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into a battle for custody?’ he asked.

      She shrugged, but her eyes flashed fire at him as she tried to pretend that he wasn’t scaring her, and that she was in control of this. ‘I’ll think about it.’

      He looked at her with a flicker of admiration. ‘We’ll make a good team,’ he reflected.

      ‘I only said I’d think about it!’ she reminded him angrily.

      He smiled. ‘You can give me your answer tonight at the party.’

      ‘No, Alexi, I won’t be rushed!’

      ‘And I won’t be kept waiting. Once I have made up my mind about something, I am not a patient man.’

      There was a knock on the outer cabin-door.

      ‘That’s probably the boutique with the selection of cocktail dresses I told them to bring down for you.’ Alexi glanced at his watch. ‘I’ll let them in on my way out. And I’ll see you up on deck later for your answer, say about six-thirty, before the party gets into full swing.’

      She watched helplessly as he walked away. She had once heard it said that Alexander Demetri always got what he wanted—but she’d thought that the reference was mostly concerned with his business life. She’d seen his steely determination on many occasions in boardroom meetings, had often felt sorry for anyone who stood in the way of his objectives. However she had never glimpsed his ruthless determination on a personal basis. Not, that was, until today. And it was a formidable experience. If he took her to court, he would probably win!

      CHAPTER EIGHT

      ALEXI stood by the ship’s rail, looking out to sea. The sun was setting in a golden haze, sending light spinning out across the horizon, turning the water to gold.

      If someone had told him this morning that by the time the sun went down he would have made a proposal of marriage, he would have laughed scornfully. Yet here he was, awaiting Katie’s answer, and not just with cool indifference—this felt more like he was imploding with impatient need.

      He had always trusted his instincts. It was his gut instinct that had helped him turn the family shipping business into a global phenomenon, it was his instinct that had guided him every step of the way until he controlled a worldwide business-empire.

      His one mistake had been his marriage.

      But he’d told himself that everyone was allowed to make one mistake, and he had promised himself that it would never happen again. He would never take those vows again; he would never love a woman again.

      And he had meant it.

      But life had a way of laughing mockingly at your promises, and of opening up alternative paths—paths that forced you into making difficult choices.

      OK, this wasn’t a love match. He would never feel the way he’d felt about Andrea again; that kind of love only led to pain.

      But Katie was having his baby!

      And he desired her … fiercely desired her. The need to take her back to bed had been eating away at him for weeks. Even when she had told him this morning that she wanted a relationship that was more solid, more serious, he hadn’t been able to let go of the feelings he had for her. The sexual chemistry had simply been too strong.

      When he had discovered she was pregnant a minefield of fierce emotions had opened up inside him. Part of him had been transported back to the past, back to Andrea. He’d hardly been able to look at Katie without seeing Andrea … without remembering that day when he had discovered the truth.

      But that was the past, he told himself. Katie and their baby was the future.

      And when Katie had looked up at him and had told him she wanted their child he had known beyond a doubt that marriage was the right way forward.

      At thirty-five he was not getting any younger. And his business empire did need an heir. His father had been hammering on about that for long enough!

      The warmth of the evening air reminded him of Greece, and his thoughts drifted towards home. He owned a sprawling mansion on ten acres of ocean front. The views out across the sea were spectacular. There was an orchard and a swimming pool.

      He’d inherited it from his grandparents, who had hoped that one day he would live there with his wife and children. But it hadn’t been to Andrea’s tastes, she’d preferred to live in the city, so it had lain closed up for all these years. Alexi rarely went there. It wasn’t a practical proposition to live there as a bachelor, it was too big, and his apartments in Athens, London and New York were more convenient.

      But now everything had changed. Suddenly the place seemed very practical. He found himself wondering what the garden would look like now as spring turned to summer; he imagined the blossom of the fruit trees, the rich fragrance of the heavily ripened figs so evocative of the Greek summers. There was nowhere quite as beautiful as Greece, he thought nostalgically. His childhood had been idyllic and it was what he wanted for his own son or daughter.

      Suddenly he longed to be back there.

      Tomorrow. Tomorrow he would leave with Katie for Athens. But before that they would be married in the chapel here on board the Octavia.

      Now that he had made up his mind he didn’t see the point in waiting around. He’d already spoken to lawyers and put the wheels in motion. Legally they needed twenty-four hours—he’d spoken to a judge, he’d spoken to the captain here on board … everything was arranged. All he needed was Katie’s compliance, and he would get that.

      He turned away from the view. The band was tuning up, ready for the evening ahead. Trestle tables loaded with food were set alongside tables and chairs for about a hundred people, and a dance area had been set up around the pool.

      He was throwing this party as a thank-you to his staff for working so hard to get the refit of the Octavia finished on schedule. A few people had already arrived, the men in dark tuxedos, the women in evening dresses. He glanced at his watch and wondered where Katie was. He hadn’t managed to get down to the suite again. Business had swallowed the rest of the afternoon, to the extent where it had been quicker to shower and change back at his apartment whilst he’d been in town.

      ‘Alexi, how nice to see you.’ He turned as a business associate came over to shake his hand and introduce him to his wife, an elegant woman in her thirties.

      He tried to concentrate on what they were saying, but at the back of his mind all he could think about was Katie. He wanted her answer. Where the hell was she? he wondered impatiently. It was almost seven now!

      He was about to excuse himself and go looking for her, when a door further along the deck opened and Katie stepped out.

      Captivated, Alexi watched as she walked gracefully across to the ship’s rail to look out at the view. She looked sensational; the strapless black cocktail-dress was sculpted to her curves, and showed off her flawless figure and long legs to perfection. Her dark hair was loose and tumbled in spiral curls the colour of rich mahogany around her creamy bare shoulders.

      As if sensing his gaze, she looked around, and as their eyes connected Alexi felt a fierce thrust of desire.

      ‘Alexi, do you agree?’ He was vaguely aware that the woman beside him was waiting for an answer to some question.

      He frowned impatiently and dragged his eyes away from Katie for a second. ‘Clare, my apologies,’ he murmured smoothly. ‘I’ve just seen someone I need to talk to.’

      ‘Yes, but do you agree?’ The woman had her hand on Alexi’s sleeve, as if loathe to let him escape.

      He didn’t have a damn clue what she was talking about. ‘Claire …’ He turned the full force of his smile on the woman.

      ‘We’ll have to take up this conversation a little later.’ With a nod towards the woman’s husband, he extricated himself and strode purposefully away towards his quarry.

      Katie

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