standard black upholstered furniture was leather in this suite. The art on the walls consisted of prints in the other suites, but in here everything was original, one-of-a-kind paintings. And lastly, the suite definitely had a lived-in feel—a sense of hominess to it.
Behind her, she could hear the door snick shut. It was just the two of them, alone. Suddenly Kyra didn’t feel quite so confident, so ready to strike a business deal. Right now, even the memory of Sofia’s encouraging words sounded foolish. After all, she didn’t go out on limbs and take big risks. She liked to play it safe.
Cristo cleared his throat. “Should I take your presence to mean you’ve changed your mind about my offer?”
She forced her gaze to meet his. “It depends on your answers to my questions.”
“What would you like to know?”
Comfortable that she’d left herself an out, should she need it, she leveled her shoulders. “The pretense of being your fiancée, it would only be a show for others, right? You don’t want me to, um...sleep with you?”
“No. No. Nothing like that.”
She breathed a little easier. “And how long would I have to pretend to be your fiancée?”
“I’ll be honest with you. I’m not sure.”
“So this is going to take longer than a day or two?”
He hesitated. “Yes, it will. But only until my business deal is concluded. It could be a few weeks or as long as a couple of months—”
“Months?” Kyra shook her head. No way. He was simply asking too much of her. “That’s not possible. I can’t pretend to be your fiancée for that long.”
“Are you planning to return to the States before then?”
The easiest way out of this mess was to say yes, but in truth she wasn’t leaving Greece until she had a chance to track down her father’s family. And since she didn’t have a starting point, she didn’t know how long that would take her. “No. I’m not leaving yet. I...I have things to do here.”
“Anything I can help you with?” When she cast him a skeptical look, he rushed to add, “There are no strings attached to that offer. I like you. You make me smile, and it’s been a while since anyone did that. Whether you agree to this plan or not, I’d like to help you out, if I can.”
Now, why did he have to go and do that? It would have been so much easier to say no to a man who was pushy and arrogant. None of those descriptions quite fit Cristo Kiriakas. He was more like a really hot, Grecian...gentleman.
“Thank you. That’s very kind of you. But not necessary.”
“It may not be necessary, but I’d like to help. What has you here in Greece?”
His eyes told her that he was serious. He was really interested in her. So what would it hurt to open up and share a little with him?
“I’m here to find my extended family, or what’s left of it.” Cristo’s brows rose with surprise, encouraging her to continue. “My father passed away a little more than a year ago. He’d always wondered about his extended family and had promised one day we’d take a trip here to see what we could learn. Now that he can’t finish our research, I’m taking up where he left off.”
“It sounds important.”
“It is. For me, that is. My mother doesn’t understand my need to do this.” In fact, her mother had done everything in her power to curtail Kyra’s trip, from pleading to offering up excuse after excuse until she finally resorted to a big guilt trip.
“I know some people who go by the name Pappas—”
“You do?” Could it really be this simple? “How do I find them?”
He held up a hand. “Slow down. Pappas isn’t exactly a unique name.”
“Oh.” She’d known that from her research, but after hitting so many dead ends, she just wanted some hope.
“Do you have much family in the States?” Cristo’s voice halted her thoughts.
“There’s just me and my mother. The rest of my mother’s family, small as it was, passed away. I thought my mother would understand my need to find out more about my past, especially after losing my father. But all she did was get angry and resentful any time I brought up a trip to Greece. Finally, I just stopped trying to make her understand.”
“So you thought by taking a job here that you would have the perfect excuse to investigate your family’s roots?”
She nodded. At the same time, her phone chimed. Expecting it to be Sofia, she grabbed it from her pocket. The caller ID said Mom. Kyra forwarded the call to her voice mail before slipping the phone back in her pocket.
“If you need to answer that, go ahead.”
“It’s not important. I’ll get it later.” The last thing Kyra needed right now was to talk to her mother in front of Cristo—a man who had a way of short-circuiting her thoughts with just a look. No man had ever had that kind of power over her. And she wasn’t sure she liked it, but another part of her found him exciting—exhilarating—unlike any man she’d ever known.
“Suit yourself.” He moved to the fully stocked refrigerator and removed a bottle of water. He glanced over his shoulder at her. “Would you care for one, too?”
What would it hurt? After all, he was being nice enough and she was a bit thirsty. “Yes. Thank you.”
Her phone chimed again. It wasn’t like her mother to call right back. Kyra did a quick time change in her head and realized that her mother should be at her second part-time job. Perhaps she was just checking in on one of her breaks.
When Cristo handed over the bottle, their fingers brushed. Their gazes met and held. The breath caught in her throat. She’d never gazed into eyes so intense, so full of energy. She’d heard people talk about instant attraction but she hadn’t really known what they were talking about until now. Sure, she’d noticed some really good-looking guys, but they’d always been easily forgotten. Something told her that Cristo would not be so easily dismissed.
He stepped back. “If you’d like something to eat, I could order from the restaurant downstairs.”
“No, thanks. I’m fine.” With the flutter of nerves in her stomach, there was no way she could eat a bite of anything. “About the arrangement. Will we have to be seen in public together?”
“Definitely.” His gaze narrowed. “Will that be a problem? Do you have a boyfriend?”
“No. No boyfriend.” She glanced down at her casual clothes and then at his designer suit. “But I don’t have anything appropriate in my wardrobe.”
“No worries. A new wardrobe and accessories will be part of your benefits package.”
Just like that he could arrange for a new, designer wardrobe without even a thought. Wow. How much was this man worth?
With a slight tremor in her hand, she pressed the cold
