Adonis in Athens - Page 68

“Learn the language? Wander the streets and get to know the area? Go to the beach until it’s too cold? Spend time with his family? You have a whole country at your disposal.”

“I know.” Paige finished setting up the bed and was surprised to see that Nicky had gone and Apollo was leaning against the doorjamb watching her.

“Ready to go get Raegan?” he asked.

“Yes.” Paige nodded.

“You really need to relax.” He pulled her against him and kissed the tip of her nose. “You weren’t like this in Greece.”

“I had nothing going on in Greece!” she protested mildly. “All I had to think about was you.”

“Seems to me you were happier in Greece,” he said mildly.

“I was,” she admitted. “I really was. The idea of going back to work tomorrow…ugh. I can’t even think about it.”

“So don’t.” He put his hand around the back of her neck and held her close as he stared into her face. “I want to take care of you—your crazy friends too. I’ve been watching you run around like a chicken with your head cut off for two days now and I hate it. What can I do to make this better, koukla mou?”

“I don’t know.”

“In a perfect world, what do you want?”

She looked up at him and bit her lip. “You.”

“Here or there?”

“Anywhere,” she admitted. “But I… If we have to move to San Francisco or L.A. or some other crazy place, I think I’d rather be in Greece.”

“I’ll find a way to make it work here in the States,” he said softly. “I only want you in Greece if you feel safe with me.”

“I do feel safe with you—I’m more afraid I’m going to be lonely. You work all the time and I don’t want your sister to be my best friend out of pity.”

“Lena adores you, but you won’t be alone that much. I’m going to cut back on the hours because my father is going to be working a little more.”

“You really want to do this? With me?”

“I sure as hell don’t want to do it with anyone else.” He brought her fingers to his lips and kissed them softly, one at a time. “I’m going to put five thousand dollars in an account in your dad’s name, here in the U.S. He’ll set you up with a debit card and I won’t have access to that money. If you ever feel like you need to leave Greece because of me, the money will be there. You’ll also have access to all my accounts and your own money. I won’t ever let you feel as though you have to ask me for anything you need. Everything that’s mine is now half yours.”

Tears puddled in her eyes. “That’s kind of overwhelming.”

“In a good way?”

“Yeah.” She nuzzled against his chest. “But how do I tell my family?”

“They already know, koukla.”

“They do?” She raised tear-filled eyes. “How do they know?”

“Because they already figured out that both of us were willing to make the sacrifice for the other, but in the end, your dad and I had a talk and he reminded me that he expects me to take care of you both emotionally and financially. He knows for sure that I can do that in Greece. Here in the U.S., it’s a gamble, and he wants you to be happy and secure more than he wants you to be close by. I’m sure in a perfect world he’d like both, but when he put it out there in black and white, I realized he’s right. We talked about what it would take to make sure you weren’t just safe, but felt confident and independent in such new surroundings too. So money that I can’t touch, perhaps a safety deposit box where you can keep—”

“Wait, stop!” She put a finger on his lips and shook her head, frowning. “I’m worried about things like loneliness and lacking my own money for things like shoes and makeup—not running away from you in the middle of the night! Goodness, I’m not afraid of you, Apollo. I’m nervous about such a huge lifestyle change and not having anyone to talk to the first time we have a fight… I’m thinking ahead to having our first baby and wondering what the hospitals are like. I already know that in the off-chance you beat me or some other horrible thing, my father would either be on the first plane or he’d buy me the ticket to get away. I just don’t want to get caught up in life—your work and kids and all that, and find myself alone with no purpose, no job, no life outside of you.”

“Honey, you can get a job if you want to. Or you can come work with me at the company—we desperately need a marketing specialist and you’ve already shown an interest in that.” He ran his hands down her back and gently squeezed the soft, round globes of her behind. “But I was thinking about all those adventures you want to have.”

“You were?”

“Well, yeah.” He grinned. “I’m planning to take a little time off now because you’ll need to take care of Raegan and pack up your whole life if you’re going to move to Greece. In the meantime, I thought we’d have some local mini-adventures like going to the Grand Canyon and Sedona, things like that.”

“God, I love you.” She leaned up and kissed him, hard, her eyes glittering with tears.