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My love. She lifted the rose to her cheek, savoured the velvety texture on her skin, then gently inhaled the delicate perfume.
Katrina had a plan of her own, and she implemented the arrangements, rang Siobhan with the invitation, then sank back into her chair with a warm smile.
‘A private dinner,’ Katrina declared as she rose from the bed next morning. ‘In celebration,’ she added, teasing gently, ‘We get to dress up, for each other.’
‘I gather this is something special?’ Nicos queried as he joined her in the shower, and caught her nod in assent.
And it was. Very special. Her gift to him.
Had he guessed? she mused as she led him out into the gardens just before dusk. There, beneath the spreading branches of a beautiful jacaranda, stood a celebrant with Siobhan at his side.
‘A reaffirmation of our wedding vows.’
Nicos drew her into his arms, settled his mouth over hers in a kiss that lasted long and took her breath away.
‘You get to do that after the ceremony,’ the celebrant teased gently.
‘Count on it.’
Siobhan brushed a tear away as the celebrant intoned the words Katrina had requested. With joy for her daughter’s newfound happiness, and the man who so obviously cherished her.
The meal Katrina had Marie prepare was a simple repast served in the candle-lit dining room. Chilled champagne and a single-tiered miniature wedding cake added an unexpected touch.
Afterwards Nicos drew Katrina into the study and slid a diamond-studded ring onto her finger.
‘Eternity. Ours,’ he said gently, watching her beautiful eyes coalesce with emotion. ‘There’s just one other thing.’ He unlocked a desk drawer and handed her a document. ‘Read it.’
Legalese, gifting her the one-third share bequest in Macbride originally assigned to him by Kevin Macbride.
‘It was always yours,’ Nicos relayed quietly. ‘Now it’s official.’
Words momentarily failed her, and she dashed the sudden tears that sprang to her eyes. ‘I love you.’ Tremulously spoken words that came straight from the heart. ‘It never stopped.’
Nicos lifted both hands and gently cupped her face. ‘I know.’ He kissed her with lingering passion, then carried her upstairs to bed.
KATRINA repositioned herself on the low-set lounger and let the warm Aegean sun caress her bikini-clad body. Dark lenses protected her eyes, and she tipped the large straw hat over her face.
It had taken Nicos a few phone calls to delegate, book a flight to Athens, and organise hire of this elegant cruiser.
They’d been here a week. Lovely lazy days and long nights filled with lovemaking. Idyllic, she thought as she closed her eyes and let her mind drift.
All the doubts and turmoil, the insecurities, had vanished. A trial by fire, she reflected, wincing slightly as Georgia’s spiteful image sprang vividly to mind.
‘Don’t,’ Nicos cautioned gently. He was so keenly attuned to her that he sensed the slight tension evident, divined and sought to alleviate it as he brushed the pads of his fingers across her midriff in a soothing gesture.
Her skin was a light honey-gold, its texture silky smooth beneath his touch, and he took pleasure in the caress as he explored the line of Lycra stretching low across her hips.
The slight hitch in her breathing brought forth a faint smile, and he traced lower, witnessed the way her stomach muscles tightened, then he leaned towards her and bestowed a kiss on her navel.
‘You’re in danger of shocking the natives,’ Katrina said in a husky drawl, and heard his soft laughter.
‘There’s not a soul in sight.’
‘Binoculars, paparazzi and long-range-zoom camera lenses,’ she reminded him indolently, not wanting to move.
He had the touch, the skill, that took her from warmth to heat in a few seconds flat. Desire and passion followed in equal time.
‘Want to take this down below?’
A soft chuckle of laughter emerged from her throat, and she lifted a hand, tilted her hat so she could look at him. ‘Are you serious?’
His answering grin held a wolfish quality. ‘You’re not?’
She pretended to consider her options. ‘I guess I could be persuaded.’ Remembering just how good he was at persuasion had her heartbeat moving up a notch.
His fingers pressed a vulnerable nub, so lightly she almost groaned in need of more.
‘If you need to think about it…’
A hand snaked out and managed a grip onto his chest hair, tightened a little. ‘Don’t toy with me.’
Her husky growl was quickly silenced as his mouth took possession of hers in a kiss that promised flagrant seduction.
When he lifted his head she ran the edge of her tongue over the slightly swollen contours of her mouth.
‘Well, then. That settles it.’ She lifted a hand and pressed fingers to his lips, felt them move in a gentle caress, then she rose to her feet in a single, fluid movement, tugging him upright.
The cruiser was large, the galley and bedroom spacious.
Nicos pulled her in close and rested his cheek against her head.
He took it slowly. They had all the time in the world, and he instigated a leisurely tasting, savouring each shudder, each hitch of her breath.
She was his. The most important thing in his life. Always had been, even when they’d been apart. There could never be anyone else to take her place in his heart.
He said the words, in soft, guttural Greek, then in English, and she felt the moisture well in her eyes at the depth of emotion evident.
She captured his head, let her hands slide to frame his face, searched his beloved features, and saw what she knew in her heart, the depths of her soul. The unconditional love of a man for one woman. Beyond boundaries, forever true. It was an infinitely precious gift. One she would treasure for the rest of her life.
‘Promise me something,’ Katrina began to say gently, and saw his smile.
‘You have to ask?’
‘Let’s work at making every day special.’
‘That’s a given.’
‘There’s just one more thing.’ She reached up and kissed him, a fleeting touch. ‘You have my love, my trust.’ Her mouth shook a little. ‘Always.’
‘As you have mine, agape mou,’ he whispered softly, and proceeded to show her a depth of passion that surpassed anything they’d previously shared.
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