‘Yes…yes…I guess it is…’
He took her hands in his. ‘Where did you park your car—in the hotel car park downstairs?’
‘No…I parked a few streets away.’
‘Then I will walk you to it,’ he said.
Charlotte’s heart gave a sudden lurch. Emily’s child booster seat was in the back of her car. ‘No!’ she said.
He frowned at her emphatic response. ‘No?’
‘I—I lied…’ She reluctantly brought her gaze back to his. ‘I didn’t drive here tonight…I…I caught a cab.’
His dark gaze studied her for a lengthy pause.
‘Why did you feel it was necessary to lie about something as common as catching a cab?’ he asked.
‘I—I don’t know…’ she faltered.
His expression closed over as he took her hand. ‘Come on, Charlotte. I will escort you to the cab rank.’
She tried to pull her hand away. ‘There’s really no need to bother.’
His fingers tightened a mere fraction. ‘It is no bother, really,’ he insisted.
Charlotte had no choice but to allow him to escort her downstairs and into one of the waiting cabs. She gritted her teeth behind her forced smile as he waved her off.
‘Where to, miss?’ the cab driver asked as he began to pull out of the hotel driveway.
She gave him a sheepish look. ‘You’re not going to believe this…’
‘The airport?’ he asked with a grin. ‘Every person I’ve picked up this evening’s been going to the airport.’
‘Actually, no, much closer than that,’ she said with rising colour. ‘See that yellow car parked under that tree on the next block?’
‘You’re kidding me.’
‘Sorry.’ She grimaced. ‘But do you think we can do a few rounds of the block. I don’t want my…er…friend to see me getting into my car.’
He gave her another smile. ‘No trouble. How many rounds do you think we should do?’
Charlotte glanced back over her shoulder at the hotel, but there was no sign of Damon watching.
‘Two should do it,’ she said, releasing a sigh as she settled back into the seat.
‘Two it is,’ the driver said, and made a turn to the left.
‘Stacey?’ Charlotte called out as soon as she got back to the flat. ‘I’m home.’
A chill ran down her spine when there was no answer. She dropped her bag and called out again, but the flat was eerily quiet.
She checked each of the rooms but it wasn’t until she got to her bedroom that she saw the note stuck on her laptop computer screen.
Sorry, Charlie. I know you’re going to hate me but I’m just not ready. Forgive me. S.
Charlotte peeled off the note with a sinking heart, the sharp edges of the paper sticking into the soft skin of her palm. She tossed it in the bin but the movement of her hand against her little desk disturbed the computer mouse and the computer screen came to life.
She stared at her internet banking details, her stomach churning in despair when she realised what her sister had done.
‘Oh, Stacey…’ she cried out in frustration. ‘How could you do this to me?’
‘YOU look nice today,’ Diane said as she ran into Charlotte in the ladies’ room the following day. ‘Are you going out to lunch?’
Charlotte recapped her lipstick and rolled her lips together before answering. ‘Yes, I am actually.’
‘The Greek billionaire?’ Diane guessed with a knowing smile.
Charlotte frowned as she turned to face her colleague. ‘You haven’t been talking to him, have you?’
‘No, why?’
‘Listen, Diane.’ She lowered her voice conspiratorially. ‘Remember we discussed the other evening how Mr Latousakis and I had met before?’
‘Yes, on Santorini, right?’
‘Well…it’s really important you don’t talk to him about me. I don’t want him to know I’m a single mother.’
‘You think he’ll be put off if he knows you’ve got a little kid?’ Diane asked.
‘You know what men are like these days,’ Charlotte said, turning back to the mirror to inspect her make-up rather than meet her colleague’s eyes.
Diane gave a deep sigh of agreement as she leaned against the basin. ‘Tell me about it. What is it with men and commitment?’
‘Exactly,’ Charlotte said, relieved she didn’t have to go into lengthy explanations.
Diane gave her a probing look. ‘He’s not Emily’s father, is he?’
‘No.’ Charlotte felt like kicking herself for answering so quickly when she saw the way her colleague’s brows rose above her eyes.
Diane pursed her mouth thoughtfully. ‘So you’re just doing lunch?’
‘Yes, just lunch.’
‘Does he want to see you again?’
‘Maybe…I’m not sure…’ Charlotte comforted herself that it was at least the truth. She had no idea what Damon wanted from her. She couldn’t quite believe he had temporarily freed her from his previous demands, but for some reason she still felt compromised. She knew it was incredibly dangerous being around him but she couldn’t seem to help herself.
She was becoming addicted to his smile, not to mention that kiss…
‘But what do you want?’ Diane asked, as if tapping into her thoughts. ‘You said you were involved with him before. Do you still feel anything for him?’
‘I can’t afford to feel anything for him,’ Charlotte answered. ‘I have a child and he’s a playboy. The two don’t go together.’
‘You know you could always just tell him about Emily and see what happens,’ Diane suggested.
‘No. He’s only going to be here for a month.’
‘What if he finds out some other way? Won’t he think you’re a bit weird, keeping it from him?’
‘He won’t find out,’ Charlotte said as she straightened her skirt over her hips, wishing she was feeling as confident as she sounded. ‘I’m going to make sure of it.’
Diane pushed herself away from the basin. ‘Well, for a start you’d better take all those photos of your daughter off the desk in your office,’ she advised. ‘Damon Latousakis might not be Emily’s father, but he sure as hell looks like he could be. Even if he doesn’t see the likeness, others certainly will.’
Charlotte stared at her reflection once the door had closed on Diane’s exit, the panic in her eyes widening them to the size of dinner plates.
If Diane was already suspicious, what hope did she have with anyone else, including Damon himself?
He was waiting for her when she came out of the museum a short time later and her heart gave a little kick in her chest at the sight of him dressed in a charcoal-grey suit, the crisp white of his shirt