as sell a ring on eBay. Marianna was far too discreet and well-bred to give away a gift. Her behaviour was always impeccable; she was quiet and restrained, miserly with her emotions and, most importantly, she didn’t want to get married.
Alekos stared at the ring on the screen, guessing at the depth of emotion hidden behind the sale. Nothing restrained there. The woman selling his ring gave her emotions freely.
Remembering just how freely, his mouth tightened. It would be good, he thought, to cut that final link. This was the time.
Watching the clock count down on his computer screen, Alekos made an instantaneous decision. ‘Bid for it, Dmitri.’
His lawyer floundered. ‘Bid? How? You need an account, and there is no time to set one up.’
‘We need someone just out of college.’ Swift and decisive, Alekos pressed a button on his phone. ‘Send Eleni in. Now.’
Seconds later, the youngest PA on his team appeared nervously in the doorway. ‘You wanted to speak to me, Mr Zagorakis?’
‘Do you have an eBay account?’
Clearly stunned by the unexpected question, the girl gulped. ‘Yes, sir.’
‘I need you to bid for something. And don’t call me sir.’ His eyes on the screen, Alekos watched as the clock ticked down: two minutes. He had two minutes in which to retrieve something that should never have left his possession. ‘Log in, or whatever it is you do to put in a bid.’
‘Yes, sir. Of course.’ Crumbling with nerves, the girl hurried to his desk and entered her username and password. She was shaking so badly that she entered her password incorrectly and Alekos clamped his mouth shut, sensing that if he showed impatience he’d just make her more nervous.
‘Take your time,’ he said smoothly, sending a warning glance towards Dmitri who looked as if he were about to have a stroke.
Finally entering her password correctly, the girl gave him a terrified smile. ‘What bid do you want me to place?’
Alekos looked at the screen and made a judgement. ‘Two-million US dollars.’
The girl gave an audible gasp. ‘How much?’
‘Two million.’ Alekos watched the clock counting down: sixty seconds. He had sixty seconds to retrieve an heirloom that he never should have given away. Sixty seconds to close the door on a relationship that never should have happened. ‘Do it now.’
‘But the limit on my credit card is only f-five hundred pounds,’ the girl stammered, ‘I can’t afford it.’
‘But I can. And I’m the one paying for it.’ Glancing at the girl’s ashen features, Alekos frowned. ‘Do not pass out. If you faint now, I won’t be able to bid for this ring. Dmitri is head of my legal team—he will witness my verbal agreement. We now have thirty seconds, and this is very important to me. Please.’
‘Of course, I—sorry.’ Her hands shaking, Eleni tapped the amount into the box, hesitated briefly and then pressed enter. ‘I—I’m—I mean you’re—currently the highest bidder,’ she said faintly and Alekos lifted an eyebrow.
‘Is it done?’
‘Providing no one puts in a last-minute bid.’
Alekos, who wasn’t taking any chances, promptly put his hands over hers and entered four-million dollars.
Five seconds later, the ring was his and he was pouring the shaking girl a glass of water.
‘I’m impressed. Under pressure you responded well and you did what needed to be done. I won’t forget it. And now,’ he kept his voice casual, ‘I need to know exactly where to send the money. Does the seller give you a name and address?’
Ignoring Dmitri’s startled glance, Alekos reached for a pen and paper.
He needed to decide whether to do this in person or hand it over to lawyers.
Lawyers, his common sense told him. For all the reasons you haven’t tracked her whereabouts over the past four years.
‘You can email any questions you have,’ Eleni said weakly, her eyes on the diamond on the screen. ‘It’s a beautiful ring. Lucky woman, ending up with that on her finger. Wow. That’s so romantic.’ She looked at him wide-eyed and Alekos didn’t have the heart to disillusion her.
Had he ever been romantic? If being romantic was to indulge in an impulsive, whirlwind romance then, yes, he’d been romantic. Once. Or maybe ‘blinded by lust’ would be a more accurate assessment. Fortunately he’d come to his senses in time. With a cynical smile at his own expense, Alekos reflected on the fact that a business approach to relationships, such as the one he had with Marianna, was vastly preferable. He’d had no particular wish to understand her, and she’d showed no interest in trying to understand him.
That was so much better than a girl who tried to climb into your thoughts and then seduced with raw, out-of-control sex that wiped a man’s brain.
Feeling the tension ripple across his shoulders, Alekos stared out of the window as Dmitri hastily ushered the girl out of the room, promising to deal with all the financial aspects of the transaction.
Closing the door firmly, the lawyer turned to face Alekos. ‘I’ll arrange for the funds to be transferred and the ring collected.’
‘No.’ Driven by an impulse he decided was better not examined, Alekos reached for his jacket. ‘I don’t want that ring in the hands of a third party. I’ll collect it myself.’
‘In person? Alekos, you haven’t seen the girl for four years. You decided it was best not to get in touch. Are you sure this is a good idea?’
‘I only ever have good ideas.’ Closure, Alekos thought grimly, striding towards the door. Hand over the money, take the ring and move on.
‘Breathe, breathe, breathe. Put your head between your legs—that’s it. You’re not going to faint. OK—that’s good. Now, try telling me again—slowly.’
Lifting her head, Kelly mouthed the words. No sound came out. She wondered whether it was possible to go mute with shock. It felt as though her entire body had shut down.
Her friend glared at her in exasperation. ‘Kel, I’m giving you thirty seconds to produce sound from your mouth and then I’m throwing a bucket of water over you.’
Kelly dragged in air and tried again. ‘Sold—’
Vivien nodded encouragingly. ‘You’ve sold something—right. What have you sold?’
‘Sold.’ Kelly swallowed. ‘Ring.’
‘OK, finally we’re making progress here—I’m getting that you’ve sold a ring. Which ring?’ Viv’s eyes suddenly widened. ‘Holy crap, not the ring?’
Kelly nodded, feeling as though all the air had been sucked out of the room. ‘Sold ring—eBay.’ She felt dizzy and light-headed, and she knew she would have been lying on the floor
