Smokescreen Marriage

She loosened the towel that was swathed round her head, and her damp hair tumbled on to her shoulders. Then she switched on the drier, and picked up the brush.

Mick stood by the old-fashioned fireplace watching every movement, his whole body very still, except for a muscle flickering at the side of his mouth.

He said at last, ‘You’ve received Ismene’s invitation.’ His tone was abrupt, and it was a statement rather than a question.

‘It came today.’

‘So you haven’t had time to reply.’

‘It won’t take much time,’ Kate said shortly. ‘Naturally, I shan’t be going.’

‘Ah,’ Mick said gently. ‘But that is what I came to discuss with you. It would mean a great deal to my sister to have you present, so I hope you will reconsider.’

Kate switched off the drier and stared at him, pushing her hair back from her face. ‘That’s impossible.’

‘I hope not. Ismene has missed you very badly, and this is a special time for her.’ He paused. ‘I would regard your attendance as a favour.’

Kate gasped. ‘And that’s supposed to make all the difference?’ she demanded furiously.

‘I thought it might.’ He leaned an arm on the mantelshelf, looking hatefully assured and relaxed. ‘In fact, I believed we might exchange favours.’

There was an uncertain silence, then Kate said, ‘What do you mean?’

‘You want a simple, consensual divorce.’ He smiled at her. ‘Which you can have—at a price.’

There was another tingling silence.

She said, ‘And if the price is too high?’

He shrugged. ‘Then I refuse to consent, and we let the legal process run its course.’ He added casually, ‘I understand it can take several years.’

‘That’s—blackmail.’ Her voice shook.

‘Is it?’ he said. ‘But perhaps I do not agree that our marriage has “irretrievably broken down” as you allege in that document.’

‘But you must. It has.’ Kate drew a deep breath. ‘And you’re bluffing. I know you are. You don’t wish to stay married any more than I do.’

His mouth twisted. ‘You’re mistaken, agapi mou. I am in no particular hurry to be free.’

No, she thought, with a stab of anguish. Not while your father is still alive, and Victorine is nominally his…

She said slowly, ‘So I have to attend Ismene’s wedding if I want a quick divorce.’

‘Is it really such a hardship? Kefalonia is very beautiful in September.’

‘Kefalonia is beautiful all the year round.’ Her tone was curt. ‘It’s only some of the people there who make it ugly.’

‘A word of advice, pedhi mou.’ His smile was mirthless. ‘It is better to win an opponent over than to antagonise him.’

Kate lifted her chin. ‘I think it’s a little late to worry about that.’ She hesitated. ‘But everyone must know by now that our marriage is over. Won’t they find it strange if I’m at the wedding?’

‘I am not interested in what people think.’ His voice was suddenly harsh. ‘Besides, they only know that we have been separated for a short time. You might simply have come back to this country to attend to some family business.’

‘Is that what you’ve been telling people?’ She shook her head. ‘My God, you can’t even be honest about our marriage breaking down.’

‘They will know soon enough, when the wedding is over.’

‘Well, I hope you don’t expect me to take part in some spurious reunion,’ Kate said acidly. ‘I’m not that good an actress.’ She paused. ‘Why do you want me there?’

‘Did I say wanted?’ Mick drawled. ‘Don’t flatter yourself, my sweet one. I am here on Ismene’s behalf, not my own.’

She did not look at him, staring instead at her gingham-covered knee. ‘Then I’d be there—just as an ordinary guest? Nothing more?’

He said mockingly, ‘Why, Katharina, did you think you had left me all these weeks to sleep alone? That I’ve been burning for your return. What an innocent you are.’

‘Not,’ she said, ‘any more.’ She was silent for a moment. ‘I need time to think about this.’

‘You have twenty-four hours. I am staying at the Royal Empress Hotel. You remember it?’

‘Yes.’ It was a painful whisper.

He nodded. ‘You can contact me there with your answer.’

He walked to the door, and paused for a final swift look round the room.

He said, ‘So this is what you left me for. I hope it is worth it.’

‘I don’t have to live in the lap of luxury to be happy,’ Kate said defiantly.

‘Evidently,’ he said. ‘If happy is what you are.’ He looked her over, slowly and thoroughly, a smile curling his mouth.

He said softly, ‘Eyes like smoke and hair like flame. What a waste agapi mou. What a tragic waste.’

And was gone.

CHAPTER TWO

FOR several long moments Kate stood like a statue, staring at the closed door, pain and disbelief warring within her for supremacy.

Then she gave a little choked cry and ran to her bedroom, flinging herself face down across the bed, her hands gripping the covers as if they were her last hold on sanity.

She said aloud, ‘Fool.’ And again, more savagely, her voice breaking, ‘Fool.’

Had she really thought she could escape so easily? That Michael Theodakis would simply allow her—the girl he’d taken from nowhere—to walk away from him?

Not that he cared about her, or their marriage, as she had bitter cause to know, but the fact that she’d chosen to expose the hypocrisy of their relationship by leaving, had clearly damaged his pride. And that, of course, was an unforgivable sin.

Her own pride, naturally, didn’t count.

He hadn’t even asked her why she had left, but then he didn’t have to. He already knew. He would have been told…

Nor had he offered one word of apology or explanation for the actions which had driven her away.

No, she was clearly the one who was at fault because she’d failed to turn a blind eye to his cynical infidelity.

After all, she’d had the Theodakis millions to enjoy, and she could not deny Mick had been generous. There’d been the house outside Athens, and the sumptuous apartments in Paris and New York as well as the clothes and jewellery he’d given her, all of which she’d left behind when she fled.

But that had been her choice, and Mick, no doubt, felt he had bought her silence—her discretion, and, in his eyes, she had reneged on their unwritten bargain.

A bargain she had not realised existed until that terrible afternoon…

She shuddered, pressing her face deep into the bed until coloured sparks danced behind her closed eyelids.

But nothing could drive the image from her brain. Mick sprawled naked and asleep across the bed—their bed. And Victorine sitting at the dressing table combing her hair, clad in nothing but a towel.

And now, in spite of that, he required her to stand meekly at his side during Ismene’s wedding celebrations, playing the dutiful wife. As if she owed him something.

But she’d only have to role-play by day, she reminded herself. At least she would not be asked to pretend at night.

And neither would he. Not any longer.

How could a man do that? she wondered wildly. How could he make love to one woman, with his heart and mind committed to another?

And all those precious passionate moments when the dark strength of his body had lifted her to the edge of paradise and beyond—how could they have meant so little to him?

But perhaps sexual fulfilment had also been part of his side of the bargain along with the designer wardrobe and the money he’d provided. One of the assets of being Mrs Michael Theodakis.

But it wasn’t enough. Because she’d wanted love. And that was something he’d never offered. At least he’d been honest about that.

Probably, he’d found her inexperience—her naïvete amusing, she thought, lashing herself into fresh anger against him.

Because anger was good. Safe. It kept the frantic tears of loneliness and betrayal at bay. And she couldn’t afford any more tears. Any more heartbreak.

She’d wept enough. Now, somehow, she had to move on.

But she couldn’t begin to build a new life while her brief marriage still existed, trapping her in the old one. She needed it to be over, and left far behind her. But for that, of course, she had to have Mick’s co-operation. Oh, it would be so good to tell him to go to hell. That she would die sooner than return to Kefalonia and play at being his wife again for however short a time.

Because that meant she would become once more the smokescreen against his father’s jealous and totally justified suspicions. And how could she bear it?

Or stand seeing, yet again, the triumph and contempt in Victorine’s beautiful face? The look she’d turned on Kate, standing ashen-faced in the doorway that afternoon only a few agonised weeks ago.

‘How tactless of you, chère.’ Her honeyed drawl was barbed. ‘Perhaps in future you should knock before entering your husband’s bedroom.’

Kate had taken two shaky steps backwards, then run for the bathroom down the passage, her hand over her mouth as nausea churned inside her.

She was violently, cripplingly sick, kneeling on the tiled floor while walls and ceiling revolved unsteadily around her. She had no idea how long she’d stayed there. But eventually some firm purpose was born out of the sickness and misery, making her realise that she had to get out. That her brief marriage was over, and that she could not bear to spend even another hour under any roof that belonged to the Theodakis family.

She had to force herself to go back into that bedroom, bracing herself for another humiliating confrontation, but Victorine had gone.

Mick was still fast asleep. Exhausted by his labours, no doubt, she thought, rubbing salt into her own bitter wounds. And how dared he sleep while her heart was breaking?

She needed to confront him, she realised. To accuse him and see the guilt in his face.

She put her hand on his shoulder, and shook him.

‘Mick.’ Her voice cracked on his name. ‘Wake up.’

He stirred drowsily, without opening his eyes. ‘S’agapo,’ he muttered, his voice slurred. ‘I love you.’

Kate gasped, and took a step backwards, a stricken hand flying to her mouth. At last he’d said them—the words she’d yearned to hear ever since they’d been together.

Only they were not meant for her, but his secret lover—the woman he’d been enjoying so passionately in her absence. The mistress he’d never actually discarded. It was the final—the unforgivable hurt, she thought as she turned painfully and walked away.

She packed the minimum in a small weekend case, then scribbled him a note which she left on the night table with her wedding ring.

‘I should never have married you,’ she wrote. ‘It was a terrible mistake, and I cannot bear to go on living with you for another moment. Don’t try to find me.’

No one saw her go. She drove to the airport, and managed to get a seat on a plane to Athens, and from there to London.

She had sworn that she would never go back.

And I can’t, Kate thought, a shudder crawling the length of her body. I can’t do it. It’s too degrading to have to face her. To see them together, knowing what I know.

But what real alternative did she have?

She couldn’t wait for years in limbo until Mick finally decided to let her go.

And, while his father lived, he had no real reason to end the marriage.

She had humiliated him by her precipitate departure, and she was being punished as a consequence. That was what it was all about. She had to be returned to the scene of her anguish—her betrayal—and made to endure all the memories and misery that it would evoke.

She burrowed into the quilt like a small wounded animal seeking sanctuary, her mind rejecting the images forcing themselves relentlessly on her inner vision.

Oh, how could he do this? How dared he simply—appear in her life again and start making demands?

Because he’s without shame, she told herself, bitterly. And without decency. He’s rich enough to do without them.

But I’m not. And somehow I have to find my way through this, and keep my own integrity in the process. And lying here with my eyes shut isn’t going to change a thing.

She sat up slowly, pushing her still-damp hair back from her face with a slight shiver.

Meanwhile she had a job to do tomorrow, and preparations to make for that. Normal life was there to be got on with, even if the safe wall she’d thought she’d built around herself had suddenly come crashing down.

She trailed back into the living room, and switched on her hair-drier, staring unseeingly into space as she dealt with the tangled red waves, restoring them to some kind of order.

As, in the fullness of time, she would restore her life. Find a new calm—a new security.

There had never been any safety with Mick, of course. He’d appeared on her horizon like some great dark planet, and she’d been the moon drawn helplessly into his orbit. And by the time she’d realised the danger she was in, it was already too late.

But from the first time she’d seen him, she’d been in too deep, out of her depth and sinking.

As the drier hummed, Kate let her tired mind drift back over the months to where it had all begun…

‘Oh, come on, Katie, don’t let me down. It’ll be a laugh.’ Lisa’s tone was cajoling. ‘After all, when do we get a chance to get inside a hotel like the Zycos Regina? Don’t you want to see how the other half live? Besides, I really need you to make up the foursome.’

Kate bit her lip. It had been a long season on the Greek island of Zycos, and, although on the whole she’d enjoyed being a tour rep for Halcyon Club Travel, she felt bone-weary now that it was over.

All she wanted to do that evening was complete her packing for the following day’s flight, have a hot shower, and an early night. But Lisa, the fellow rep with whom she’d shared a small apartment all summer, wanted a night on the town.

She said cautiously, ‘Who did you say was going?’

‘His name’s Stavros,’ Lisa said. ‘And he’s the disc jockey at the Nite Spot down on the waterfront.’

‘Oh,’ Kate said. ‘That place.’

Lisa tossed her head. ‘You’re such a snob,’ she accused.

Kate sighed. ‘Not at all. It just hasn’t got a very good reputation, and you know it. It’s always being raided.’

‘Well, we’re not taking clients there,’ Lisa said. ‘And Stavros just plays the music. He’s gorgeous.’ She rolled her eyes lasciviously. ‘The other guy’s his cousin Dimitris from Athens.’

Kate began, ‘I don’t think…’ but Lisa cut across her.

‘Oh, come on, Katie. Let your hair down for once. It’s an evening out, not a lifetime commitment, for God’s sake. And we’ll be out of here tomorrow.’

Well that was true, Kate acknowledged. It was just one evening, and she could always invent a diplomatic headache if things got heavy.

Besides, if she was honest, she’d always had a sneaking curiosity about the Zycos Regina, the largest but also most exclusive hotel on the island, and set in its own private grounds well away from the lively coastal resorts favoured by the majority of tourists.

She knew that it was part of a chain of equally prestigious hotels dotted round the Mediterranean, their standards of luxury and service putting them out of the reach of the package tour market.

It might be fun, she thought, not just to see how the other half lived, but join them too for a brief while.

She smiled at Lisa. ‘All right,’ she said. ‘You talked me into it.’

She chose carefully from her limited wardrobe that evening, opting for a black linen shift, knee-length, sleeveless and discreetly square necked. Lisa, blonde and bubbly, favoured the outrageous look out of uniform, and would be wearing something skimpy and cut-off, but Kate felt that restraint was her best bet.

For that reason, she twisted her hair into its usual tidy pleat instead of leaving it loose on her shoulders, as she’d originally intended. And she applied just a modicum of makeup, darkening her long lashes, and applying a light coral glow to her mouth.

She slipped on a pair of strappy sandals, then stood back to view herself in the mirror.

The evening was warm and still, but she suddenly found herself shivering as if a small chill wind had penetrated the shutters of her room.

And heard a warning voice in her head say quietly, ‘Be careful.’

Oh, for God’s sake, she thought impatiently as she turned towards the door. What can possibly happen in such a public—and eminently high-class—place?

Stavros, she disliked on sight. His coarse good looks might attract Lisa, but held no appeal for her. He looked her up and down smilingly, and she felt as if she’d been touched by a finger dipped in slime.

And Dimitris, with his flashy clothes and abundance of gold jewellery, set her teeth on edge too. As did the way he looked at her, as if he was mentally stripping her.

Oh, well, she thought with a mental shrug. The evening won’t last forever. It will just seem like it.

The club at the Zycos Regina impressed her immediately with its understated elegance, and subdued lighting. The clientele, mostly couples expensively dressed, were seated at tables set round an oval dance floor, and, on a corner dais, a quartet was playing soft dance music interspersed with interesting jazz.

‘It’s not very lively,’ Lisa complained loudly, twisting round in her chair to survey the other patrons. ‘If they’re all so rich, why aren’t they happier?’

Kate, uncomfortably aware of raised eyebrows and disapproving glances from adjoining tables, winced as she took a sip from the lurid cocktail that had been served to them all by an impassive waiter, and thought how much she’d have preferred a glass of wine.

It embarrassed her to see Dimitris flourishing a wallet full of notes, and clearly believing an extravagant tip allowed him to treat the staff like dirt.

It crucified her too to see Stavros stroking Lisa’s exposed skin with a proprietorial hand and leering into her cleavage, then finding Dimitris leaning towards her, murmuring throatily with a suggestive smile, and reaching for her hand.

Deliberately, Kate edged her own chair away, feeling as if she’d woken to find herself in the middle of her worst nightmare.

We don’t belong here she thought, with a sigh, as she began to plan her own strategic withdrawal. And we’d better leave before they ask us to go.

She wasn’t sure of the moment when she knew she was being watched, but she felt the impact of the glance like a hand on her shoulder.

She drank some more of the unpleasant cocktail, then risked a swift look round, wondering resignedly if the management had already been summoned.

It was a corner table, set slightly apart from the others, and occupied by three men.

And the man watching her sat in the middle. In his early thirties, he was clearly younger than the other two, and, equally obviously, he was the one in control.

Even that first lightning assessment told her that he was good-looking, although not classically handsome. The dark face was strong, the lines of nose and jaw arrogantly marked. But more than that he exuded power, a charismatic force that could reach across a crowded room and touch its object like the caress of a hand.

She knew she should look away, but it was already too late. For an electrifying moment their eyes met, and locked, and Kate felt her breathing quicken and her throat tighten in an odd excitement.

But there was no warmth in his gaze. His expression was cool and watchful, his brows drawn together in a slight frown, as if something had displeased him.

And no prizes for guessing what that was, Kate thought, as she turned back to her companions, her face hot with embarrassed colour.

‘Who’s that?’ Lisa had noticed the direction of her gaze, and was staring herself with open interest. ‘Do you know him?’ She giggled. ‘Have you been holding out on me, Katie?’

‘Not in the least,’ Kate said crisply. ‘Nor do I want to know him. I think he feels we’re lowering the tone of the establishment.’

The fact that she thought exactly the same herself seemed paradoxically to increase her resentment.

‘But I know him.’ Stavros leaned forward, eyes gleaming. ‘That is Michalis Theodakis. His father owns the whole Regina chain of hotels, and a great deal more, but the son now runs the company.’

Kate’s brows lifted. ‘Really?’ she asked sceptically. ‘What’s he doing here?’

‘He visits all the hotels,’ Stavros explained. ‘Checking them at random.’

‘So who are the guys with him?’ Lisa questioned.

‘Who knows?’ His minders probably.’ His tone was envious. ‘He is already a multi-millionaire in his own right, but he will be even richer when he gets control of all the Theodakis holdings. If he ever does,’ he added, grinning. ‘They say he and his father have quarrelled and Aristotle Theodakis would do anything to prevent him stepping into his shoes.’

He sent Kate a sly glance. ‘Do you want him, kougla mou? Many women do, and not just for his money. He is quite a stud. You would have to stand in a long line, I think.’

‘Don’t be absurd,’ Kate said coldly, aware that her flush had deepened. ‘And do keep your voice down. I think he’s planning to have us thrown out.’

That icy considering look had thrown her badly. He had seen her companions and judged her accordingly, so naturally she was honour bound to prove to him that his low opinion of her was entirely justified.

Teeth gritted, she reached for her drink, only to find the whole nasty concoction cascading down the front of her dress as her arm was jogged by a passing waiter.

She gasped and jumped up, shaking her skirt. Stavros and Dimitris were on their feet too, shouting angrily and gesticulating at the waiter, who was apologising abjectly and proffering a clean napkin.

‘I’d better go to the powder room,’ Kate interrupted, embarrassed at the attention the accident was attracting.

She turned, and cannoned into a tall figure standing behind her. As his hands grasped her arms to steady her, she realised it was Michael Theodakis.

‘Allow me to make amends for the clumsiness of my staff, thespinis.’ He spoke excellent English, she thought, with just a trace of an accent which, allied to his low-pitched drawl, some women would undoubtedly find sexy. ‘If you will come with me, my housekeeper will attend to your dress.’

‘There’s really no need.’ She freed herself, and took a small step backwards, her face warming. Because, close to, he was formidably attractive—over six feet in height, broad shouldered and lean-hipped. And prudence suggested she should keep her distance.

‘But I think there is.’ Somehow, he had repossessed her hand, and was leading her between the tables towards the exit.

‘Will you let go of me, please?’ Kate tried to tug her fingers from his grasp. ‘I can look after myself.’

‘You are deluding yourself, thespinis, especially when you keep company like that,’ he added with a touch of grimness.

She lifted her chin. ‘It’s not for you, kyrie, to criticise my friends.’

‘They are old and dear acquaintances perhaps?’ The sardonic note in his voice was not lost on her.

She bit her lip. ‘Not—exactly.’

‘I thought not.’ He walked her across the hotel foyer to the row of lifts and pressed a button.

‘Where are we going?’ she asked in alarm, as the lift doors opened.

‘To my suite.’ He steered her inexorably inside. ‘My housekeeper will join us there.’

‘Take me back to the ground floor, please.’ Kate was shaking suddenly. ‘I want to go home—now.’

‘It will be safer for you to remain at the hotel tonight.’ He paused. ‘I have a confession to make to you, thespinis. I sent Takis to spill your drink deliberately.’

‘You must be crazy.’ Kate felt dizzy suddenly. ‘You can’t hope to get away with this—even if you do own the place.’

‘Ah,’ he said softly. ‘So you know who I am.’

‘Your fame goes before you. But I’m not interested in being added to your list of conquests.’