His father before him had come from humble beginnings in Athens, and, fostering an idea presented to the right person at the right time, initiated the founding office in Athens of the Karsouli Corporation. Dimitri, his only son, had followed in hallowed footsteps, living and breathing the business and injecting it with new ideas, broadening its scope and extending it onto a global market.
Dimitri had married and moved to Sydney and had sought to have his own son continue, except his marriage had gifted him a daughter, born in difficult circumstances that had rendered his wife unable to produce another child.
A beloved daughter, Alesha, who had become her father’s pride and joy, especially when she proved she’d inherited his business acumen and sharp mind.
Privately educated and exclusively schooled, Alesha had graduated from university with honours in a business degree, and had entered Karsouli in a lowly position, rising in the ranks through hard work and dedication.
Her one error in judgement had been to marry in haste, against her father’s wishes, a man who, while playing a part to perfection during their brief courtship, had revealed his true persona within hours of leaving the wedding reception.
A painful time, when divorce and a handsome pay-out had been the only option. Especially so, as it was compounded by her mother’s losing battle with a virulent form of cancer.
Alesha’s adamant refusal to consider marriage at any future stage became a bone of contention between father and daughter. Now, by a conditional clause in his will, Dimitri was bent on manipulating her into matrimony with a man of whom he approved. A man of Greek descent. Someone who had his utmost trust … to take the reins of Karsouli and lead his daughter into the marriage bed.
Dimitri had to be smiling in his grave, assured Alesha would never concede to losing what she loved most in life … the family firm.
In that respect she’d inherited her father’s genes. His bloodline was so strong, the desire to achieve, to succeed, to prove her worth beyond doubt, irrespective of gender.
‘This … scheme has Loukas Andreou’s approval?’
The lawyer spread his hands in a telling gesture. ‘I understand he has indicated his consent.’
‘It’s outrageous,’ Alesha uttered with considerable heat. ‘Impossible,’ she added for good measure. ‘I don’t want to marry anyone.’
Loukas Andreou had been welcomed into her parents’ home on the few occasions he’d visited Sydney. She’d dined in his company, and met up with him in Athens on the occasional trip to Greece with her parents. Combining business with pleasure … or so she’d thought at the time.
Now, she wasn’t so sure. Even then, had Dimitri sown the seeds of a possible future marriage?
Loukas Andreou. The man was a force to be reckoned with in the business arena … and the bedroom, if rumour had any basis in fact.
Old money. His great-grandfather, so the Andreou biographical details depicted on record revealed, had made his fortune in shipping. A fortune added to by each succeeding generation.
The Andreou consortium owned two Greek Islands, property, residences in most European cities, and there was the private cruiser, the Lear jet, the expensive cars … the women.
The media followed and tabled Loukas’ every move, embellishing the smallest fact with gossip.
Tall, well-built frame, dark hair, ruggedly attractive facial features … he unsettled her. Almost as if he saw far more than she wanted anyone to see.
There were some secrets she’d buried so deep, no one would uncover them. Ever.
‘How long has Loukas been aware of the contents of my father’s will?’
‘It’s something you’ll have to ask him.’
She would … at the first opportunity!
Alesha glimpsed the faint lift in the lawyer’s brow.
‘You have two clear options,’ he cautioned quietly. ‘Agree to the marriage … or disagree. I strongly advise you not to make a decision until you’ve spoken with Loukas Andreou.’
She stood and indicated the consultation had reached a conclusion. The lawyer accompanied her into the lobby and pressed the call button to summon a lift.
Alesha gritted her teeth together in a need to prevent the urge to scream as the lift transported her to ground. Why had her father conspired to do what he had?
Except she knew precisely why.
Hadn’t Dimitri’s own marriage to her mother been deemed a satisfactory liaison benefitting both families?
Love? If it happened, well and good. If it didn’t, affection, family was enough to make a contented life.
Surprisingly, her parents had shared a good marriage. A little volatile at times, she reflected, remembering Dimitri’s voice raised in anger over some relatively minor conflict with her mother. A woman who’d stood her own ground and given back as much in kind. Had they shared a grand passion? Perhaps. Great affection, certainly.
Alesha had wanted the grand passion, the love generated by two souls in perfect accord. She’d thought she’d found it with Seth Armitage … only to discover he’d very cleverly played a cruel game, and her marriage was nothing more than a travesty. One she escaped from almost as soon as the ink had dried on their marriage certificate.
Dimitri, to give him his due, hadn’t vented with I told you so. He’d been supportive, caring.
Yet it hurt unbearably that behind the scenes he’d been conspiring to cement her future and the future of Karsouli. Worse, somehow, was Loukas Andreou’s complicity.
To think she’d accepted his condolences, shared his presence during the funeral service, suffered his silent watchfulness … and he knew.
Dear Lord in heaven.
Was she the only one who’d been in ignorance?
At this very moment, was Loukas Andreou already putting plans in motion to assume prime position within Karsouli?
Or had he already done that, skilfully lining everything up to ensure any hiccups would be only minor? And if he had, how could she have missed seeing it? Surely there should have been something, even subtle, that would have alerted her attention?
Yet even on brief reflection, she failed to pinpoint any one thing.
The Sydney skyline was slightly hazy in the prelude to evening dusk, the harbour assuming a darker hue as ferries left a white churning tail as they transported some of the city’s workers to the northern suburb of Manly. Her apartment formed part of a large old double-storeyed home in fashionable Double Bay, whose interior had been completely restructured into four self-contained two-bedroom apartments. Modern state-of-the-art appliances blended beautifully with the deliberate styling of the previous century.
It had given Alesha immense pleasure to add furnishings to complement the era … large comfortable sofas, antique furniture, exquisite
