of delight broke out on the back of Zoe’s neck as the plane made its descent through a cloudless sky toward the runway. From her coach-class window seat she looked out at the sea, the islands. Closer still she made out the clay-roofed houses lining Athens’s winding roads. This was Vasso Giannopoulos’s world.
A sense of wonderment accompanied these sensations because she still couldn’t believe she was coming to a place where she’d never been before and would be working. No doubt her ancestors experienced the same feelings when they arrived in the US, ready to embark on a new life.
How easy her life was by comparison! Instead of reaching the US by ship, she was on an airliner. Instead of having to undergo a holding time for immigrants, she’d been given safe passage right through to the Athens airport where she’d be taken care of. A job was waiting for her. So was the man who’d made all this possible. He was so wonderful she couldn’t believe how lucky she was to have met him.
Kyrie Giannopoulos and his family were responsible for everything that had happened to her since she’d been admitted to the Giannopoulos Center in Astoria a year ago. Somehow he’d made it possible for her to work for his foundation. He’d said he’d be waiting for her when her plane landed.
The thought of seeing him again gave her butterflies. Surely meeting him a second time wouldn’t cause her legs to almost buckle as they’d done the first time. The mere sight of such a magnificent-looking man had haunted her thoughts whether she was awake or asleep.
After the plane touched down and taxied to the hangar, the seat belt came off and Zoe reached for her secondhand overnight bag. She followed the other passengers out of the plane to the terminal lounge where they went through customs. Her bag was searched. After she’d presented her passport and answered a few questions, a female airline attendant came up to her.
“You’re Zoe Zachos?”
“Yes?”
“Come with me, please.”
She got on a cart and was driven some distance to an elevator that descended to the ground floor. After another little ride the airline employee stopped the cart in front of a door. She got out and opened it. “Your ride is waiting out there.”
The second Zoe walked through the door onto the tarmac where the hot sun beat down she saw a limousine in the distance. Once again her legs seemed to go weak when she spotted her benefactor lounging against the passenger side wearing sunglasses. This morning he’d dressed in a light blue sport shirt and tan chinos. He looked so wonderful she moaned before she realized he could have heard her.
“Thespinis Zachos, welcome to Greece.”
No man should be this handsome. Zoe felt out of breath. “Thank you for meeting me.”
“Of course. I hope you had a good flight.” He took her bag and opened the rear door for her to get in.
“It was fine.”
He went around the other side and got in with her bag so they sat across from each other. The interior smelled of the soap he must have used in the shower. Her reaction to him was over the top. Maybe there was something wrong with her.
“My driver will take us to the complex where my brother and I work. We’ll stay in the penthouse. It’s where we entertain guests and business people who must stay overnight. Tomorrow we’ll fly to Paxos.”
The limousine moved into the center of Athens. Another time and she might enjoy the scenery more, but right now she couldn’t concentrate. After what he’d just told her, Zoe felt like a tongue-tied high school girl with a giant-sized crush on a man so far out of her league it was outrageous.
Glomming onto the safer subject of business she said, “Does Kyrie Megalos know you’ve hired me?”
“Not yet. I want him to meet you first.”
She eyed him directly, but couldn’t see his eyes behind the glasses. “Something tells me you’re pulling the same thing on him that Father Debakis pulled on you.” Vasso laughed hard. “He may not want me to be his assistant.”
“In that case he’ll give you another position. Don’t worry. He won’t suggest that you join a nunnery.”
Laughter escaped her lips. His sense of humor was very appealing. “I shouldn’t have said anything about Ms. Kallistos’s remark. It wasn’t kind of me.”
“She should have known better than to say anything, so put it out of your mind.”
“I have. Do you mind if I ask you some questions? Would you please tell me what kind of business you’re in? I don’t have a lot of information about you apart from your philanthropic work.”
They’d driven into the heart of the downtown traffic. “If you’ll look out your right window, you’ll see a store coming up that says Alpha/Omega 24.”
Zoe searched each shop. “Oh—there it is! Everything from A to Z. It’s like one of the 7-Elevens in the States!”
“It’s store number four, the first store we opened on the mainland.”
“So you’re a convenience store owner! Where are stores one through three?”
“On Paxos. My brother and I started our own chain years ago. They’ve spread throughout Greece.”
“Now you’re forcing me to guess.” She eyed him with an impish expression. “Do you have as many as a hundred perchance?”
“We reached the hundred mark in Thessalonika.”
Zoe gulped. “You weren’t kidding, were you? Does your chain spread as far as Florina?”
“Farther, but it might interest you to know we have a store in Kozani. It’s not far from the home of your ancestors.”
She’d just been teasing, but he’d come back with an answer that filled her with awe. “So how many stores do you have altogether? Wait—don’t answer that question.” Heat filled her cheeks. “I’m being rude to pry. Forgive me.”
“I don’t mind. 2001, including the one we recently opened in Crete.”
Zoe had tried to imagine the kind of money it took to run both centers. Now that she knew what kind of wealth was behind the foundation, she was blown away by the generosity of these men. “You really are perfect,” she whispered.
“You have a lot to learn,” he quipped, making her smile.
By now the limousine had turned down an alley and stopped at the side of a big complex. He got out with her bag and came around to help her. He had a remote on his key chain that opened the door to an elevator. They rode it to the top. When the door opened, she entered a glassed-in penthouse where she welcomed the air conditioning.
“If you’ll come with me, I’ll show you to the guest bedroom.” She followed him through a hallway to a room with a fabulous view of Athens.
“What an incredible vista! Am I the luckiest woman in the world to sleep here tonight or what? You’re far too good to me.”
“We do this
