didn’t know how he was going to keep his desire for her to himself much longer. Earlier in the car he’d kissed her, but it hadn’t lasted long enough and he’d been forced to restrain himself.
The next morning, he installed the other two car seats before visiting a Realtor in the village. By late afternoon he’d finally been shown a small Cretan stone house he liked with a beautiful flowering almond tree. It had been up for sale close to a year and was two blocks away from the hotel. The place suited him with two bedrooms upstairs and a little terrace over the lower main rooms covered in vines.
Takis stood in the kitchen while they talked about the need to paint the interior and upgrade the plumbing. The house would do for him and not stand out. While he and the Realtor finished up the negotiations, his cell phone rang. One check of the caller ID caused his adrenaline to kick in. He swiped to accept the call.
“Lys?”
“I’m glad you answered.” She sounded a little out of breath. “Can you talk?”
“In a few minutes I’ll be free for the rest of the evening.”
“I just flew back from Kasos.” She’d been with Danae. “How soon can you meet me at my suite?” The fact that she wanted to see him right away might not be good news, but he refused to think that way.
“I have a better idea. I’ll pick you up in front of the hotel in a half hour. There’s something I want to show you. We’ll talk then.”
“All right. I’ll be ready.”
He hung up and thanked the Realtor, who drove them back to his office. The older man handed him the keys to the house. Takis walked outside to his car with a sense of satisfaction that he was now a homeowner on Crete, the land of his ancestors.
En route to Heraklion, he stopped for some takeout of his favorite foods; rosemary-flavored fried snails, Sfaki pies and a Greek raki liqueur made from grapes. He liked the idea of sharing his first meal in his own home with Lys where they could be alone.
Before long he reached the hotel. Lys stood out from everyone when he pulled up in front. Her black blouse and dark gray skirt made the perfect foil for the tawny gold hair he was dying to run his hands through. He leaned across and opened the door for her.
“Hi!” Lys climbed in the front, bringing her flowery fragrance with her. “Umm. Something smells good,” she remarked as he drove away and headed out of town.
“I’m hungry and thought we could eat after we reach our destination.”
“Where are we going?”
“To Tylissos. I bought a house today and thought you might like to see it.”
She made a strange sound in her throat. “Already?”
“My parents’ apartment is small. They don’t need another person underfoot while they tend my niece during the day. She naps on the bed I use while I’m here.”
“How old is she?”
“Cassia is three. I’m crazy about her. The cute little thing has chronic asthma. Yesterday my sister had to take her to the hospital so the doctor could help her, but she’s back home now.”
“Oh, the poor darling.”
“She handles it like there’s nothing wrong. Now tell me about you. I take it you’ve had a talk with Danae.”
“Yes.”
The short one-syllable answer could mean anything. “Is it a good or bad sign that you can’t look at me? Don’t you know I’m fine with whatever you have to say?” At least that’s what he was telling himself right this minute.
“After discussing everything with Danae, she surprised me so much I’m not sure what I am supposed to say.”
He left that answer alone and drove into Tylissos and it wasn’t long before he pulled up next to a house on the corner. “We’ve arrived.”
While she got out, he reached for the bag of food on the backseat. After they walked to the front door, he put the key in the lock and opened it. “Welcome to my humble abode. I’m afraid we’ll have to eat in the kitchen standing up.”
Her chuckle reminded him not everyone had such a pleasant nature. So far there wasn’t anything about her he didn’t love. While she wandered around, he put their cartons of food on the counter next to the utensils.
After a minute, she came back and they started to eat. “Your house is charming, especially the terrace.”
“Best seen at twilight.” The house needed work from the main floor up.
“Takis—”
They both smiled in understanding. It felt right to be here with her like this. He’d never known such a moment of contentment and wanted to freeze it.
Once he’d poured the raki into plastic cups, he handed one to her. “To our health,” he said in Greek. They drank some before he asked her what Danae had said. She kept drinking. “Why are you so reticent to tell me?”
Her frown spoke volumes. “I wish I hadn’t talked to her at all.”
“Why?”
“Because she thinks an engagement could be a good idea for the reasons you suggested, but she says it doesn’t go far enough.”
* * *
“What does she mean?”
“Her blessing is contingent on us taking the engagement a step further, which makes this whole discussion ridiculous.”
“How much further?”
She shook her head. “None of it matters.”
“It does to me. Go on.”
“I told Danae about everything you confided in me concerning your relationship with your family, especially your father. She was very sympathetic, but she’s convinced they won’t believe you’re serious about living here for good unless we put a formal announcement of our engagement in the paper.”
Elated with that response, he said, “I tend to agree with her.”
Lys looked surprised. “That’s not all,” she murmured, not meeting his eyes.
“What’s wrong?”
“She says we’ll have to put a wedding date in the announcement, but the paper won’t publish it if the date is longer than three months away. That’s so soon!”
A strange sensation shot through Takis. If he believed in such things, he had the feeling Nassos had spoken through Danae. No one could sew up a deal like Nassos, covering all the bases. “What reason did she give?”
“I was raised in the Greek Orthodox church and so were you. She knows your parents are traditionalists. Because of the scandal that surrounded me after Nassos died, a promise of marriage to me in the writeup will show their friends and neighbors that you never believed the gossip
