Bride Behind The Billion-Dollar Veil

‘I know that.’ His voice was carefully blanked of emotion.

‘I mean, I work really hard, because I can’t risk getting a bad reference, because I need the next job, and at the moment I’m one of the top-rated temps at the agency, so I work hard to make sure I don’t lose that.’

Thanos considered this. ‘Would permanent employment not suit you better? You’d get a steadier salary.’

‘True.’ Alice nodded. ‘But the pay is way less, and I need some flexibility. There are times when I have to be off work for two or three weeks to help with mom, and if I’m a temp, that’s a lot easier to arrange.’

‘So you support your mother?’

‘Yes.’ She nodded. ‘She had a stroke. She’s in a coma. I can’t afford a bed in a home so she lives with me, and the cost of home nursing—which she needs through the day—is astronomical. I’m basically working to cover her medical bills and then there’s food and rent and…’ A tear slid down her cheek. ‘I’m sorry.’

‘What for?’ He surprised her then, pulling a tissue from the drawer of his desk and striding across to her. Instead of handing the tissue to her, he dabbed at her cheeks. It was a gesture of such kindness that it somehow made her feel worse, rather than better.

She wasn’t used to anyone helping her. Listening to her. And it was as if a crack had formed into which she wanted to pour all her grief, all her worries. But he was her boss, and this was a job, and she’d already created a bad enough impression without making it worse.

‘Thank you.’ She spoke firmly, taking a step back, away from him, away from sympathy. ‘I don’t know what came over me. It’s just been one of those days.’

She lifted the water glass from the table, intending to take it to the kitchen to wash it, but he put a hand on her wrist, stilling her. Only it didn’t still all of her. Alice’s blood thundered at the light, innocent touch.

‘I also have a problem, Alice,’ he said, his eyes boring into hers with an intensity that sent a shiver down her spine. It was easy to see in that moment how he had, side by side with his brother, turned a crumbling business into a global behemoth. She felt strength slamming into her from every single pore of his body.

But his words didn’t quite make sense. Did he wish to unburden himself? Did he want a sympathetic ear? It didn’t exactly fit with the character profile she had of Thanos but Alice found herself listening intently.

‘And it occurs to me that we could be of use to one another.’

Her eyes flared wide at this idea. Without knowing any details, she knew she shouldn’t get her hopes up. And yet, it felt like…a light in the dark.

‘How so?’

‘My brother suggested last night that I should give Kosta Carinedes exactly what he wants.’

‘You’re going to stop getting photographed by paparazzi?’ Alice prompted, a hint of scepticism in her words, because the media loved Thanos and his antics like bees loved nectar.

‘I’m not sure that’s possible.’ He echoed her unspoken doubts. ‘But I’m going to give them the right thing to photograph.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘If Kosta wants me to settle down, then I’ll do just that. I’ll get married.’

It was so absurd that Alice laughed. ‘You’re getting married?’

‘That depends.’

‘On…?’

‘On if you’ll agree to be my wife.’

CHAPTER THREE

‘DON’T THINK OF it as a marriage,’ he added, when she hadn’t spoken for several long, confused seconds of silence. ‘Think of it as a job offer.’

‘To be your wife?’ She roused herself, finally, blinking as though that might help make sense of matters.

Thanos’s eyes narrowed speculatively. ‘Yes.’

‘Do you feel okay? Are you drunk?’

He laughed; a hoarse sound. ‘No.’

‘You can’t seriously be expecting me to marry you?’

‘Why not?’

‘Um…’ She sipped her water for something to do. ‘Because we just met yesterday?’

‘Yes,’ he agreed. ‘But I already know everything I need to know to make this marriage a success.’

Alice lifted her brows in a silent entreaty for him to continue.

‘You are efficient, trustworthy and intelligent. I have been very impressed with your work ethic.’

Pleasure zipped through her.

‘But more than that, Alice, you need money, and this marriage would simply be a business arrangement.’

‘A business arrangement?’ She echoed his pronouncement, trying to make sense of that.

‘Why not?’

A crease formed between her brows and she lifted a hand, tucking a loose bit of chestnut hair behind her ear. ‘Is that even legal?’

His smile held a hint of derision. ‘You think arranged marriages are not binding?’

‘I…’ She couldn’t think straight. ‘I’m sorry. This has come totally out of the blue. You’re seriously saying you want to marry me?’

His gaze was laced with fierce determination, sharp enough to send a blade of apprehension down her spine. ‘I would do anything to get Petó back. Kosta has made his terms clear. This is the only way to fulfil them.’

‘I can kind of see that, I guess.’ She sounded anything but convinced. ‘Except I’m the last woman you’d ever marry. He’s never going to believe this is genuine.’

‘On the contrary, the fact that you are not like the kind of women I am attracted to makes you perfect for this ruse.’

Alice let out a soft laugh, hiding the way his pronouncement hurt. She knew she wasn’t particularly beautiful, and she had no hope that a man like Thanos would ever look twice at her. Not that she wanted him to—she was done with men, done with love altogether. Still, she had a little pride left and in that moment it had been completely hollowed out. ‘How do you figure?’

‘Because you are different. It makes sense that when I do eventually settle down, it would be with someone who challenges me, who stands out compared to my usual…type.’

She resisted the urge to pull a face, even though this conversation was becoming somewhat mortifying. ‘Okay, fair enough. But we just met yesterday.’

‘He doesn’t know that.’

‘I…’

‘For all he knows, you and I have been seeing one another for months.’

Alice lifted a brow. ‘Well, that would hardly be a ringing endorsement of my judgement.’ She lifted her hands apologetically, but continued explaining. ‘I mean, you’ve been in the papers—recently—photographed with different women.’

He waved a hand in the air, as though it barely mattered. ‘Kosta is an intelligent man, who has also done his share of living in the public eye. He knows as well as I do that papers make stuff up. I don’t particularly care what is written about me. I understand the newspapers and blogs have a job to do, but only a fool would take gossip as gospel.’

Alice ignored the implication that she was a fool, given that it had never occurred to her to question what was written about him. ‘I just can’t see this working.’

Determination fired in Thanos’s expression. ‘I would not suggest it if I didn’t think we could convince Kosta.’

Alice’s stomach flipped and flopped. ‘Marriage is a very permanent way to fix a problem like this.’

His smile was bordering on indulgent and Alice felt, suddenly, very naïve. ‘Marriages frequently end in divorce; ours would be just the same.’

‘Fated from the beginning,’ she said, nodding slowly.

‘As most are.’

She was too caught up in the complexity of this to properly note the hard cynicism to his voice.

‘So how would it work?’

He expelled a breath, as though he was relieved, taking her acquiescence for granted, so she hastened to add, ‘I’m not saying yes. I’m just curious as to the details.’

‘I admire your prudence.’

More pleasure, this time slamming against her ribs and catching her completely unawares. ‘Have you eaten lunch?’

‘Lunch?’ The unexpected question roused her from her thoughts. She thought of the bare pantry at home, and her stomach grumbled betrayingly. ‘No.’

‘Fine. Let’s go and discuss this properly.’

‘It’s two o’clock in the afternoon.’

‘So?’ He gestured towards the door with his natural authority and she found herself walking towards it.

But as she crossed the threshold, she felt the need to insist, ‘I’m not agreeing to this, Thanos. I think this is one of the craziest ideas I’ve ever heard, actually.’

‘Fine.’ He nodded, brushing aside her objection with ease. ‘But you are intrigued, no?’

‘Yes,’ she admitted, a half-smile reluctantly lifting her lips. ‘I’m intrigued.’

‘Good.’ He grinned. ‘Then this is a beginning.’ He moved to the elevator, pressing the button. It opened instantly. ‘I promise, I will make it impossible for you to refuse me, Alice.’

She stepped into the lift, and when it began to ascend instead of descend, she suspected the loopy feeling in her tummy had very little to do with the sudden change in altitude.

Alice knew there was a helipad on the roof of the building. She didn’t know that a helicopter was parked there, nor that it was sleek and black, the sky equivalent of a private limousine. As they walked towards it, Thanos pressed something in his pocket and the door slid open.

‘After you,’ he prompted, as if all of this was completely normal. Alice stared at the aircraft, her mouth open in sheer awe, but after a few seconds she pulled it together, forced herself to take a breath and step up into the helicopter’s interior. It was like nothing she’d ever seen before. All beige caramel and white glossy wood, pure luxury and glamour.

Thanos took the seat beside her, and, despite the generous proportions of the craft, he made it feel tiny. She was conscious of his every exhalation, conscious of the way his frame was so large that his legs were so, so close to touching hers. She kept her own pinned together, her hands in her lap.

‘Clip in,’ he said, turning to face her, nodding towards the seat belt.

Alice reached behind her, fumbling the seat belt as she tried to clip it into the unfamiliar lock. He reached over, his eyes holding hers, a slight smile at the edges of his face. ‘May I?’

Feeling both naïve and stupid, she nodded. ‘Thank you.’ The words were crisp, and she was glad she’d spoken before he actually reached for the seat belt. Because the way he dragged it across her body sent a thousand volts of electricity into her nervous system, so heat pooled in her gut and spread through her limbs.

It was an innocent gesture though, and Alice had to remind herself that she was definitely not his type. That was the reason he was proposing this ridiculous marriage of convenience. Except—was it really so ridiculous? She could perfectly see the benefit to him, if it meant he could secure the purchase of P & A.

And for Alice?

Dared she hope he would offer some kind of salary to her—better than she was earning now—in order for her to go along with this? That had to be what he had in mind.

‘Here.’ He handed her a white headset then looped his own in place, before flicking some dials and switches and bringing the rotor blades to life. The noise was loud—too loud to speak over. He tapped the headset again, smiling as he lifted up off the rooftop.

‘Where are we going?’ she yelled, despite the fact she had a small microphone hooked up to the headset, so he winced a little, sending her a look of amusement.

‘Sorry.’ She laughed. ‘Where are we going?’ A whisper now.

Then he laughed, and the sound was like sun-warmed caramel, her body warmed in an instant and involuntary response.

‘Lunch.’

She arched a brow. ‘I thought you meant a sandwich at the deli downstairs.’

It was his turn to pull a face, his expression scandalised. ‘That’s not food.’

‘It’s…not?’

‘I do not like this American way of eating while you are doing other things. Sandwiches!’ He said the word as if it was an affront to good food everywhere, and she found a small smile playing about her lips.

‘Sandwiches are actually very practical. Portable, tasty, filling…’

He shrugged. ‘Boring.’

And she understood then, because Thanos enjoyed nice things. He enjoyed experiences. Parties. Food. Wine. The sun on his body as he sunned himself on the deck of his yacht.

‘You’re a hedonist.’

He turned to face her. ‘Perhaps. But shouldn’t we all be?’

Alice didn’t say anything. She didn’t want to remind Thanos that she’d spent the better part of the last few years wondering how long she could survive on just potatoes, or just bread.

‘So where are we going?’

‘A little place I know.’

The ‘little place he knew’ turned out to be a restaurant in Brooklyn, so exclusive it wasn’t even signposted. He brought his helicopter down on the roof of a building that was only about ten stories tall, busying himself with the technical requirements of flying for a few moments. Moments in which Alice sat completely still and tried to get her head around this bizarre turn of events.

It only became more bizarre when they entered the restaurant through the kitchen and the chefs stopped what they were doing to basically fawn over Thanos. They all wanted to speak to him, and, to his credit, he took a moment with each of them, and seemed to know most of their names. She watched, fascinated, as he asked questions of each, managing small details—the names of their children or partners, offering condolences to one woman who, Alice gathered, had recently lost her father.

‘You come here often?’ she prompted as they swept into the restaurant itself—a loft space that could have accommodated a hundred diners but which had instead been converted into a room that felt almost like a penthouse lounge, all elegant sofas interspersed with enormous fiddle-leaf fig plants in copper pots. This made it possible for the dining tables to be set far apart, creating complete privacy, and suddenly Alice understood the appeal.

No one would hear their conversation; they could speak entirely unobserved.

He held a chair out for her only seconds before a waiter appeared.

‘Mr Stathakis, welcome back. Would you like to see a menu?’

Thanos tilted his head towards Alice. ‘I usually just eat what is served. However, you might like to take a look?’

‘No, that’s fine.’ She shook her head. ‘Whatever you have will be great, I’m sure.’

‘I can ask if they will serve you sandwiches?’ he teased and her heart skipped a beat.

‘That would be lovely.’ She winked to show she was joking.

Thanos grinned, dismissing the waiter with a few words in Greek, before taking the seat opposite her. She felt an unwelcome burst of nerves, and did her best to quell them.

In the office, his proposition had been surprising. On the helicopter, she’d been overawed by the glamour and completely unusual turn of events. But here, in a romantic, secluded restaurant, sitting across from one of the world’s wealthiest men—to say nothing of his personal charms and physical appeal—Alice’s pulse was trembling unstoppably.

‘Relax,’ he murmured, apparently intuiting her panic.

‘I’m sorry, it’s just not every day I get proposed to,’ she said with a sardonic smile.

‘But this is not a real proposal,’ he reminded her smoothly, his eyes intent on hers. ‘It is a business proposition.’

‘You’d know more about that than I do.’

He nodded. ‘Let me explain it for you,’ he offered. ‘Just like in business, we would have a contract to protect both of our interests.’

‘A pre-nuptial agreement?’

‘A divorce settlement,’ he corrected. ‘I would have our divorce papers confidentially drawn up and filed by my personal lawyer, on terms we will agree to now.’

‘What kind of terms?’ she asked quickly, her heart racing.

He examined her thoughtfully, then shrugged. ‘What would you like?’

Alice’s stomach swooped to her toes. ‘You want me to choose?’

‘In a negotiation, it is normal for one party to come in with a list of demands. You know what I need from you, so tell me, Alice, what do you need from me?’

She chewed on her lip, the possibilities endless. ‘I want not to worry about my mom,’ she said, simply. ‘She needs to be in a home. A good one. Somewhere with kind staff where she can be as…comfortable as possible.’ Alice’s voice cracked. ‘Somewhere I can go and see her often.’

Thanos nodded. ‘Fine. What else?’

It was on the tip of Alice’s tongue to say that was everything she needed, but when she thought of her overburdened credit cards, the threatened bankruptcy, she decided she might as well go for broke. ‘I’d need to continue earning my temp salary,’ she said, tilting her chin to show she was serious. ‘I presume in order to make this seem legitimate, I wouldn’t be able to work, but I’d need to continue earning so I could cover rent for as long as we were married. That way, I’ll have my apartment to come back to,’ she tacked on, when he didn’t speak.

He remained silent, staring at her for so long and so hard that she wondered if she’d pushed it too far.

And then he laughed, a cracking sound that reverberated around the room.

‘What?’ Heat spread through her cheeks.

‘Your old apartment? Dio, Alice.’ He shook his head, laughter lines still creasing the corners of his eyes. ‘I can see that of your many strengths, negotiating is not one of them.’

Her heart rate notched up a gear. She knew the cost of a bed in a good nursing home wasn’t cheap. It would be half a million dollars, easily, to buy an ongoing position.

‘So tell me what you want to pay me,’ she said instead.

‘I am asking you to walk away from your life, to pretend to be my wife—which is not likely to be a walk in the park, let me tell you. You would be photographed, and I would expect you to attend events with me often, in order to sell this as real. You will need to completely overhaul your way of life. And you ask for only your salary?’

Her jaw dropped. ‘And my mother’s care.’

He waved a hand in the air, dismissively.

‘I wasn’t sure what you had in mind.’

‘Alice, you should not undervalue yourself like this.’

‘Well, what do you suggest?’

‘For starters, an apartment in New York. You can choose what you like. I have several, but if none of them is to your liking then feel free to contact a realtor.’

Her jaw dropped lower.

‘A cash settlement. I was expecting you to ask for twenty million dollars, to which I intended to counter ten, and settle on perhaps fifteen after some back and forth. So shall we just save ourselves the trouble and say fifteen million dollars?’

‘Fifteen million dollars? In cash?’

‘Alice, I’m a very wealthy man, and if you marry me, you’ll be enabling me to buy a business that is worth more to me than anything else. Yes. Fifteen million dollars.’

‘And a home in New York. And my mother’s care.’

‘And health insurance,’ he seemed to add as an afterthought. ‘Starting immediately.’

Alice gaped. It was too much.

‘But I could just pay for that myself with the money…’

He laughed again. ‘Your negotiation skills are really quite poor.’

‘I don’t want to feel like I’m scamming you.’

Surprise crossed his face, but he covered it quickly. ‘You’re not.’

‘It feels a lot like I am.’

‘It’s a job.’

‘A ridiculously over-paid job.’

‘I’m already paying above the odds for the company.’ He shrugged. ‘This is just another expense to factor into its reacquisition.’

‘It means that much to you?’

His eyes glittered like black gemstones and in response he simply dipped his head forward.

‘Petó means everything to me.’

‘Because it used to be yours?’

‘Because it was my grandfather’s.’ And despite the fact the words were delivered quietly, she felt passion in every single syllable. ‘Because it was sold under duress, and because I swore I would get it back.’ He closed his eyes for a moment. ‘And because Kosta Carinedes will sell eventually, and I do not wish him to sell it to anyone else.’

‘You think he would?’

Thanos pierced her with his gaze. ‘Yes.’

‘So how would this work?’ she prompted, breaking off when the waiter reappeared with a bottle of wine. Alice watched as he unscrewed the cork and poured two glasses, then disappeared once more.

‘We’d get married quickly. Two weeks should be enough time to organise the details. I have a hotel in the South of France that would be perfect—just the kind of place I would choose for my wedding. It’s private and difficult to get to, so while we’ll leak it to the press, there won’t be an abundance of paparazzi hanging off the gates.’

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