LITMIR.BIZ

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cold, calculated business deal, delivered by a man with no emotion. No heart. Kate closed her eyes against the pain that suddenly lanced through her. Pain she had told herself she no longer felt. She had been wrong about that too.

      She opened her eyes again to see Nikos staring at her, waiting for an answer. From the firm set of his jaw she could see how important this was to him, and the cold, steely determination in his eyes left no room for doubt.

      But no... No! The whole idea was sheer madness. She needed to end this now.

      ‘My answer is no, Nikos.’ She shook her head for emphasis, desperately trying to ignore the thud of her heart. She could see Nikos’s features hardening as she spoke. ‘I can’t do it. It wouldn’t be right.’

      ‘And to see Sofia delivered into the hands of a distant relative—a great-uncle whom she has never met, who has only come crawling out of the woodwork now because of Sofia’s fortune, who doesn’t give a damn about her or Philippos for that matter—that would be right, would it?’

      Nikos’s reply was hot and harsh, and anger flared his nostrils. The strength of his conviction was unmistakable, and his tautly held frame, the fierce glare in his eyes, were all saying one thing. He was serious about this. Deadly serious.

      ‘But there must be someone else who could act as her guardian. Some other relative—or a family friend, maybe?’ Kate raised her brows hopefully.

      ‘There is no one else. I am the only person to have Sofia’s best interests at heart. I know this is what Philippos would have wanted.’

      ‘But he didn’t name you as her guardian in his will?’

      ‘There is no will. Philippos never made one.’

      This didn’t surprise Kate. She hadn’t known him well, but Philippos had struck her as the kind of guy who struggled with the practicalities of life. His brilliant mind had been able to conjure up amazing new ways to revolutionise the software industry, but somehow his shoelaces would always come undone.

      ‘Why me?’ She pulled nervously at her earlobe again. From the storm of questions still buzzing around her head it was the first one to form on her lips. ‘Why do you want me to marry you when no doubt there is a host of beautiful, eligible women who would be only too happy to be your bride.’

      ‘I’m flattered you think me such a catch.’ Nikos gave her a complacent smile. ‘But the fact is it’s you that I want.’

      A surge of ridiculous optimism bloomed inside Kate, appearing from nowhere and spreading hot and fast to every part of her body. Was it possible that Nikos still had feelings for her? That he might want to try and make amends? To win her back?

      She slammed the brakes on her ridiculously wayward thoughts. It was terrifying the way Nikos could make her feel...the power he still had over her.

      ‘But why?’ She repeated the question, fighting to keep herself grounded.

      ‘Because I know how desperate you are.’

      Ha! If Kate had needed a shot of realism there it was, delivered with unerring accuracy, straight to the heart. She felt herself crumple inside, that foolish hope creeping back to wherever it had come from. How had she even let that happen? Had she not learned her lesson? Had the intervening years taught her nothing?

      She sat up straighter, steeling herself to meet his gaze. ‘I may be desperate.’ Somehow she managed to hold her voice steady. ‘But I’m not that desperate.’

      ‘No?’ His reply was immediate. ‘Are you sure about that, Kate?’

      ‘Quite sure.’

      Silence fell between them, punctuated only by the sound of Nikos’s fingers drumming lightly on the table.

      ‘Look, just consider the facts.’

      Kate could hear the effort it was taking him to make himself sound reasonable.

      ‘You need money. I need a wife. You would be foolish to make any decision until you’ve heard my proposal.’

      ‘Not as foolish as I would be to consider getting involved with you again. In any capacity.’ The painful memories were a useful tool to stop her bravado from slipping. ‘My decision is made, Nikos.’

      ‘Well, it’s the wrong one!’

      Nikos’s paper-thin patience was ripped apart. A tell-tale muscle ticked in his cheek as he drew in a sharp breath, clenching his hands on the table before him.

      ‘Think about it, Kate.’ He’d reined in his temper, but his knuckles were pulled white. ‘This arrangement will suit us both. You agree to be my wife until the court rule in my favour and I get legal custody of Sofia. In return I will save Kandy Kate. I will provide whatever funds are necessary to pay off your creditors, get the business thriving again. We are talking about pretty much a blank cheque here, Kate. Imagine what you could do with that...’

      Kate imagined. A large injection of money was exactly what Kandy Kate needed. Once the business was stable again she was confident she would be able make a success of it. It was like being in the bottom of a pit—she just needed a boost to get out, then she could run.

      ‘And, of course, you will have the benefit of my business knowledge and my contacts—many of whom are extremely influential. There is no reason why you shouldn’t massively expand Kandy Kate...grow the business as big as you want.’ Nikos pressed on relentlessly.

      Kate closed her ears. She mustn’t let herself be seduced by this daydream.

      ‘No, Nikos—’

      She started to speak but just then the waitress reappeared to refill their cups, so she paused, watching the way the young woman hovered around Nikos’s side as if she couldn’t quite bring herself to leave. When Nikos looked up to thank her, a pretty flush spread to her cheeks.

      ‘Then do it for Sofia.’ When the waitress finally moved away Nikos jumped in, cutting Kate off before she could speak. ‘Think about her.’

      ‘I... I am thinking about Sofia.’ Kate’s heart twisted. ‘I genuinely feel very sorry for her.’

      ‘Then do something about it—feeling sorry is not enough.’ The full glare of his attention was on her now. ‘Marry me and you will help secure her future. Walk away and that greedy, manipulative uncle of hers may well be granted legal guardianship.’

      ‘I don’t know...’ Kate took in a panicked breath. ‘I mean, just supposing we were to marry, and the courts did award you guardianship of Sofia, what then?’

      ‘Then we divorce. Sofia will be legally protected, and you will have resurrected your business. It’s the obvious solution.’

      Kate swallowed. Nikos made it sound so practical, so easy. Perhaps it was. She didn’t doubt that if she turned him down Nikos would find someone else to do his bidding. That small interaction with the waitress had proved the power he had over women. If she didn’t do this someone else would benefit from the money she needed so desperately to save Kandy Kate.

      ‘But what about Sofia? Won’t she be expecting us to be a proper married couple? How will she feel if we divorce as soon as she’s legally your care?’

      ‘You will leave Sofia to me.’ Nikos’s tone left no room for discussion. ‘Your role is to help me secure guardianship. Nothing more.’

      A heavy silence fell between them, and the hiss of the coffee machine, the babble of voices in the diner, faded away into the background as Kate found herself staring into the mesmerising deep brown eyes of this all-powerful man.

      ‘So what do you say...?’ His voice had lowered, become dark, seductive, compelling.

      Taking in a gasp of air, Kate forced herself to break his gaze, looking around her for some sort of respite from the intense focus that was making it so impossible to think straight. But her brain was blocked by

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