The Virgin's Secret (14 page)

The day of Delphi's wedding dawned, and Angel was getting ready at the villa. She'd agreed with Delphi that it would be best to avoid her father at all costs. At least they were fairly certain he'd not make a scene at the church, would be too conscious of his peers watching his every move. Leo had gone to the office and was going to go to the church separately, as Angel would be preoccupied with Delphi.

Butterflies erupted in Angel's chest. This was it. The culmination of what she'd agreed with Leo that night just over a month ago. To become his mistress in exchange for arranging Delphi's wedding. Why was she feeling butterflies of trepidation? Because this could be it? Here alone in her room she had to admit that she wasn't prepared for this to be it, no matter how masochistic she knew that made her. It would be Leo's ultimate revenge. Reel Angel in, show her a taste of paradise and then discard her like trash.

And Angel knew well that the paradise she spoke of had nothing to do with the ‘luxuries' Leo no doubt expected she enjoyed. It was a paradise of another kind: the paradise of becoming a woman, of discovering her sensuality. The paradise of such exquisite lovemaking that Angel knew no other man would ever have the same effect on her.

She looked at herself in the mirror. Big blue eyes stared back at her, shining, glittering. Her cheeks were flushed.

Since that night in the kitchen nearly a week ago Angel had been battling her feelings. Trying to tell herself that what she felt was only akin to a victim falling for their kidnapper. She frowned. There was a name for that condition…
yes, love
, crowed a little mocking voice.

Angel paled visibly in the mirror. How could she possibly have fallen in love with Leo Parnassus, when he'd shown her nothing but cold calculation? Because, she reasoned, he'd been perfectly justified in believing that she'd come to steal from him.
She
wouldn't have believed her either. Not with all the history that lay between their families. It was perfectly conceivable that Angel had been out to try and save her family by any means possible. And yet Leo had kept so admirably to his side of the equation that any minute now a car was coming to pick her up to bring her to the church where her pregnant sister would get married to her childhood sweetheart and all would be well for them.

And that was all that mattered, right? Even without all the obstacles between Angel and Leo, there could be no future. The man wasn't even used to sharing a whole night with a woman in his bed, never mind his life…

A sound came from Angel's bedroom door and she turned, expecting to see Calista to tell her the car had arrived. But it was Leo, stunning in a steel-grey suit, white shirt and tie.

Angel's heart tripped; her hands went clammy. ‘What are you doing here?'

Leo mocked, ‘So pleased to see me? I must surprise you more often.'

Angel blushed fiercely. She knew what had just been going
through her mind, and here he was,
unsettling her
, or… Her heart stopped. Perhaps he was here to tell her—

‘I thought I'd come for you myself, that's all. You'd better get a move on.'

Angel broke out of the stasis she was in and quickly checked her reflection again, seriously flustered now. Her bridesmaid's dress was a dark dusky pink, strapless and to the knee. Her hair was up in a chignon and she wore a flower in her hair the same colour as the dress.

Grabbing her wrap, she tottered out unsteadily in high heels, hoping that Leo hadn't seen anything of the naked emotions on her face before she'd hidden them.

 

Angel thankfully managed to have as little to do with her father as possible during the wedding, but she felt his malevolent stare on her periodically. When she watched Stavros and Delphi walk around the altar three times, with the stefana crowns on their heads, she had to fight back tears, feeling inordinately weepy. She studiously avoided Leo's eye throughout the ceremony, terrified again that he'd see her emotions bubbling so close to the surface. For she who had a somewhat jaded view of marriage to be so moved had scared her slightly.

Before they left for the reception Stavros took her aside and told her how thankful he and Delphi were to her, for helping their wedding to happen, and especially before the pregnancy became common knowledge. Those words alone, and seeing the unmitigated joy on Delphi's face, made everything worthwhile.

Leo was waiting for her at the entrance of the church, to take her to the reception, and to her relief her father didn't seem to be inclined to make a scene—no doubt very well aware that Leo was being courted and feted by everyone almost as if
he
was the one getting married.

Dimitri Stephanides, Stavros's father, had put on a lavish display in a top Athens hotel—no doubt also to impress Leo. Everyone was there. Angel became slowly aware that things had changed subtly in the time that she'd been with Leo. There were fewer of the snide whispers and furtive looks, and the headlines in the newspapers had all but disappeared. She realised that people had grown used to seeing them together…

‘Dance?'

Angel looked up from her preoccupation to see Leo standing there, holding out a hand. She stood up and let him lead her to the dance floor, where Delphi and Stavros had just had their first dance to much raucous applause.

A slow, swoony song came on and Leo pulled Angel close. Feeling raw, she tried to resist the pull to just lean against him, but his hand on her bare back, above the top of her dress, urged her close. She gave in and moved and swayed with Leo, content to let her head fall into his shoulder. It felt like sheer indulgence.

‘Your sister is not what I expected.'

Angel tensed, but Leo's hand on her back, moving in slow, sensual circles, forced her to relax again. She lifted her head and looked up. Leo's face was far too close for comfort.

‘What do you mean?' she asked, half forgetting what he'd said.

He shrugged minutely, one broad shoulder moving under his shirt. He'd taken off his jacket and tie, so his shirt was open to reveal the strong, bronzed column of his throat.

‘She seems…' Leo grimaced. ‘Sweet. If I didn't know better, I'd say that she and Stavros are genuinely in love.'

Angel really tensed then, and tried to pull away, but Leo was like a steel wall around her, not letting her go anywhere.

She whispered up at him fiercely, ‘They
are
in love, and have been for ever. They were childhood sweethearts.'

‘Cute,' Leo said, clearly not impressed.

Angel hesitated, and then said in a rush, ‘The reason they needed to get married so quickly is because Delphi is nearly four months pregnant. Stavros's family were never going to sanction a marriage with a Kassianides. Stavros wanted to elope with Delphi, but she wouldn't let him do that.'

Leo quirked a brow. Angel bit her lip. She'd gone too far now to turn back.

‘His family would have disinherited him and cut him off.'

Angel saw the cynical gleam come into Leo's eye and colour bloomed in her cheeks as she asserted passionately, ‘It's not like that. Delphi couldn't care less about Stavros's inheritance, but he wants to get into politics and she didn't want to be responsible for causing a rift in his family.'

‘And yet now, no matter what you say, she—and you by proxy—will be fine, secure in the wealth of her new husband.'

Angel finally managed to pull away from Leo with a violent tug, disappointed at how hurt she was at this evidence of his bitter cynicism. ‘Believe what you want, Leo. Someone like you will never know that kind of pure love.'

And before he could grab her back she'd spun on her spindly heels and was threading through the couples on the dance floor and out to the lobby. Leo raked a hand through his hair, aware of eyes on him. Aware of the way females were starting to circle, sensing an opening. Beyond irritated, and not even sure why, he pushed through the crowd and went to the bar—but not before he glanced to his right and saw the happy couple.

They were sitting apart from everyone else, in a corner, smiling. Stavros had his hand on Delphi's belly and her hand was over his, and they shared a look of such private intensity that Leo's step almost faltered. Right now they looked nothing
like what he'd just described; he felt guilty—as if he'd tarnished something.

Delphi was like Angel only in height and build; the younger sister had obviously inherited her father's stronger features and dark eyes, while Angel must have inherited her Irish mother's more delicate features and colouring.

Leo thought then of what it must have been like to lose their sister, Delphi's twin… At that moment he saw Ari and Lucy Levakis approach and smile a greeting, and for once he was glad of the distraction. Seeing Angel's family was throwing up far too many contradictions.

 

When Angel felt composed enough she came back into the ballroom, and was surprised to see Leo dancing a traditional Greek dance with the rest of the men. She was still burningly angry with him, but she melted inside when she saw the wide grin on his face. He looked so powerfully sensual doing the dance movements that she couldn't help smile. Just then her arm was grabbed in a punishing grip, and she let out a gasp of pain.
Her father
.

‘We need to have a little chat. I've missed you, daughter, and you've been very busy since I saw you last.'

Alcohol fumes wafted over Angel, making her feel sick. She tried to wrench her arm away but her father held on. ‘No, we don't. There was no way I was going to let you get away with stealing that man's will.'

Her father sneered. ‘So you ran straight to lover-boy and handed it back. Don't think you're going to get away with this, Angel, I'm not finished with—'

Just then Delphi came up and pulled her away. Angel sent her sister a relieved glance as they left their father swaying drunkenly, looking after them murderously. Now that Delphi
would be living with Stavros Angel knew she'd never have to see her father again if she didn't want to. The relief was immense, and she gave Delphi a quick, impetuous kiss.

It was the turn of the women now, and the men sat and watched as they all lined up and danced. Angel had taken off her shoes, and was laughing as she bumped into Delphi. She caught Leo's eyes as he watched from the sidelines. She found she couldn't look away, the intensity on his face holding her captive as she made the steps that she knew by heart. That every Greek person knew by heart.

It felt like the most primitive of mating rituals. When the music died away and the DJ started again, Delphi whispered to Angel, saying cheekily, ‘If those looks are anything to go by, Leo won't be letting you wait around to say goodbye…'

Angel knew her sister was heading off on honeymoon the next day, so she wouldn't see her for at least a few weeks. She felt very bereft after looking out for her for so long. She also felt uncharacteristically sad for herself; her mother had abandoned her at such an early age, her father had always resented her, and any day now Leo would be turning around and telling her he'd had enough. She felt a little like a piece of flotsam and jetsam, about to be rushed downstream by an oncoming current.

But Leo was standing in front of her. She saw he was holding his jacket. ‘Ready to go?'

Angel nodded, feeling incredibly weary all of a sudden. She did not want another run-in with her father, so she got her shoes and let Leo take her hand to lead her out.

 

Two days after the wedding Leo walked into the villa and, after putting his briefcase in the study, strode across the hall,
heading for the room Angel used as a workshop. Anticipation was fizzing in his blood. He'd come home early the day before and stood watching her for a long time before she'd noticed his presence.

Once again he'd found himself reacting helplessly to her, his eyes devouring her slim figure in a white vest and battered loose dungarees folded at the waist. Intent on her task, with her hair in a high knot and big protective glasses on, she shouldn't have been so alluring, but she had been. The fact that his control around her was as woeful as ever had made him feel vulnerable.

All sorts of contradictory feelings were running through Leo now. He'd seen her talking to her father at the wedding; well, to be more accurate, he'd seen her father talking to her, and it had looked extremely intense. It had made him suspect that perhaps they'd known that that would be their only chance to meet, hence the fervour. And then he'd seen her conspiratorial looks and smiles with her sister. No matter that he'd revised his opinion of his sister's motives for getting married, suddenly he doubted himself again.

The facts were still stark: he'd caught her in the act of theft. A detail which seemed to be getting conveniently forgotten far too often. Something hardened inside Leo.

Just then Calista came out of another room nearby. She stopped him in his tracks and asked with a worried look on her face, ‘Have you seen Angel?'

He shook his head, feeling irrationally self-conscious. ‘No, not yet.'

Calista pointed back to the main part of the house. ‘She's in the kitchen.'

Calista bustled off and Leo just stared after her. What was going on? And what was Angel doing in the kitchen?

Leo strode towards the kitchen, irritation spiking. He found
that all the doubts that had begun to assail him had got stronger and stronger. The feeling that perhaps he'd been even more of a monumental fool than he'd thought. Angel and Delphi had got the wedding they'd wanted; he'd taken Angel into his bed. Were she and her father plotting right now to do something—? He stopped at the kitchen door when he saw Angel at the counter by the sink.

Her back was to him, but there was a set to her shoulders that seemed awfully fragile. She was dressed in a T-shirt and tracksuit bottoms. He glanced at his watch. They were due to go out to a film premiere in less than an hour, but Angel was nowhere near ready. Though he had to concede she got ready more quickly than any woman he'd ever known; she never played silly games and kept him waiting for the grand entrance.