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‘Lucas is not my nephew.’ Her voice was quiet, but her heart was beating so loudly it almost deafened her. ‘He is my son.’
‘What?’
Theo stared at her in shock—not sure he had heard her correctly.
‘Lucas is my son,’ Kerry repeated.
She looked pale and sick, but she was meeting his gaze straight on—and he knew she was utterly serious. Then, almost as if his mind was working in slow motion, his thoughts pulled together to reach another obvious conclusion.
Kerry had said that Lucas was six months old. That meant…six months…plus nine months…
‘He is my son.’
The words sliced through the air like a knife— like a giant blade slicing through the reality of Theo’s tightly disciplined and controlled world.
He had a son.
‘You will regret this.’
‘Having your son?’ Her voice was thin and tremulous, as if she could sense the anger that was starting to build within him after the initial shock had sunk in.
‘The fact that you kept him from me,’ he said.
Natalie Rivers grew up in the Sussex countryside. As a child she always loved to lose herself in a good book, or in games that gave free rein to her imagination. She went to Sheffield University, where she met her husband in the first week of term. It was love at first sight and they have been together ever since, moving to London after graduating, getting married and having two wonderful children.
After university Natalie worked in a lab at a medical research charity, and later retrained to be a primary school teacher. Now she is lucky enough to be able to combine her two favourite occupations—being a full-time mum and writing passionate romances.
BY
NATALIE RIVERS
www.millsandboon.co.uk
MILLS & BOON
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CHAPTER ONE
KERRY was shaking as she looked down at the little white stick clutched in her hand—a plus sign was clearly visible in the window. The test was positive. A flutter of excitement rose up inside her—she was pregnant.
It wasn’t planned, and she hadn’t truly expected the test to come up positive—but she knew the discovery that she was pregnant would change her life for ever.
She pressed her teeth gently into her lower lip and stared at the test result for a moment longer. Her heart had instantly filled with joy at the prospect of having a baby—but her body had already started to tremble with nerves.
How would Theo react to the news that he was going to be a father? The thought of telling him sent a wave of apprehension rolling through her.
It was only six months since she’d become the live-in lover of Theo Diakos—one of Athens’ richest, most powerful property tycoons. She’d shared his high-paced cosmopolitan lifestyle and spent night after glorious night in his bed. He’d treated her like a princess, and his close family members—his brother, Corban, and his wife, Hallie—had made her more than welcome.
But, although Kerry had fallen deeply in love with Theo, they had never discussed their feelings for each other. And they’d never talked about their future together.
She lifted her head, pushed her long blonde hair back from her face and walked out onto the roof garden. When she and Theo were staying in the city, this magical green and scented oasis was her favourite place. The warm fragrance of climbing roses wrapped around her and the gentle sound of trickling water filled the evening air. There was such an aura of tranquillity that it was hard to imagine the garden was right on top of one of the glitziest hotels in the city—the flagship property in Theo’s empire.
Beneath her the city lights were starting to shine, and up high on the Acropolis Rock the floodlit columns of the Parthenon were glowing majestically against the darkening sky. It was an awe-inspiring sight, and one that would be forever linked in her mind with Theo. Being with him was wonderful. For the first time in twenty-three years she felt as if she was wanted—cherished, even.
At first she’d hardly been able to believe that he was interested in an ordinary girl like her, but the intensity of their whirlwind affair had swept her doubts away and she’d never been so happy.
The troubles that haunted her past had faded until they seemed almost to belong to another lifetime. It was wonderful, knowing that he valued her and wanted to be with her. It was something she’d never experienced before—but it was something that she was determined her baby would feel right from the start of its life.
She pressed her hand against her stomach. The knowledge that she was carrying Theo’s child was still sinking in—but she knew one thing for sure. This baby would always feel wanted. Always feel loved.
Suddenly a rush of excitement bubbled through her body. Theo would be happy. She was certain of it. After all, he was a wonderful uncle—he clearly thought the world of his nephew, Nicco—and she knew he would be an amazing father.
All at once she was desperate to tell him the news immediately. She hurried back inside and dashed straight to Theo’s study in their private apartments at the hotel, almost running in her enthusiasm. She couldn’t wait to see the look on his face when she shared her wonderful secret.
She slid to a halt outside his study door as she realised he wasn’t alone. He was with his brother, Corban, and from the sound of their voices they were discussing something important—something urgent. She paused to catch her breath, disappointed that her special news would have to wait.
Then, just as she turned to leave, the subject of their conversation suddenly became clear to her. She truly had not meant to eavesdrop, and her Greek was still far from perfect. But she knew enough to understand what Theo and Corban were discussing.
They were talking about taking little Nicco away from his mother.
A knot tightened in her stomach and her heart lurched horribly in her chest. She couldn’t really have understood correctly. Could she? She stood frozen outside the study door—unable to tear herself away—listening to them talk.
‘You must think about Nicco—it’s your duty to protect him,’ Theo said. ‘He is your son, and his wellbeing must come first.’
‘But Hallie is my wife—she trusts me,’ Corban said. ‘I don’t think I can do this to her.’
‘You must.’ Theo’s voice was emphatic. ‘A Diakos child belongs with the Diakos family. And Hallie is not fit to take care of your son.’
‘But it seems so drastic,’ Corban said. ‘Can’t we at least let her see Nicco before we take him?’
‘No. Absolutely not,’ Theo said. ‘This is the only way. If we do this right now—tonight—Nicco can be away by helicopter to the island before Hallie even notices he’s gone. Then we can deal with her privately—get her out of the country without any fuss. No one outside the family ever needs to know.’
Kerry clamped her hand over her mouth in horror. Theo and his brother were plotting to take Hallie’s child away from her.
She started shaking violently, suddenly revisiting all the pain and misery of her own childhood. She felt sick, remembering the heartbreak and despair—the utter wretchedness—of her own true mother, who had been unable to bear having her baby daughter taken from her.
Kerry could not stand by and let that happen to Hallie. She had to try and save her friend the anguish that her mother had suffered. Maybe if her mother had been allowed to keep her baby she would still be alive today.
Suddenly Kerry found herself backing unsteadily away from the study doorway. Her throat was tight, her stomach was knotted painfully and her mind was spinning with horrible memories that made it impossible to think straight. All she knew was that she couldn’t let them take Hallie’s child away from her.
She turned and ran to find her friend. She had to warn her.
She charged into the luxury apartment Hallie shared with Corban, stumbled through the huge open living space to the bedroom and found Hallie sitting in front of the mirror brushing her long brown hair.
‘Kerry!’ Hallie exclaimed, her cheeks flushed and her dark eyes wide with surprise. ‘Is everything all right?’
‘I’m sorry…’ Kerry gasped for breath after her mad dash. ‘It’s Nicco. I heard Corban and Theo talking—they are going to take Nicco away tonight.’
‘Why? What’s wrong? Is he all right?’ Hallie demanded, standing up so quickly that the stool she’d been sitting on crashed over.
‘Yes, he’s fine,’ Kerry said. ‘But listen—you don’t understand. They said you’re not fit to look after him. They’re going to take Nicco away by helicopter without telling you.’
‘No. They can’t do that.’ For a moment Hallie stood glued to the spot, her face blank with shock. Then her expression changed and she lurched into action, snatching her handbag from the dressing table so quickly that she sent a glass of wine flying. ‘They won’t take him. I won’t let them,’ she said, grabbing her car keys from a side table and hurrying unsteadily across the room in high heels. ‘I’ll take him away with me—somewhere they won’t find us.’
‘Wait,’ Kerry said, automatically reaching for a handful of tissues to stem the spread of the red wine across Hallie’s dressing table. ‘I’ll come with…’
Suddenly Kerry hesitated, looking down at the wine-soaked tissues. Hallie had been drinking. Remembering her flushed cheeks, and the way she’d swayed unevenly across the room, she’d obviously had quite a lot—way too much to be driving. But she’d just taken her car keys.
Kerry burst out of the room after her. But it was too late—the nursery door was open and Nicco’s cot was empty. A glance at the lights above the family’s private elevator told her that someone had already reached the underground car park.
Oh, God! What had she done? Hallie was drunk and she was about to drive out into the busy city traffic with her little boy in the car.
Kerry’s heart was in her mouth as she hurtled back to Theo’s study. She careered through the open door, making Theo and Corban look up in surprise.
‘It’s Hallie!’ she cried, struggling to catch her breath to speak.
Theo was beside her in an instant. His strong hands closed reassuringly on her upper arms to keep her steady and his dark brown eyes held her secure in his powerful gaze.
‘Take a deep breath.’ His calm, assured voice cut through the panic that gripped her. ‘That’s it. Now, tell me what has happened.’
Kerry stared up at his handsome face, momentarily torn between the distress she’d felt when she heard him planning to take Nicco away from his mother and the comfort she instinctively felt simply from being close to him, from the feel of his strong hands on her arms.
‘Hallie has taken Nicco in her car,’ she blurted. ‘She’s been drinking.’
Corban cursed in Greek, then ran out the door, shouting urgently to Theo as he left. At the same time Theo spun away from Kerry to pick up the phone. She realised he was calling his security team to give orders that Hallie should not be allowed to leave.
Kerry folded her arms across her chest and hugged herself tightly. What had she done? Theo and Corban had no right to take Nicco away from his mother—but her impulsive reaction had put both mother and child in danger. She should never have acted without thinking things through.
‘I’m going to help my brother,’ Theo said, turning to leave. ‘Hallie was away from the hotel before I warned Security, but Corban is right behind her.’
Kerry bit her quivering lip anxiously and felt her eyes burning with unshed tears. She wished she’d realised sooner that Hallie had been drinking—but it had never occurred to her that her friend would be in that state.
‘It will be all right.’ Suddenly Theo was back by her side, pulling her gently against his strong chest. He lifted his hands and slipped them under her hair, cradling the back of her head tenderly as he tipped her face up to his. ‘You did the right thing—we’ll take care of it now.’
Then, before she could reply, he was gone. But the warm, exotic fragrance of his cologne lingered in the air and the nape of her neck still tingled where his fingertips had brushed.
Theo was everything to her. Since the day she’d met him everything else in her life had faded into insignificance.
When her temporary job in Athens had finished she’d been overwhelmed with joy when he had asked her to stay with him. With his encouragement she had delayed looking for a new position, so that she would be free to travel with him wherever he went. He’d said that he wanted her with him always, so that they would be able to spend time together whenever his demanding schedule allowed.
Kerry closed her eyes, imagining the warm strength of Theo’s arms around her. Being in his arms always felt so right. Just now, even when he was worried about his nephew and his sister-in-law, he had taken a moment to give her comfort and reassurance.
He had told her that she’d done the right thing—except he didn’t know what had really happened. What she had really done.
She walked shakily across to the window and looked out at the city, which was now properly dark. Somewhere out there Corban was pursuing his wife and child. And Theo was helping him. She squeezed her eyes shut, feeling a tear escape to run down her cheek, and prayed that everyone would be all right.
Theo Diakos strode through the hotel with a face like thunder. Hallie and the child had been safely retrieved by his brother, but not before she had crashed her car on Syntagma Square.
Mercifully no one had been injured—but driving a sports car off the road on one of the busiest squares in Athens, right outside the parliament building, had attracted a deluge of unwanted attention, and a horde of paparazzi had appeared out of nowhere before Corban had been able to get his family away from prying eyes.
Theo swore under his breath. If only he had persuaded his brother to act sooner—to get Hallie out of the country and away from the family—then none of this would have happened. It had been becoming increasingly difficult to keep Hallie’s drinking problem under wraps, and this fiasco would certainly blow it wide open.
Up until that evening almost no one had known about her difficulty with alcohol. Even Kerry—as far as he knew—had remained unaware. Corban had worked hard to keep it a secret—but now everyone would know.
Theo glanced at his watch. Only a few minutes had passed since he’d called Kerry to tell her that the situation was contained, but she had sounded so distressed by the whole event that he wanted to get back to her without delay. He was sorry that she’d been dragged into such an unpleasant family situation. Witnessing Hallie drunk and out of control, then putting Nicco at risk and creating an unsavoury public embarrassment, had obviously been upsetting for her.
Kerry would never behave like that. There wasn’t a disagreeable bone in her body. She was gentle and graceful, and she hated drawing attention to herself. Theo valued every minute he spent in her enchanting company.
He’d first spotted her nearly a year earlier, talking to a group of tourists in the foyer of one of his hotels. Her long blonde hair, wide blue eyes and honeyed complexion had initially caught his attention, but once he’d spent an evening with her it had been her gentle charm that had utterly captivated him. After the cut and thrust of his high-paced business life, time with Kerry was the perfect refreshing antidote.
Now he was hurrying back to her, waiting for him on the roof garden. He knew how much she loved it there, and he hoped the pleasant surroundings would ease her distress. But if she was still upset when he reached her, he would pull her into his arms and make love to her until she forgot her worries.
He found her standing with her back to him, looking out over the city towards the Acropolis. The second he took another step towards her she seemed to sense his presence and spun round to face him, her hair bouncing about her shoulders as she moved.
‘Is everyone all right?’ she asked urgently. ‘Hallie and Nicco? People on the street where she crashed?’
‘Everyone is fine,’ Theo said. He pulled her towards him, but her body was filled with tension and she didn’t sway into his arms as he had expected. He leant closer, swept her silky hair away from her neck and pressed his lips to the sensitive skin below her ear. ‘Forget about it now—it’s all under control. Let me take your mind off your worries.’
‘Where are they now?’ Kerry asked, standing even straighter and stiffer than before. ‘Are they all together?’
Theo stepped back and looked down at her. In the time they’d been together Kerry had never once refused his lovemaking. She was so deliciously responsive to him that it made sex even more exciting and satisfying for him. Even thinking about the way she dissolved into a pool of desire at his slightest touch made him hot and ready for her.
Usually a simple look from him was enough to have her melting willingly into his arms. For her to be so immune to him she must be really concerned.
‘Yes. Corban has everything under control. At any moment they will be flying out to the island—away from the press,’ Theo said, skimming his hands up the bare skin of her arms with the lightest of touches. ‘You can stop worrying about them now—and let me make you feel better.’
Kerry stood tall and drew in a deep breath. She had to talk to Theo—to tell him what she had done. And she had to ask about the conversation she’d overheard him having with Corban.
Then, after that, she still had to tell him she was pregnant. It was almost impossible to believe that only a couple of hours ago she had been running to tell Theo the amazing news that they were going to have a baby—and then everything suddenly seemed to become horribly confusing and wrong.
‘Let me see if I can think of something new…something interesting,’ Theo said, his voice deep and sexy, as he reached out to pluck a couple of beautiful pink roses from the trellis beside them.
Kerry drew in a wobbly breath and looked at the gorgeous blooms in Theo’s large, sensual hands. Only last night he had carried her out to the roof garden from their bedroom, peeled off her lacy nightclothes and laid her naked under the stars. Then he’d scattered her body with rose petals before making long, slow, exquisite love to her.
Now the heady fragrance of roses was already filling her senses again, and her body was burning with the need to surrender to his lovemaking. She knew that she would soon forget everything in the bliss that he would give her.
But she couldn’t surrender to her desires. It wasn’t right when there were still so many concerns in her mind. She had to talk to him.
‘Stop. I need to…’ She hesitated, then pushed his hands away and took a step backwards. ‘Earlier this evening I heard you talking to Corban. You said he was to take Nicco away from Hallie.’
‘Yes. It’s a shame I didn’t give my brother that advice yesterday,’ Theo replied. ‘Then tonight’s fiasco would have been avoided.’
‘How can you be so cold?’ Kerry gasped. ‘Someone could have been seriously hurt tonight—or even killed!’
‘Exactly,’ Theo said. ‘That could have been averted.’
‘Not by depriving a mother of her child,’ Kerry said.
For a moment she couldn’t help thinking about her own mother—how she’d been utterly devastated to have had her baby taken away from her. Feeling like a worthless failure at only sixteen years old had made it impossible for her to get herself back on track. Her life had spiralled into depression and self-abuse. She’d turned to drink, then drugs—and eventually died alone of an overdose in squalid conditions.
For Kerry it was made worse by the fact that she hadn’t even known who her mother was until it was too late to help her. Instead she’d been grudgingly looked after by her grandmother—the very person who had taken her away from her real mother. And for Kerry’s entire childhood she’d made her feel unwanted and unloved.
‘I know you are concerned about Hallie and Nicco.’ Theo’s clipped tones showed signs of tension. ‘My brother and I are in your debt for raising the alarm—if you hadn’t come to us so quickly things could have been much worse. But my conversation with Corban was private. How we choose to take care of our family is none of your concern.’
Kerry stared up at him. A muscle pulsed on his shadowed jawline. His eyes were dark and troubled. She had to tell him what she had done—but she was apprehensive about how he would react.
‘Hallie is my friend,’ she said. ‘Of course I care about her. And Nicco.’
‘You must trust me to do what is right for my family,’ Theo said, studying her intently. Suddenly his eyes narrowed and the set of his expression hardened.
‘You told her. Didn’t you?’ he demanded.
Kerry’s heart jolted and her eyes widened with alarm.
‘Yes.’ Her voice was hardly more than a whisper—but she held her head up and met his gaze steadily.
‘You had no business doing that.’ Theo’s expression was dark. ‘It did not concern you.’
‘Of course it concerned me!’ Kerry responded, suddenly filled with anger on her friend’s behalf—and on her own mother’s behalf.
‘No wonder you were so desperately worried—your actions put many people in danger tonight,’ he said. ‘Someone could have died. My nephew could have died!’
‘I didn’t realise she’d been drinking,’ Kerry said. ‘Not until—’
‘Don’t try to explain what you did.’ Theo’s voice cut through hers coldly. ‘I’m not interested.’
‘But—’
‘I’m not interested in your excuses,’ he said flatly. ‘You put my nephew in danger.’
‘I never meant to,’ she said. ‘That was the last thing I wanted.’
‘You listened to a private conversation that did not concern you,’ he said. ‘Then you went behind my back and took the situation into your own hands.’
‘Hallie is my friend,’ she said.
‘And what am I to you?’ he demanded. ‘You should have come to me first.’
‘You… I…’ She stumbled hesitantly, suddenly unsure of herself.
It was true that if she’d spoken to Theo about what she’d overheard then Hallie wouldn’t have taken Nicco in the car. But that didn’t change what she had heard. And Theo had made it clear that he saw nothing wrong with what he and his brother had been planning. They probably still intended to take Nicco away from his mother.
‘I no longer want you here.’ Theo spoke suddenly, his voice hard and controlled, his expression set in stone. ‘Pack your bags and get out.’
‘What? I don’t understand…’ Kerry’s voice trailed away and she stared at him in shock. But she did understand. Theo no longer wanted her.
He’d already turned his back on her and was walking away, as if from that moment she was dead to him. She was already out of his life.
‘Wait,’ she called. ‘There is something I have to tell you. It’s the reason I came to talk to you in your study in the first place.’
Theo spun on his heel and looked at her dispassionately. He was giving her a moment more of his time, and she knew she had to use it wisely.