“You’ll go pursue them? But it could be really dangerous. They could have guns!”
 

Before she’d even finished speaking, her mind had conjured up a thousand terrifying images of him in a car crash, just like her parents, of him getting shot at, of him on life support in the hospital. He’d never meet their baby. She’d never marry the love of her life.
 

“Don’t go, please.” She begged. “Let the police handle it.”

“I’m ringing them now!” he said, darting into one of the suites. He punched 999 into the phone. “Kidnapping at Westling House of the Kostas Hotels Group.” He then relayed the address. “Please wait at the end of the drive, I will come out to you.”

The whole world felt like it was closing in on Carla. She’d felt so safe, so happy with the direction her life seemed to be going in just moments before. But now everything was turned on its head.
 

She clutched at her belly, wondering what kind of awful world she was bringing their child into when she suddenly thought of Dios.

“I want to go to the Gardener’s Cottage right away,” she said. “To go and check on Dios.”

Andria was looking after him, and more images jumped into her head: Andria tied up, a piece of tape over her mouth. Dios’ little bed empty.

“Let’s go,” Atreus said. “The fire escape.”

They ran down another corridor to where the newly-installed fire escape was. Pushing on it, Atreus heaved it open, and they ran down the metal steps to the ground outside.

“I can’t believe this,” Carla kept saying. “I just can’t believe this.”

“Me neither,” Atreus said, clutching her hand.