He’d assumed she was in her early twenties. It totally surprised him when he learned she was a professor of the early nineteenth-century romance writers at UCLA in California, which meant she was older than he’d supposed.
He’d been instantly attracted to her in a way he couldn’t explain. The woman’s concern over the taxi driver had touched him. As for her keen intellect and interest in Lord Byron, he was intrigued. She didn’t know it yet, but the two of them had a lot to talk about. He found himself planning a way to spend more time with her.
After the emotional turmoil he’d been in for so long he didn’t want to think about it, he was utterly shocked that he wanted to pursue this woman. But instinct told him that if she’d been put off by him, she wouldn’t have walked with him to the limo after the accident, or have gone to lunch with him. Still, something else had held her back from accepting a ride from him to the ferry tomorrow.
He thought about the situation until he went to bed. If he was wrong and she didn’t feel any sort of attraction to him, there was only one way to find out.
When morning came, he dressed in sport clothes and parked his car in front of her apartment at seven fifteen. For all he knew, she could have already left or changed her mind and done something else. If there was no sign of her, he’d told her he would let it go. But he knew he wouldn’t like it.
At twenty-five after, a taxi pulled up behind him, letting him know she had no intention of going with him. Instead of leaving before she came out, Andreas wanted her to know he’d kept his word. He got out of his car and lounged against the passenger door to wait.
A few minutes later she walked out dressed in white cargo pants and a blue-and-white-print blouse with three-quarter sleeves. The sun streaks in her neck-length hair shone in the morning light. He couldn’t look anywhere else before straightening. It diverted her attention.
The surprise in her blue eyes above those exquisite high cheekbones was 100 percent genuine. “You!” She hadn’t thought he’d come.
“Good morning, kyria. I told you I would be here. I meant what I said. I’d like to take you to the ferry to make up for yesterday, but the decision is yours.”
She smoothed a strand of hair behind her ear. “The thing is, my taxi is already here.”
That comment told him all he needed to know. “I’ll take care of it.”
He walked around to talk to the driver. “Thanks for coming,” he said in Greek and paid him triple what she would have had to pay him to go to the dock.
The driver was all smiles and pulled out into traffic.
Andreas headed for his car and opened the door for her. She came closer. “Now I feel terrible. My debts to you are adding up.”
It hit him that as long as she wanted to be with him, nothing else mattered. And she did, otherwise she would have said no thank you and climbed in that taxi.
“Let’s not talk about debts and enjoy the drive.” He helped her in the car and took off. “I’m aware that you know nothing about me, but I assure you I’m not in the habit of picking up women who’ve been in an accident or otherwise.”
That brought a smile to her lips. “I’m not in the habit of being picked up by a man on his way to a board meeting.”
“Touché. Now that we have that out of the way, I’d like you to know the truth about me. Two days ago I filed for divorce and have a son, Ari, who’s fifteen months old. He’s my life.” Even if he isn’t my birth son. “But he’s with his mother right now in Athens. They’re living with her parents for the time being.”
She turned to look at him. “I’m so sorry. I’ve been through a divorce and know how painful it is, but there were no children involved. The emptiness has to be unbearable.”
He darted her a glance. She’d already been married...
“Life has a way of throwing us curves we never expected, like your accident yesterday. Right now I’m trying to make sense of everything. Believe it or not, doing something for you is helping.”
She stirred in the seat. “What you’ve told me explains why you didn’t care if you missed your board meeting.”
“You’re right about that. I’m trying to keep it together, but I couldn’t go to work today, or stay at the villa. Thank you for helping me keep my sanity, kyria. You’re just the company I need.”
“I’ve been where you’ve been,” she said compassionately. “If you’d like a job, why don’t you come to Ithaca with me for the day? I could use an interpreter of your caliber.”
“What caliber is that?”
“I asked my landlord about you. He said you’re a very important man.”
“Don’t believe him.”
She chuckled softly. “I knew it when the police officer recognized you and immediately acceded to your wishes.”
The fact that she’d asked him to go to Ithaca with her had lifted his mood. They reached the dock and got in line to board the ferry. The four-hour trip across and back meant they wouldn’t be home until eight or later.
Once they could leave the car, they went to the dining room to eat, then walked out on deck. “It’s hard to believe this view is real,” she murmured. “The green of the Ionian islands bathed by crystal blue waters is out of this world.”
He’d never been around anyone as appreciative of everything as she was. As he’d told her earlier, she was easy to be with. “I couldn’t agree more. Tell me why Ithaca is so important.”
“When Lord Byron left Genoa in July of 1823, he traveled on a ship called the Hercules with Pietro Gamba and William Fletcher among others. They arrived at Cephalonia in August and made an expedition to Ithaca. He was filled with inspiration and did a lot of writing during that period. I want to visit the two museums in Vathy and see what memorabilia is there.”
Being with Zoe made the time pass quickly. Soon they were able to drive onto the island and tour some of the archaeological sites before stopping at the museums.
“Tell me what those words say, Andreas.” It was the first time she’d used his name. He enjoyed translating some of the lines from the marble commemorative stele of Byron for her.
“If this island belonged to me, I would bury all my books here and never go away,” he told her.
“That’s an interesting thing to say. He really was taken with the history of this place.” She recorded Andreas’s words in the notebook she carried in her purse. They worked well together and he regretted it when they had to leave to drive back to the ferry.
Again they ate aboard ship and discussed Ulysses, who was said to have been born on Ithaca or Cephalonia. She was so knowledgeable about literature in general, it was fascinating to be with her.
When they got back to the apartment, he turned to her and told her his plans. “Tomorrow I’m leaving for Athens to be with my son. Temporary visitation has been worked out with the judge. I’m with him for two days, usually over the weekend. Then his mother has him for five and we go back and forth. It’s unequal, but works for now because of my business schedule.”
“You can’t bring him here?”
“I could, but it’s a lot of flying. Do you mind if I call you after I’m back?”
“Not at all, but just so you know, I’m leaving tomorrow to join my friends on holiday in Switzerland.”
The news stunned him. He’d just met her and already she was going away? “How long will you be gone?”
“I’m not sure.” She