a difference in him. She refused to admit she loved him. He would never love her in return, and she did not want to end up like her mother, always pining for a man who had left and would never be back.
The knock on her door later had Sara’s heart leaping in expectation. She opened it, disappointed to see Stefano there.
“The captain asks if you’d like to watch our arrival from the bridge.”
She considered it. But shook her head. “Please tell him thank you, but I’ll stay here. I’ll be ready to leave when we dock.”
She closed the door, knowing she was closing off her last chance to spend some time with Nikos. It was not worth the pain of saying goodbye again for a few moments in his company. She preferred to make the break clean and final.
When they docked at the resort she was ready. She watched from her porthole until she saw Nikos striding away from the ship. Then she went to find out how soon she could be on her way to England.
Luck was with her. She booked a seat on a 7:00 p.m. flight to London. Packing the things in her room swiftly, she arranged to have her bags picked up and delivered to the taxi she’d take to the airport.
She went to the kitchen to tell the chief chef she would not be coming back to work. It was hard. She’d enjoyed the weeks she’d spent in the kitchen and all she’d learned about genuine Greek cuisine. She vowed she’d keep it up when she returned home.
It was time to leave.
She looked neither left nor right but went straight to where the taxis picked up and delivered guests. Pointing out her bags, Sara was on her way. She gazed unseeingly out the windows as they sped through the traffic and on to the airport. Despite her best efforts, her heart was aching. Tears flooded her eyes and she brushed them impatiently away. She’d learned about doing without her heart’s desire from her mother. Maybe the Andropolous women were destined not to find happiness with the first man they fell in love with. It didn’t mean she had to settle for anything but the best. Someone who was above all the other someones in the world. Would she ever find it again?
She loved Nikos Konstantinos. The admission hurt. She rubbed her chest and tried to shake off the ache. She hardly knew him. She’d forget about him within weeks of getting back home.
Liar, an inner voice said.
Sara knew she’d never forget Nikos.
She paid for her ticket, checked her luggage and made her way to the concourse to await the flight. She couldn’t wait to see Stacy and tell her everything. Or almost everything. Sara wondered how long it would be before she could talk about Nikos without revealing how she felt.
The preliminary boarding began. She’d be home in a few hours.
“Sara,” Nikos said.
She looked up. “What are you doing here?” she asked, astonished to see him.
“I want to talk.”
“You can’t be here. Only people with tickets can be here. Besides, they’ve called my flight.”
“I bought a ticket. It was the only way. But I don’t want to use it. I don’t want you to use yours. I want to talk.”
“We have nothing to say. You’ve made that perfectly clear—especially the part where you think I’m angling for money, no matter who gets in my way.”
“I think I was wrong about that.”
“What? You think you were wrong about that. You were totally wrong!”
People began to watch them. Sara glanced around, seeing the curiosity on their faces.
“Go away,” she said, looking anywhere but at Nikos.
“If I go anywhere, it’ll be to London. If we have to sit side by side on the plane and hash this all out, I’m good to go.”
“We are not sitting together on the plane.”
He held out his boarding pass. The seat number was adjacent to hers.
“How did you manage that?” she asked suspiciously.
“Money has its uses. I bribed the ticket agent.”
“That’s just wrong.”
“Not as wrong as your leaving before we have a chance to talk—really talk. Sara, don’t go. Stay here in Greece. Get to know Eleani. Get to know me.”
“You? What do you have to do with my relationship with my grandmother?”
“Nothing. Do what you want with her. Stay for me.”
She didn’t understand. “I’m going home.”
“Make Greece your home. You speak the language, know the food, the traditions—the dances. Stay, make your life here—with me.”
Now Sara knew she was confused. Nikos wanted an arranged business marriage. He couldn’t be proposing.
“Exactly what are you talking about?” she asked.
It was his turn to look around at the avid audience they had. Frowning, he held out his hand for hers. “Come with me. I’d prefer some privacy.”
“Nothing you have to say requires privacy, unless you plan to blast me for using you to reach my grandmother.”
“Dammit, I want to ask you to marry me, but not in front of a hundred strangers,” he snapped.
Sara blinked. “Marry?” she squeaked. Had she heard him correctly? The man who thought all women were after his money and couldn’t love him. The man who wanted a business marriage with a woman of equal fortune was proposing to her? Poor, working woman Sara Andropolous?
No, she had not heard him correctly.
Someone in the group of passengers clapped. Soon dozens took up the applause.
Sara felt the heat rise in her cheeks. “Did you just propose?” she asked. How dare he propose in front of a hundred strangers.
“I did. You have enough witnesses.”
“You don’t want to marry me.”
“If you would come with me as I asked, I would explain.”
She rose and picked up her tote. Turning to face the majority of the passengers, she shrugged. “Looks like I’m not going to London after all.” With a smile she turned back to Nikos. “This had better be good. If you have me miss my flight for anything less than perfection, I’m not going to be happy.”
He reached out and took her hand, lacing his fingers with hers, raising them to his lips for a brief kiss.
“If you would just say yes, it would make everything easier.”
“And why do I want to make things easier for you?” she asked, feeling daring. Her heart sang. He had proposed and she had no intention of refusing.
