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“He married our mother six weeks after our father’s funeral. I realized very quickly that he was taking advantage of her so he could bleed us of our inheritance, but I was fourteen. No one took me seriously. No one had incentive to take me seriously,” he clarified. “Lambros used MSPM assets to buy all the support he needed.”

“That’s awful. Your mother didn’t see it? Khristos?”

“Khristos was twelve and devastated by our loss.” His grim expression hardened further. “Mother likes to be doted on. That’s why she married my father, even though she believed herself out of his league. He worshipped her. Gave her anything she wanted. Lambros does the same. Which keeps her blind to what a parasite he is. She still dismisses all of my concerns as being a jealous son who feels threatened by her love for someone other than my father.” His face tightened with disgust. “For four years, all I could do was watch Lambros steal everything he could from us, leaving MSPM heavily leveraged and staring at bankruptcy.”

“And the board would still consider bringing him back?” She couldn’t believe it!

“He likes to say things like, ‘We’re not in the business of building ships. We are in the business of building wealth.’ It’s a great catchphrase. Shareholders love it, but we are in the business of building ships and using substandard components—” He bared his teeth as he held up a hand. “Don’t get me started.”

He walked into the dressing room.

“How, um…” Goodness, his butt had a nice hard curve to it. And since when did she notice things like that? And grow hot from a glimpse of a man’s ass?

“I came of age.” His clipped voice floated between drawers opening and slamming shut. “Once I was in the boardroom, they couldn’t ignore me any longer. I demanded an audit and those rats who had supported Lambros got out before their share value dropped. Khristos and I sold the racing skiff we had built with our father and bought as many as we could.”

“That must have been hard to let go of.” She moved to the door of the closet in time to see him zip the fly on a pair of jeans.

“I didn’t have time to race anyway.” He pulled a T-shirt over his head. “I had some prize money saved, which also helped. It still took another year before Khristos was able to assign his voting rights to me, rather than Mother. Once I had majority control, I ousted Lambros. At that point, there was a complete overturn at the board level. Share prices dropped again. No one was confident I could keep the place afloat. I wasn’t even twenty and I skipped university to work at the company, earning the same wage as my tradesmen. I had a squalid flat near the shipyard and Khristos mostly lived there with me. Not officially. That would mean Mother and Lambros would have to pay his rent, but we couldn’t stand to be near that man. He was always an absolute bastard toward us.”

“Khristos didn’t tell me any of that, only that Lambros would try to use your accident to take control of everything. He was determined to do anything he could to stop him. I was worried you would be angry when you woke and Khristos said that you waking up angry was the best-case scenario.” Her exhale was a puff of pained laughter that faded as quickly as it rose. “He was really worried you wouldn’t wake up at all.”

“I know.” He nodded gravely. “He also knows if I hadn’t, I would rather my fortune went to a complete stranger than Lambros.”

Ouch. She looked past him to his row of dark suits, not exactly flattered to be seen as only slightly better than the worst alternative.

“Well, good news,” she said with false cheer. “You won’t have to put up with me much longer. Yaya has a specialist appointment in a few days. After that, I’ll know better what she needs and can make a plan for us to move out. Then we can start annulment proceedings—”

“Lambros won’t give up just because I’m awake,” Spiro cut in. “He’ll continue trying to prove I’m unfit. I’ll address it as soon as I’m back at the office, but I expect he’ll challenge my leadership at the Annual General Meeting. We’ll stay married until then. Is dinner organized? I’m starving.” He walked out to the bedroom.

“Wait, what?” Her heart stumbled along with her feet as she hurried after him. “What did you just say?”

He was on the house phone, speaking to the housekeeper. “Nothing fancy. Something quick and casual. The terrace is fine. Thank you. Thirty minutes,” he told Alia as he hung up. “We can have a drink first.”

His steps weren’t fast, but he was walking with far more confidence than this morning. He used the stairs once he reached them, rather than continuing along the upper corridor to the service elevator.

“But… Why would you want to stay married? You don’t even like me.” It made her chest hurt to say it. To acknowledge it.

“I don’t like people who try to take advantage of me,” he corrected. “Now that I understand your situation, I don’t mind keeping your grandmother safe and comfortable while we’re married. Every deal comes with a cost. That’s the cost of this one.” His shoulder rolled in a negligent shrug.

“But I don’t want to stay married.” Panic pushed the statement out of her. “The deal I made with Khristos was to marry you until you woke up and could make your own decisions.”

“Which is what I’m doing.” He stopped midway on the stairs and touched his back pocket. “Damn. My phone.”

“I’ll get it,” she muttered and raced back up the stairs, joining him poolside a few minutes later.

“Thank you.” He took it and studied the screen while he absently pushed a glass of white wine toward her. He picked up his own glass, which looked to be ice water with a slice of lemon. The wicker of his chair creaked as he sat back on the thick cushions, lifting his feet onto the matching footstool, and continued to read his phone.

Was he presuming his word was law? He had spoken and therefore they would stay married?

“Spiro,” she said with exasperation as she dropped into her own seat.

He lifted his head, brows lifted.

“I’ve already done what was asked of me,” she said baldly. “I don’t want to continue pretending to be your wife.”

“You’re not pretending. You are my wife. Believe me, I’ve checked.” The corner of his mouth curled in displeasure. “There’s no downside for you if we continue this marriage.” He set aside his phone. “Khristos said the contract stipulates a tiered settlement. The longer we’re married, the more you receive. Plus, you won’t have to disrupt your grandmother more than necessary. What is your argument against staying married? That I’m awake?” He sipped his water.

Yes. That. He had hit the nail on the head. Mooning over him while he was unconscious was a lot different from trying to hold her own against his dynamic personality.