The Greek's Forgotten Wife (Boarding School #1) (9 page)

Sasha sat in the luxurious plane, watching her husband speak to someone in Spanish.  She didn’t understand that language, felt she’d accomplished a great deal just by learning Greek!  But she was going to learn Spanish and French because he spoke both of those languages as well.  She was jealous of all of his accomplishments, but knew that he was about eleven years older than she was.  She had time, she told herself.  She would observe him carefully so that she could learn from the master. 

Damon ended the call and looked at his wife.  She was looking especially beautiful in a yellow suit.  It was one that he’d selected for her among several others.  This one was a bit more flattering to her figure.  “You need yellow diamonds for that outfit,” he commented.

Sasha’s hand flew to her neck which was bare.  “I don’t,” she protested, starting to tell him that she didn’t have yellow diamonds.  But then she squared her shoulders and straightened in her seat.  “I’m fine without any jewels.”  His habit was to buy jewels for his mistresses and she wanted to be considered in a different capacity, separate from that part of his life.  She didn’t like what jewels represented in his mind. 

His only response was a slight lifting of the corners of his mouth.  “So tell me about what you’ve done so far with regards to your investing.” 

Her eyes flew up to his, wondering if he was patronizing her or if he genuinely wanted to know.  In the end, she accepted that he had to understand what she’d been doing in order for him to advise her on how to do things better, so she relented and started talking, explaining her strategy.  For the next hour, they went through her stocks, the reasons why she chose certain companies, why she didn’t choose others and numerous other questions.  He was thorough in his interrogation and she had to work hard to keep up with him. 

When the plane landed in Rome, he held her hand as they descended the stairway.  Sasha walked next to him, wishing she could figure him out.  But he was a closed book most of the time. 

“We’ll dine at the Roma Palazzo,” he told her.

She smothered her surprise at that announcement, not sure what to say.  She’d read about the restaurant, had always wanted to try the food there but she’d never thought to have the opportunity.  Sasha tried very hard to suppress her excitement as the limousine drove through the city.  Her eyes were alight with fascination at all of the amazing scenes, the bustling city, the people moving about on the sidewalks, into and out of the stores and all of the beautiful architecture. 

“You like traveling,” he said, not asking.  The evidence was written all over her lovely features.

“Oh yes!” she sighed, still trying to hide her enthusiasm.  She didn’t want to be perceived as naïve or silly by Damon.  She was trying very hard to appear sophisticated.  “I always wanted to travel but…” she shrugged her shoulders, trying to appear casual. 

“Why didn’t you travel during breaks in school?”

She rolled her eyes.  “Not everyone is wealthy enough to travel on a whim, Damon.”

He shook his head, not accepting her excuse. “Not everyone needs to travel in style like I demand.  There are ways to travel that don’t require a great deal of money.”

Sasha thought back to her sometimes heartrending school days, her mother’s illness and all of the sadness, the desperation she’d felt in wanting to ease her mother’s pain as much as possible.  Staring out the window, she smiled sadly.  “I had to work during my school breaks,” was all she said. 

Damon was quiet, sensing that there was a great deal more to the issue than she was letting him know about.  But how to get her to open up?  He had no idea.  She was a closed book in some areas.  She might come alive when he touched her, but other times, she kept her thoughts close to herself. 

The limousine pulled up outside of the famous restaurant and he stepped out, turning and offering his hand to help her out as well.  “You look lovely, by the way,” he told her.  He saw her slight smile before she was able to suppress it and tucked her hand onto his arm as he led her into the restaurant. 

Sasha tried very hard to appear sophisticated and blasé about this whole experience.  There were so many people that were milling around the beautifully decorated restaurant, all of them seeming so elegant and casual about the night ahead, as if they took this kind of experience for granted.  But to Sasha, who had been cooped up in a small village for the past six years and helping an ailing parent for several years before then, this was a breathtaking, sensational, amazing event and she was going to savor every moment.  When Damon pulled the chair out for her, she heard his chuckle before he came around and sat down across from her.

Lowering her lashes, she took several deep breaths.  “Am I that obvious?” she asked.

“Yes.  But possibly only to me.  And don’t worry.  I like it,” he told her.  He watched as she looked over the menu, her excitement palpable.  She was adorable, he thought.  He remembered the last time he’d dined here.  It had been with his mother and father.  It was the last time he remembered them being together.  They’d divorced the following year.  Even during that meal, they’d barely spoken, neither to him nor to each other.  They were too busy looking around, seeing who else might be at the famous restaurant.  He realized now that they’d been competing with each other over who knew the most people or the most important person.  His presence there had been completely incidental. 

Damon would focus on Sasha tonight.  He’d forgotten that memory until this moment.  Until he’d seen her excitement.  She glanced around the restaurant and sighed happily. 

“What are you going to order?” he asked her. 

She smiled over at him and he relaxed.  He hadn’t even realized that he was so tense until she’d looked back at him instead of surveying the other patrons in the restaurant.  He should have known that Sasha would be different from both of his parents.  Nothing about this woman was similar.  Hell, she wasn’t even like the other women in his life, almost a completely different species, he thought as he surveyed her beautiful, fresh face and excited eyes. 

She wiggled slightly in her seat.  “I have no idea,” she replied.  “You’ve obviously been here before, what do you recommend?”

For the rest of the meal, Damon continued to be astounded by his young wife’s intelligence and charm, neither of which he’d even suspected before.  And her whole focus was on him, their conversation and the delicious food, of course.  She was a delightful dinner companion.  A startling change from his last experience here.

Sasha loved the way Damon talked to her throughout the meal.  It was like they were a real couple.  Gone was the patronizing smile he used to bestow upon her during each of his obligatory visits to the villa over the years.  He looked at her now as if she were someone…stronger!  More worthy of his attention.  And the invigorating conversation was more stimulating than anything she’d ever experienced.  Talking with Damon was like conversing with an encyclopedia.  He knew everything!  And boy did she enjoy challenging him!  Even better, she liked it when his eyes crinkled with humor.  He rarely laughed, she realized.  And even worse, the man didn’t really relax.  It was as if he were a bear, ready to defend his territory, always testing the air, ready to rear up and attack at the first hint of danger. 

Several days later, Sasha looked across the elegant ballroom, hiding her expression behind the glass of champagne.  He was so handsome, she thought as the other guests milled around her.  Why couldn’t she just walk away?  Why was she so magnetically attracted to this one man? 

There were literally hundreds of men in this room, but not a single one could pull her attention away from Damon. 

Her husband.

At that same moment, almost as if he could tell that she was looking at him, Damon turned his head and caught her gaze. 

Sasha sighed and started back across the room.  She’d walked away, intent on finding some breathing space from the intensity of his presence.  Being near Damon was similar to being next to a live wire.  There was so much going on around him, so much magnetism that drew her closer and she wanted desperately to fight it, to not feel it…to not need it…but even from across the ballroom, she could still feel that intensity coming from Damon.  He had such a powerful impact on her senses that she couldn’t seem to do anything to conquer it. 

When she was back again by his side, he looked down at her.  “Are you ready to leave?” he suggested, his thumb rubbing over the pulse on her wrist. 

Sasha shook her head.  She knew exactly why he wanted to leave.  If she listened only to her body, she would be dragging the man out of the ballroom.  But she was trying to listen to her head, to not lose her sense of self to this man’s crazy ability to drive her to the brink of desperation every time he touched her.  Which was often these days.  “I’m fine.  No need to leave.”

Damon chuckled, pulling her closer as he whispered in her ear.  “I think there are some very good reasons to leave,” he said with that deep, sexy voice that told her exactly what he was planning.

Instantly, her body came alive in that special way that only Damon could do to her.  She resented it!  She was going to learn to fight this, she promised herself. 

Pulling back slightly and turning her head so that his lips weren’t about to brush against the overly sensitive shell of her ear, she took a deep breath and shook her head.  “I have some people I’d like to talk with,” she told him, looking away and trying to put a few inches between their bodies.  With just a look or a touch, she became a wanton woman, so focused on joining her body to his that she couldn’t think of anything else.

She was not that kind of a woman!  She was demure and practical!  She was a lady!  And she refused to need him so completely that she lost her cool when he simply looked at her.  Like he was doing now. 

Damon kept control of her hand.  “Who do you need to speak with?” he asked, looking over her head.  “I thought we were finished with the futile resistance, Sasha.”  He tried to hide his anger, but the idea that she was going to avoid him again just made him livid.

Sasha tried hard to come up with a name but her mind was blank.  She didn’t know anyone other than the people that Damon had already introduced her to.  And because he was touching her, ever so softly with his fingers, she couldn’t form a thought in her head other than to get out of this place and kiss him.  She could feel her resistance fading away.  All of those lectures she’d given herself in the ladies room a few moments ago were fading, becoming noise that her body ignored. 

“I…” she stammered, trying desperately to come up with a name.  Nothing.  She couldn’t even pull her eyes away from his to look around, maybe come up with a name.  She couldn’t even make up a name! 

It was all Damon.  And she wanted him!  Darn him!  How could he do this to her?

His hand shifted and his fingers intertwined with hers.  That was all she needed.  “Let’s go,” she whispered urgently. 

Pulling him behind her, she couldn’t seem to move fast enough to suit the demands of her body.  Maybe if she hadn’t listened to him discuss business with several people tonight, watched his eyes shift ever so slightly indicating that his magnificent brain was functioning at a level others needed a computer to achieve…or maybe if he hadn’t had that stupid breakfast meeting this morning and he’d woken her up the way he normally did, by kissing her, making her body come alive and making love to her before he left for his office…then she could have been more subtle about their departure and her need for this man.

But those things hadn’t happened.  And what made it worse, he was looking at her in that special way, the way that made her body ache, his eyes telling her what he was going to do to her, promises that her body wanted intensely for Damon to fulfill.

They only made it to the hallway before she needed to touch him.  Sasha pulled him off to the side, down a vacant hallway.  As soon as they were out of the view of others, she pulled him into her arms and he kissed her, lifting her up into his arms and aligning their bodies more perfectly against each other.  Pressing her back against the wall, Damon lifted his leg slightly, holding her in place.

That wasn’t enough for Sasha.  Her mouth was ravenous for him.  If she’d been told a year ago that she could be this out of control at a public function, she would have laughed at the notion.  But here she was, her hands begging Damon to touch her and, when he did, her body’s needs went higher and she was more demanding. 

“Sasha!” Damon growled, lifting her up and carrying her through a doorway.  Sasha had no idea where they were, only that they were in a darker room that seemed to be quiet except for her gasps as his hands lifted her dress so that his fingers could explore her body more thoroughly. 

When he entered her, she pressed her body against his, savoring the incredible feel of him filling her, of making her whole.  “Don’t stop,” she whispered, begging him. 

Damon was only aware of her soft gasps as he moved against her heat, feeling her body around his own and he couldn’t get enough of those sounds, of her sweet breath against his neck or her soft fingers pulling him closer.  His hands moved down to her hips, pressing her more completely against him as he pressed into her, over and over again.  When he felt her body start to shiver, he knew that she was close.  Reaching down, his fingers pressed against that sensitive bud and she flew over into a climax and he covered her mouth with his, absorbing her cries.  A second later, he pressed into her one more time and he found his own fulfillment. 

Long moments later, Damon lifted his head and looked around.  “What the hell?” he softly said as his eyes realized that they had moved into some sort of storage area.  “Damn,” he mumbled and pulled away from her, adjusting his clothing as he also helped her down off of the table that he’d lifted her onto. 

Sasha realized what they’d just done about the same time and she frantically fumbled with her dress, looking around to make sure that no one had seen them, that there were no cameras around. 

“Let’s get out of here,” he commanded, taking her hand and pulling her out of the storage room quickly. 

Sasha didn’t argue with him and hurried behind him.  A part of her was horrified at what they’d just done.  And in public! 

Well, not completely public but in a storage room!  Good grief!

But as the limousine pulled away from the curb, she covered her mouth with her hands, trying to stifle the bubble of laughter. 

Damon heard the muffled laugh and glanced down at her, still furious that he’d let the interlude get so out of hand.  He’d just had sex with his wife in a storage room!  In a public place where hundreds of guests were less than a hundred yards away!  “It isn’t funny,” Damon snapped, looking down at her and then out the window. 

“I know.  It’s horrible.”  But another burst of laughter hit her and she couldn’t ignore it this time. 

“You think this is funny?” he demanded, turning to face her. 

She shook her head.  “Absolutely not.”  But it was!  The always powerful, always in control Damon Galanos had been out of control!  He’d just had sex with her in the storage room of the hotel in which the wealthiest patrons of European society were gathered, none of them aware of what had just transpired in that storage room. 

She couldn’t help it.  As she looked up at Damon’s irritated features, she laughed harder, her body convulsing with the giggles. 

Damon tried to intimidate her into silence with his glare, but it wasn’t working since the beautiful woman was bent over, laughing herself silly and couldn’t see his righteous anger. 

He rolled his eyes and looked out the window, still astonished by his behavior.  He couldn’t believe what he’d just done.  He did not have public sexual encounters!  Ever! 

And yet, her delectable body had driven him beyond his ability to make sense of where he was and what was going on around him.  He was disgusted with himself for his lack of control, but as her hand settled onto his thigh, he couldn’t resist covering that delicate hand with his own.  It had been incredible, he thought and pulled her closer. 

When they finally arrived back at the penthouse, he pulled his still chuckling wife into their bedroom and showed her in a slower fashion how it was supposed to be done.  And she was no longer laughing.