The Greek Tycoon Box Set: The Complete Serial: Books 1-10 (4 page)

“I know.”

“Maybe I could come over in a month’s time. Let’s see how Marina and Dory’s schedules work out for school.”
 

Onella wanted only to help her brother, however she could. And she knew just how to do so.

*****

As Atreus ended their call, he missed his sister more than ever. The empty house seemed to expand around him, engulfing him in his listless misery.

That night Atreus browsed the web, searching for potential nannies. He found a few employment agencies he might like to visit, but none truly jumped out at him as the right fit. He couldn’t sleep, plagued by the nagging question: Would a nanny be like a mother to Dios? Would it be enough?

When his sister called again the following day, he was hesitant to tell her that his search had turned up no potential applicants. To his surprise, she was pleased.
 

“It doesn’t matter,” she said dismissively. “I’ve already found someone for you.”

“What?”
 

“My best ever employee, with a nanny qualification, too,” Onella said proudly. “She’s going to come help you.”

Atreus groaned.

“An employee of yours? If she’s so great why are you trying to foist her off on me?”

“Hey!” Onella chirped. “There’s no foisting going on! She’s great, but has told me in the past that she misses working with children. As good as she is in the office, she doesn’t enjoy it all that much. And she’s willing to move overseas.”

Atreus found a little humor in him somewhere.
 

“She sounds especially eager to get as far away from you as possible.”

“Pish,” said Onella, but then she took on a more serious tone. “She has a rather unpleasant ex-boyfriend she’d like to rid herself of. It’s a long story.”

“Oh, please don’t tell it to me.”
 

He had enough trouble worrying about his
own
unpleasant ex.

“Listen, her name is Carla Simpson, and she’s British. They make the best nannies, you know.”

Atreus laughed outright at that.
 

“Lazy stereotyping, Nell. She’s not Mary Poppins, is she?”

“Apparently as good as,” Onella said indignantly. “Dios will take to her like a duck to water. Trust me.”

“I have the strangest feeling that I don’t have a choice here,” Atreus replied.
 

“You don’t,” Onella confirmed. “I’m flying in next week with her to see you.”

“Nella! You know I want to see you, but I haven’t agreed to hire the girl yet.”

“Oh, but Mom and I have done that already,” said Onella. Atreus could practically see her smug smile through the phone. “I’ll email you our flight details. Gotta run, love you, bye!”

Atreus smiled despite himself as he lowered the phone into the receiver. He shook his head at his scheming sister, but secretly appreciated how much she cared. He just wondered what Onella was getting him into.

*****

Chapter 3

Atreus wanted to pick his sister up in person, rather than simply sending a car for her. And, while the rush hour traffic in the city was hell that Saturday night, he made it with time to spare. And as he stood in the arrivals lounge waiting for his sister, he wondered what her companion would be like. Onella was objectively quite beautiful, and she attracted equally gorgeous people to her. If Carla was anything like Onella’s other friends, Atreus expected her to be bright and striking.
 

Onella appeared in customs clearance as a flash of olive-toned leg beneath her chic pencil skirt, her bouncy brunette locks swinging into view as she talked and laughed animatedly with another woman. When the stranger stepped into his line of sight, Atreus made a double take.

Tall and blonde, with a sweet face and bright eyes, this woman could have been Aphrodite. There was a grace and beauty in her movements that swept all other thoughts from Atreus’s mind. Onella saw him and waved, and although he waved back, he felt totally dumbstruck.
 

“Atreus!” Onella cried, flinging her arms around him. Her voice was genuine and tender. She squeezed him tight and kissed him on both cheeks. “It is so good to see you.”
 

The blonde woman stood apart from the familial reunion, waiting patiently to be introduced. Onella noticed her awkward position and immediately went to her.
 

“Oh, Carla, I’m so sorry!”
 

She gestured for the woman to join their conversation.
 

“This is my brother, Atreus.”
 

Atreus could only open and close his mouth stupidly, before remembering his manners and extending a hand to this vision of loveliness.
 

“It’s very nice to meet you, Mr. Kostas.” Carla smiled shyly.
 

“You, too, Carla.”
 

He just about managed to resist the temptation to look her up and down. Surely a woman this glamorous would have no interest in chasing around a rambunctious child. How could she be the right fit? Perhaps for Atreus, but for Dios?

As they drove home from the airport, Onella chatted happily with her brother about Dios, her daughters, and London. Atreus’s eyes flicked up to his mirror and noticed Carla smiling at him, two adorable dimples studding her cheeks.

When they arrived at the villa, they found Andria standing in the driveway with Dios, who was happily chewing on a baby biscuit. Onella sprang from the car as soon as it came to a halt and showered her nephew with kisses and baby talk in Greek. The child squealed happily, waving his arms to be held by his aunt.

“Oh, he is a darling!” she said, taking him into her arms and kissing both of his cheeks. “And he looks so big now. Hello, little fellow. Do you remember your auntie Nella? You do, don’t you!”
 

Dios giggled and Atreus smiled at the sight of his son, happily together with his family. Well, as
together
as his family could be without Serene.
 

He gestured for Carla to step forward and introduced her to his mother. Carla shook her hand gratefully.

“It’s such a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Kostas! I finally see where Onella received her extravagant beauty!”

Andria smiled broadly and flung her arms around Carla.

“I like this girl!” she squealed. “Please, call me Andria. Mrs. Kostas ran out on us, anyway.”

“Mother,” Atreus said sternly, his voice a warning.
 

But his mother merely waved him away, taking Carla under her wing and guiding her inside, chatting and laughing the whole way. Onella continued kissing and pinching Dios’ cheeks and followed suit, carrying him back into the house after gesturing to Atreus to follow along.
 

Later, after the women had been seen to their respective rooms by the house staff, Onella lingered in the doorway of Atreus’ study, where he was unsuccessfully trying to keep his mind on business.

 
“So? What do you say?” asked Onella.

“About what?”

She sighed impatiently.
 

“Carla.”

“Oh.” He leant back in his leather chair. “Well, I don’t know whether she could handle Dios. Mom will tell you what a bundle of mischief he is.”

“She’s a professional, and I would never recommend her if I wasn’t certain of her abilities.”

“I know you mean well, but she looks so . . . you know,
not nanny-ish
. You know what I mean?”

Atreus looked warily at his sister, who grinned.

“Oh sure, I know what you mean, baby brother. She is very pretty and you’re afraid you will fall in love with her,” she teased.

He looked back at his papers.
 

“Stop that. I’m through with love. For life. Serene’s made sure of that.”
 

Onella fell silent, wishing she hadn’t brought up love. Serene had been Atreus’ life, and he’d given her everything she wished for. There was no wonder Atreus felt uncomfortable around a beautiful woman – the one he’d given himself to had left him flat.

Onella cleared her throat.
 

“I think you should give Carla a try. As a nanny, I mean. Don’t you think so?”
 

“Fine,” said Atreus. “Let’s take her on for a month, a sort of trial. If she’s not up to it, she goes back to London with a full month’s pay and a severance bonus. Fair?”

“Fair. Mother and I will handle everything. You won’t have to do a thing except sit back, relax and see how right your sister had been.”

*****

Carla stood at the window and looked at the expanse of lush green land spanning the villa. Would she be able to settle in and look after Dios?
 

In truth, it was not Dios that worried her, but his father. She remembered how he’d glanced at her in the car, and had felt her stomach fall to her toes as his eyes penetrated her. There was something about Atreus that excited her, but she dared not pursue it.
 

How could she do that to Onella after all the help she’d given her? It was only a special kind of boss who would hook up their employee with a different role when they’d confided their job dissatisfaction. She was also thankful to find herself in a sanctuary where the worry of Brian coming to try and win her back didn’t exist. She couldn’t jeopardize that good fortune by letting her feelings of romance run away with her.

There was a knock on the door.
 

“Come in.”

Carla turned from the window to see Onella enter the room.

“Hey, what do you think? Do you like the place?” asked Onella, sitting down on the nearby bed. Carla nodded.

“Are you kidding me?!” Carla laughed, gesturing to the luxury all around her. “Onella, I can’t tell you how grateful I am to you for getting me out of my . . . situation.”
 

Her eyes fell to the floor, embarrassed.

“It was nothing,” Onella said soothingly, stepping closer to her and placing a comforting hand on Carla’s arm. “And it looks like it’s going to work out for everyone involved. Perhaps it was fate!”
 

Carla smiled.

“Or at least very good luck,” Onella added.

“Yes,” Carla replied, brushing a lock of blonde hair out of her eyes and tucking it behind her ear. “It was definitely good luck,
at least
.”

But she liked the thought of fate better.

“Come on,” Onella said brightly, taking Carla’s hand. “Let’s pop in on Dios. You may as well get to know each other as quickly as possible.”
 

When they got to the nursery Onella paused at the doorway. She put her finger to her lips, then pointed inside. Carla looked in to see Atreus in the rocking chair, giving Dios his bottle of milk. He was so engrossed in what he was doing, looking lovingly into his son’s eyes and humming quietly to him, that he did not notice them there.

“He’s a great dad,” Onella whispered.
 

Carla nodded.

I can tell,
she thought.

For some reason her eyes stung and she had to hold back tears.
 

Atreus stopped humming and murmured to Dios in a soft, low voice and the child giggled and wriggled in his father’s arms. The way Dios reacted to his father made it clear that they were in sync. They understood each other.
 

Carla wondered how long it had been since the two had a peaceful moment, what with the chaos and sadness of Serene leaving.
 

“We should go,” Carla whispered to Onella, whose eyes were apparently also fighting back tears. They backed slowly out of the nursery and quietly closed the door.
 

“I just can’t understand it,” Onella said once they had returned to the privacy of Carla’s room. Her tears had begun to spill down her cheeks, due equally to both sadness and frustration. Carla handed her a tissue as Onella sighed, her chest heavy with emotion. “Atreus may have his faults, sure, but he’s a good father, and he was a loyal husband to that…
woman
.”

“She obviously didn’t appreciate what she had,” Carla replied. “Though she must have been blind to not see the treasures she was leaving behind.”

*****

Chapter 4

The following week Onella returned to London, leaving Dios alone in Carla’s care for the first time.

Initially, Dios had looked at Carla with an expression of wonder, unsure of this new woman in his life. But Carla had a knack with babies, and Dios was no exception. She would waltz him around the room to Brahms’
Lullaby
or Tchaikovsky’s
Waltz of the Flowers
and he would delight in twirling around. Her positive and upbeat personality somehow managed to keep him in a pleasant mood from morning to evening. And in next to no time, the pair were the best of friends.

One afternoon, Andria came up to the nursery and stood watching Carla sing nursery rhymes to Dios, who clapped his chubby hands together and laughed at the tunes.