Stavros Sporades didn’t give his word or make a promise easily. When he did...
Fear struck her so hard that her knees shuddered under her.
He instantly moved forward to catch her but Leah jerked away from him. “Don’t come near me,” she whispered.
She grabbed the door to stop from sliding to the floor in a puddle. She wanted to scream her denial but what left her mouth was a soft gasp.
He would never forgive her, or himself, for Calista’s death, never even give her a chance. Would punish them both for the rest of their lives.
And to even contemplate being his wife in the true sense of the word...
Perversely, she felt a chilly calm inside instead of a boiling rage. “When I decided to come here today, I didn’t even care about whether I was married to you or not. I didn’t care about being so lonely all these years...friends I knew once living their life to the fullest... I lived it as if I deserved to be punished. But now...I won’t quietly accept your word this time.
“I’m going to file for divorce, Stavros.”
A tic played in his jaw, the only thing that betrayed his even gaze. He looked insurmountable, like a boulder intent on crushing her. “Lawyers and court proceedings cost money.”
That patronizing tone set her teeth on edge. “I will sell myself if I have to, to pay for it. Within the week, I will move out of that flat, will be handing in my resignation at the fashion house. The moment I step out of here, I’m going to call Philip and tell him what I plan to do.”
He moved to block her path, his gait predatory. “I’m not your enemy, Leah.”
Panic pushed a hundred different flight routes in her head, one more desperate than the next. “No? Because God help me the day you decide that you are. If your goons even lay a finger on me, I will go to the media and start talking about how you have treated me over the last five years. I’ll tell them I’ve been nothing but a glorified prisoner.
“I’m sure they would love to hear that saintly Stavros Sporades is nothing but a sadist.”
“I do not care what the media calls me.”
Nausea pooled in her mouth. “They will, of course, dig through the whole story again about that night and Calista.”
If there was fury before in his eyes, now there was nothing but the bitterest loathing for her. And seeing as she felt the same inside, that she despised herself for how far she was taking this, his loathing couldn’t touch Leah.
For once, his opinion of her couldn’t hurt her, as twisted as it was.
“If he even hears a whiff of it—” a vein throbbed in his temple and his hands fisted at his side “—Giannis, who...has done nothing but love you, he will be destroyed to see the Katrakis name dragged through mud. You will kill him with your stupid stunt, and my grandparents...they can’t bear to think of Calista’s death anymore.”
“But you already know that I don’t care about anyone but myself, don’t you?” she bluffed, swallowing the bile that rose through her.
She couldn’t betray the depth of pain that she held at bay every day thinking of her grandfather, of knowing he was close by but not seeing him.
Guilt ate through her insides. But she had no recourse except to threaten Stavros like this. She forced a smile, her cheeks hurting at her continued pretense. “If you don’t want me to drag the Sporades name and the Katrakis name through mud, you will have to agree.”
She opened the door and looked at him again, feeling truly afraid for the first time. She had gambled on the one person that she loved with all her heart. She could never hurt her grandfather. Even speaking about it like this was cutting her in two. But she had to make sure Stavros would believe her capable of it. “You will have to release those funds and you have to cut the strings you hold over my life. The choice is yours, Stavros.”
“I thought I knew the depths of selfishness you could sink to, but you always manage to surprise me, Leah.”
Desolation filled her at the utter resignation in his voice. That he believed her bluff didn’t fill her with relief or gratitude however. Only painted a picture of what her life would be like with him.
And thinking of being caught in a circle of hatred and hero worship, she didn’t have to try to sound like she didn’t care. “What’s new about that, Stavros? And who knows? Once I’m out of your life, you might even thank me for it.”
Without stopping for even a breath, she rushed out of the bedroom and through the corridors, her legs barely holding her up.
She made it to the main deck before she collapsed onto the floor and clutched her knees. Leaning her head against her knees, she fought to corral her uneven breathing.
The very real possibility of Stavros still not believing what she had threatened sent a shaft of fear through her.
Her nape prickled as she heard someone approach, and instantly, she straightened her shoulders. She couldn’t afford to let him see her like this... He would know that she had been bluffing. And she would be worse off than she had started today.
Breathing hard, she composed herself and looked up.
His hip lolling against the bar counter in casual elegance, Dmitri watched her with gray eyes. “Hello, Leah.”
Shuddering, Leah swallowed the hard knot in her throat.
She couldn’t break down now, not when Stavros was so close.
A daring mockery in his gaze, Dmitri extended a hand to pull her up.
Leah grabbed his hand and pushed herself to her feet.
His hands were callous but didn’t leave her shaking like Stavros’s grip had done. His mocking gaze didn’t compel her to react nor did his arrogant perusal leave her off balance and breathless. She didn’t feel compelled to be better than she was, or to give up in frustration because nothing would ever change, as she did with Stavros.
She didn’t feel anything except questionable warmth at seeing a familiar face.
Why Stavros of all men? Was she that much of a sucker for pain?
“I can see that you’re—” Dmitri’s gaze swept over her “—looking astonishingly well, so I’m not going to ask how you have been.”
Set against Stavros’s lacerating contempt, there was a slumbering, almost comforting quality to Dmitri that had always put her at ease. Looking into the bottomless depths of Dmitri’s eyes now, she wondered how much of that warmth was a deceptive facade.
“Come, I’ll take you home. Stavros will thank me for stopping his precious wife from getting arrested for indecent exposure.”
Leah shivered, only barely stopping herself from covering her chest with her arms. Hearing herself referred to as Stavros’s wife, even the mention of that bond that tied them together made her queasy inside, and Dmitri knew it.
Straightening her shoulders and resolutely holding her arms down, she glared at him. “Then he shouldn’t have dumped me in that monstrous tub of yours.”
His laughter swathed her. Leah ducked, just enough when he threw an arm to pull her to him.
“I’m not playing your games, Dmitri, so back off.”
His eyes warmed up even more. The few times she had come into contact with him, he had at least had a kind smile for her, whether real or fake.
Familiar trust awoke in her, something inside her desperate for a friend after Stavros’s stinging scorn.
Unless it was part of his game to get her to trust him and pump her for information so that he could take it back to Stavros... She sighed, feeling immensely tired and lonely.
“I