Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 79938 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79938 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
“Mmmm.”
“What? You were having a moment. I wasn’t going to be the asshole who ruined the moment.”
“And yet here we are.”
Theo surveyed her. “How are you feeling?”
Surely, he couldn’t mean to have this conversation with her flat on her back and them standing over her? She struggled into a sitting position. “I’m fine.” Meg caught sight of impossible bright blue behind them. She nudged Galen out of the way and her breath caught in her throat. “That’s… That’s the Aegean Sea.”
“Yeah.”
Her eyes burned and she rushed to climb out of the car. Theo was there with strong hands to help her to her feet, and he held on a few extra moments as if she might topple over. Maybe she would. Meg couldn’t bring herself to care, not with the sight before her. She took a cautious step forward, half sure it was a pain-induced mirage that would dissipate if she got too closer.
But no. It was real.
Once upon a time, she’d been infatuated with the idea of living in Greece. It was before the political upheaval and shit in the last ten years, which had dampened her desire to visit but hadn’t managed to remove it from her pin board.
They had parked the car next to a house that looked about as one would expect—very square and very, very white—but never in Meg’s dreams did said house include an infinity pool. And it certainly didn’t include what appeared to be a private dock into the Aegean itself. It was all stark low cliffs that the house was built into and the almost painful blue of the water and…
Meg pressed a hand to her mouth. “It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
Arms wrapped around her as Galen came to stand behind her. A few seconds later, one of Theo’s hands settled on her hip, and she knew without looking that he’d taken up position pressed against Galen’s back the same way Galen was pressed against hers.
In that moment they just…were.
There was no future lined with pitfalls and danger. There was no past littered with pain and betrayal and bullshit. It was just the three of them watching the sun creep toward the horizon.
She moved first, turning in Galen’s arms to look up at both of them. “This is your house.”
“This is Galen’s house.”
Galen shrugged. “It used to have something else on this land, but I wanted somewhere private so I had the house built.”
Not just a house he’d purchased, but one he’d picked for himself from the ground up. Meg’s curiosity perked up. She turned to look at it with new eyes. “Show me?”
“Sure.” He led the way around the side of the house and up to the front door. It was bigger than she’d expected, and it looked sturdy enough to repel a small invasion. He keyed in a number into a security pad next to it and pushed it open so she could walk through.
She gave him a look. “Are you sure you don’t want me to hide behind you so you can clear this house?”
“I have cameras set up inside that are linked to my phone. No one’s been here but the maid, and nothing has been messed with.”
“Security systems can be hacked.”
He paused, closed the door, and turned to face her. “You don’t trust me to keep you safe.”
It wasn’t that at all. She didn’t think anyone could have kept her perfectly safe from the odds they faced, not that Galen would ever admit that. Every time he looked at her, his gaze touched on her arm as if reminding himself how he’d failed her. He did the same thing to the impressive bruise that had bloomed and faded on Theo’s face. She glanced at Theo, but he had taken up a perch on the staggered stone wall that seemed designed to keep the steep hill behind the house from toppling the whole building into the sea. There would be no help from there.
Fine.
She lifted her chin. “It was a joke, Galen. People make them sometimes. You make them sometimes.”
“Not about this.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “And to answer your question, no one can fuck with my security system because I have someone who handles it, and they’re one of the best there is. You won’t be hurt again.”
Now they got to the crux of the issue. “My being hurt wasn’t your fault.”
“Wrong, Meg. It is my fault. It’s my job, and I’m trained for it. I should have seen the attack coming and maneuvered to avoid it.”
God, she wanted to shake him until he realized he wasn’t infallible. “Hmm. In that case, maybe you should just stage a coup of your own. Take over Thalania for Theo since you’re a one-man army who has thought of everything, and who is responsible for everyone.” She motioned to the rock wall. “Should Theo sit there? Because what if that rock scratches him and you have to go to battle against it, brooding all the while?”