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  Her face hot with embarrassment and humiliation, Alesia regained her balance and cast an agonized glance at her res­cuer. ‘I’m sorry, I—'

  'No apology is needed’ Sebastien spoke in cool, measured tones but the expression in his eyes as he studied her grand­father made her shiver.

  These two men were sworn enemies —

  'Clumsy—' Her grandfather shot her an impatient look and then turned to his host, 'Believe it or not, my granddaughter can walk when she applies her mind to the task. But like most women she's empty-headed.'

  Alesia dipped her head rather than risk displaying the flash of anger that she knew must be visible in her eyes. Only by focusing on thoughts of her beloved mother did she prevent herself from stalking back to the helicopter and demanding return passage to the mainland.

  She had to forget how much she hated her grandfather.

  She had to forget how much she loathed the whole Fiorukis family.

  She had to forget all of it.

  The only thing that mattered was getting Sebastien Fiorukis to marry her.

  No matter what happened, she would save her mother.

  CHAPTER TWO

  She was stunning.

  Sebastien watched the silken blonde hair fall forward, ob­scuring her features, but not before he'd caught a glimpse of eyes the colour of violets in a perfect heart-shaped face. His gaze fixed on her smooth, creamy skin and then drifted down to her lush pink mouth. Her face alone was amazing, but combined with the body...

  His eyes drifted lower. Obvious! He thought to himself sca­thingly, as he scanned the obscenely short dress that revealed tantalizingly long legs and fabulously generous breasts. Nothing was left to the imagination. Clearly the Philipos heir­ess had no reservations about displaying exactly what was on offer, he mused as his eyes settled on the temptingly full curves of her cleavage. But then she was selling herself for a ridiculously high price, he reminded himself cynically, so perhaps it was understandable that she felt he should be able to view the goods.

  And view them he did.

  Lust, basic and primitive, slammed through him, astonish­ing him by its very force. He was a man who had been fed a diet of beautiful women since he was a teenager and

  these days it took a lot to hold his attention.

  But this girl was definitely holding his attention...

  Suddenly the deal on the table before him took on new dimensions. Whatever Dimitrios Philipos had in mind, mar­rying his granddaughter could hardly be considered a hard­ship. Whatever else might be wrong with her, she certainly wasn't ugly and he certainly wouldn't have a problem being confined to bed with her on the occasions when it suited him.

  Accustomed to being on the receiving end of non-stop fe­male admiration and flirtation and confident of her response to him, Sebastien relaxed and waited for her to notice him in the way he'd definitely been noticing her.

  It came as a considerable surprise to realize that she didn't seem remotely interested in his opinion of her attributes. Instead she stared at the ground, her chest rising and falling, her slim fingers digging hard into her palms, her knuckles white.

  Scared?

  Angry?

  Sebastien attempted to read the body language and his speculative gaze slid to her grandfather, searching for an­swers. His body stilled as he caught the ugly expression on the older man's face. The man was a bully and a thug. And in this case the object of his aggression was undoubtedly the girl. Struggling with a base instinct that erupted from no­where and surprised him with its intensity, Sebastien ruth­lessly subdued the impulse to violently floor the man.

  Was he forcing her into this marriage?

  Experienced enough to know that women were complex creatures at the best of times, Sebastien decided to reserve judgement. He already knew that she'd inherited her grand­father's obscene thirst for wealth—why else would she be demanding such ridiculous sums from him on a monthly ba­sis when she was already in possession of an indecent for­tune?

  And he couldn't even blame that aspect of the deal on her grandfather because she was to be the only recipient. Apparently her grandfather stood to gain nothing financially from a merger between their two families except a longed-for grandchild.

  Torn between irritation with his father for creating this situation and fascination with the mind of his enemy, Sebastien tried to open a dialogue between them.

  'Your journey was good, Miss Philipos?'

  She displayed not a flicker of a response. It was as if she hadn't recognized her own name, he thought grimly, contem­plating her complete lack of reaction with a deepening frown. Perhaps she preferred informality. 'Alesia?'

  Immediately her eyes flew to his, astonishment lighting the blue depths, as if she were surprised that he was addressing her. 'Yes?'

  Finally he had her attention. 'I asked whether your journey was good’ He dealt her a smile that never failed to gain female attention but she missed it because her gaze had re­turned to a point somewhere near his feet.

  Sebastien hid his frustration. It was as if she couldn't bear to look at him. She was a complete contradiction. Her dress shrieked attention-seeking and yet her body language said something entirely different.

  ‘ It was fine, thank you.' She kept her eyes fixed firmly on the Tarmac and he noticed that her breathing was rapid, as if she was under immense strain.

  Deciding that his first priority was to remove her from the presence of her grandfather, Sebastien took control. 'Walk with me while the lawyers argue the details. There are things we need to talk about.'

  Immediately on the defensive, Dimitrios Philipos hunched his shoulders aggressively and stepped forward. 'She stays with me.'

  Not budging an inch, Sebastien arched a dark eyebrow expressively. ‘ Is this proposed marriage to take place be­tween three people or two?' His tone was dangerously soft ' Are you intending to be present on our wedding night? '

  He heard a soft gasp of shock from the girl standing by his side but ignored her, all his attention focused on the grandfather whose stance was now blatantly confrontational.

  ‘ If you knew my reputation you wouldn't choose to pick a fight with me, Fiorukis.'

  Undeterred by his threatening tone, Sebastien gave a cool smile, ignoring his father's warning glance. 'I've never been afraid of a fight. And if you knew my reputation, you'd know that I choose to conduct my personal relationships in private. I've never been into groups. ’

  At that less than subtle reference to his own sordid repu­tation, Dimitrios Philipos glared at his rival for a long mo­ment and then gave a grunt. 'Very well.' He gave a brief nod of assent, his expression grim. 'She might as well see her new home.'

  Given that the deal was yet to be signed by either party, the statement was decidedly premature but Sebastien's nat­ural instinct to deny such an assumption was stifled by a gasp of horror from the girl in question.

  ‘ My new home?' She glanced around her with naked alarm, suddenly roused from silence by her grandfather's statement. 'This would be our home? You'd want me to live here?’

  Dragging his eyes from her slim legs, Sebastien gritted his teeth, barely able to hide his impatience.

  Familiar with women who lived to shop, he rarely if ever brought his female companions to his island, accustomed to that very reaction from other members of her sex. It would seem that his prospective bride was no different. But, given the size of the financial deal her grandfather had negotiated on her behalf, that shouldn't have come as a surprise. What would a woman do with such an exorbitant sum if she didn't have access to a significant number of designer boutiques?

  Sebastien narrowed his eyes, something about the whole situation jarring uncomfortably in his sharp brain.

  His innate business sense warned him that this deal didn't feel quite right and he mentally shifted through different an­gles, seeking answers to the questions stacking up in his mind. And the main question was: What did the Philipos heiress stand to gain from a union with a Fioruk
is?

  Why would the granddaughter of the richest man on the planet need to marry him for money? Still pondering that question, Sebastien studied Dimitrios Philipos and caught the cold, avaricious gleam in the older man's eyes. Remembering his reputation for being the ultimate miser, Sebastien decided that he probably restricted her spending, which was why she was looking for other sources of income. He'd known loads of women who made a career out of marrying rich men. If granddaddy was no longer a soft touch then she'd need to look for some other sucker to pick up her bills. And, judging from her horrified reaction to the idea of being sequestered on an island without a boutique in sight, those bills were going to be big.

  A flicker of contempt shot through him but he dismissed it with almost bored indifference. So she was greedy. He gave a mental shrug. That didn't come as a surprise.

  Reminding himself that her motives had never been in question, he hid his distaste. 4 I also have houses in Athens, Paris and New York,' he drawled lazily, 'so if you're con­cerned about the opportunity to exercise my credit card, then you can relax.'

  Her eyes were fixed on the sea and she seemed not to have heard him.

  Sebastien suppressed his irritation. Clearly he had been right in his assessment that she would have no personality. Even though he'd invariably thought that women generally talked far too much about very little of interest, he was find­ing the reverse considerably less satisfying than he would have imagined. Why on earth didn't the woman say some­thing? Unaccustomed to such a lack of interest Sebastien de­cided that the sooner he got her on her own, the better.

  'You don't like the island?' His tone was conversational and she shot him an agonized glance.

  'There's lots of sea.'

  That was most definitely not the answer he'd expected.

  'There generally is when you live on an island. All the bed­rooms in my villa open on to the beach or the pool.'

  If he'd expected an enthusiastic response to that announce­ment then he was again disappointed. Instead of the delight he'd anticipated, her face seemed to pale dramatically.

  Sebastien frowned. Was there something wrong with her?

  'My granddaughter feels sick after the journey,' her grand­father grunted and Sebastien felt another surge of irritation with the older man.

  Did he never let the girl speak for herself?

  And surely if she'd been brought up in England she was used to expressing her own opinions?

  Aware that the deal could not be concluded without his signature on the document, Sebastien focused on the girl. 'I will take Miss Philipos and show her the island while you two begin the meeting—I'll join you shortly.'

  Dimitrios Philipos glanced at his watch. 'I have to be back in Athens in two hours. I want the deal signed before I leave.'

  Sebastien watched him closely. The older man was defi­nitely up to something. Why the hurry?

  He was nothing like she'd expected.

  Alesia stared in frozen silence at the man standing in front of her, her gaze resting on the width of his shoulders before lifting to his cool black eyes. Bold brows framed night-dark eyes and his strong nose accentuated the perfect symmetry of his staggeringly handsome face.

  She'd been bred to hate this man.

  In vain she searched for some evidence that he was as unsettled by this bizarre, awkward situation as she was but she found none. She sensed without even speaking to him that he was a man who would never find himself discomfited by any situation. Instead he studied her through narrowed eyes, the expression on his sinfully masculine face revealing nothing of his inner thoughts. He wore authority with the ease of a man who'd been born with a ferocious talent at business and had proceeded to exercise it at every opportu­nity.

  Alesia looked at him helplessly.

  How could this ever work out?

  Ludicrously rich and breathtakingly good-looking, he was totally, totally out of her league and it was utterly mortifying to know that if her grandfather hadn't offered him a signifi­cant 'inducement' and dressed her in such a ridiculous dress he wouldn't have looked twice in her direction.

  She felt like a total fraud.

  Alesia bit back a burst of hysterical laughter. What would he do if he knew that she lived in a tiny damp flat? That she held down three jobs in an attempt to make ends meet? That the dress she was wearing was the only one she had and even that was on loan?

  The thought of being alone with this man quite simply terrified her. What on earth would they talk about? What did they have in common?

  Nothing.

  And, to make matters worse, he clearly loved the sea.

  Alesia kept her eyes fixed on the ocean and for a moment it all came rushing back. The sudden force of the explosion, the horrified screams of the injured and the sudden plunge into freezing water which buried her in a darkness so fright­ening that the memories still kept her awake at night. And then there were the memories of a man, dark-haired and strong, lifting her. Saving her—

  Suddenly the price of saving her mother seemed almost too high.

  She would have to live here, on an island, surrounded by sea that terrified her, living with a man she despised.

  She gave herself a mental shake and dragged her gaze away from the water. She didn't have to swim or even to paddle, she reminded herself firmly. All she needed to do was remember the reason she was here. To play the part she'd schooled herself to play.

  And she knew exactly why her grandfather had given the Fiorukis family a deadline of two hours to complete the deal. He was afraid that, left on her own with the man, she'd blow it. That she'd do something to put Sebastien Fiorukis off marrying her.

  And he was right. She was so different from his usual choice of woman that the comparison was laughable. She couldn't even do a decent job of walking in the shoes.

  'As far as I'm aware there is no language barrier between us’ he said smoothly, his dark gaze resting on her face with a significant degree of speculation, 'and yet so far you have uttered barely a word and cast barely a glance in my direc­tion’

  Clearly she'd dented his monumental ego.

  Alesia stifled a cynical laugh. Was that all he cared about ? That she hadn't gazed into his eyes and fallen for him like the other brainless women he mixed with? He was unbeliev­ably shallow and, as far as she was concerned, Sebastien Fiorukis deserved everything that was coming to him.

  'You must forgive me— ' her voice sounded stilted ‘ —I— I'm finding this situation rather difficult— '

  'Me, too. And that's hardly surprising given the circum­stances. It's not every day you are expected to agree to a marriage to someone you have only just met. But this pro­posed marriage between us is going to be somewhat heavy weather if you can't bring yourself to speak to me,' he drawled lightly, and she met his gaze full-on.

  'Am I supposed to speak honestly?'

  'Why else did I just get rid of your grandfather?'

  She almost smiled at the reminder of how neatly he'd dis­missed her relative. Whatever else he might be, Sebastien Fiorukis was evidently not a coward. In fact he was the first person she'd met who didn't seem remotely intimidated by her grandfather, which was at least something in his favour. But nevertheless she was agonizingly aware that one wrong word from her could blow the whole deal.

  ‘ My grandfather is afraid that I'll say the wrong thing. He wants this deal very badly.'

  ‘ And you, Miss Philipos?' There was something danger­ously soothing about his voice. Like a lethal predator stalking his prey. 'How badly do you want this deal?'

  Being called 'Miss Philipos' felt totally alien. It was as if he was addressing a stranger. But it was all part of this act she was expected to maintain.

  She lifted her chin. 'I want to marry you, if that's what you're asking.'

  That at least was true. She did want to marry him. It would solve all her problems.

  And all her mother's problems.

  There was a sardonic gleam in his dark eyes as he watched her ca
refully. 'Don't tell me— ' his voice was a deep, dark drawl '—you have been madly in love with me for your whole life? You have dreamed of this moment from your cradle, perhaps?'

  She'd dreamed of having access to enough money to fi­nally help her mother.

  ‘I’m not in love with you, Mr. Fiorukis, any more than you are in love with me,' she said calmly, 'and we both know that love is not the only reason for marriage.'

  His spectacular eyes narrowed. 'Nevertheless, since we are the two people who will be forced to live together as a result of this deal, I think it's important to discover whether we can at least tolerate each other's company, don't you?' He ges­tured towards a narrow path that led down to the beach. 'Let's walk.'

  She followed his gaze. The sea stretched into the distance like a cruel, forbidding monster, mocking her. The breath jammed in her throat and the panic rose.