bodyguards and security details already. Suddenly, she had gone from a woman having a lunch with a man who was becoming increasingly important to her to some kind of political thriller.
Jaque nodded as if this was a perfectly reasonable conversation to have. "It is your choice, and if you ever do feel the least bit threatened, I want you to have all of the protection that you need. Just keep my offer in mind, you can accept it at any point."
She did keep it in mind, but now that she was aware of the paparazzi, she was seeing them everywhere. Sometimes it was as obvious as the man who stopped dead on a street to take a picture of them. Sometimes it was as obscure as the woman who skillfully captured a picture of them from under the cover of an empty baby blanket. The only reason she had figured that out was that the light had come down to hit on the lens, causing a flare.
Heidi did her best to put the paparazzi out of her mind the way that Jaque had. It worked, sort of. After all, she was in a relationship with one of the most remarkable men she had ever known. She had never known what she should look for in a man, but now she knew that she had been looking for Jaque all of her life so far.
One thing that had always appalled her was how lazy some men were. From her classmates to even her professors, she had known men who were sloppy and uncoordinated, who had instead relied on the people around them to pick up the slack. Somehow, they got by while other people suffered. Jaque, however, worked as hard as she did. When she arrived in the mornings, he was often there already. When she appeared at his door for a promised date, he would just be finishing up. There was something magnetic about his ambition and the way he shaped the world to look like what he wanted it to look like.
However, as hard as Jaque worked, he also knew how to play. This was something that Heidi was just learning herself, and Jaque was happy to be her teacher. When the day was over, it was over, and whenever she tried to bring up something from the company, he would mock-frown at her, placing a gentle finger over her lips.
"We can surely speak of that tomorrow, can we not, little American?" he asked. "You will make me feel boring if you can think of nothing to speak of but work …"
Of course there was always more to speak of than work, and as they did more together, there was always more to speak about. Sometimes they went out and did what all the tourists did, seeing the gorgeous sites of Athens and the surrounding Greek countryside. Sometimes, he took her out on his private yacht, showing her what the world looked like when there was nothing but blue all around them and above them.
However, the incident that stayed with her the longest was the one that had occurred all unexpectedly one early evening when she was waiting for him to finish up with a meeting in town.
Heidi had come out to meet him after her day was done, and due to the crush of people outside, she had found her way into a small international bookstore. It was a charming place, the lights low, and the shiny new books arranged so attractively. A little calico cat had twined around her ankles, and a tall woman with fantastically long earrings had waved at her from the counter, telling her in beautifully accented English to call for help if she needed it.
Bookstores were bittersweet things in some cases. She could remember all too clearly being a small shy girl who had wanted to take all the beautiful books home, but being shooed out for spending too long among the tall shelves. Even now, she had to straighten her shoulders, reminding herself that she was not that little girl anymore.
She was a grown woman with a job, and if she wanted to buy a book, she would. While Heidi waited for Jaque to show up, she browsed, knowing she was going to get something. Finally, she had it narrowed down to a book about the history of Athens and another about the maritime culture of the ancient city.
Jaque nodded as if this was a perfectly reasonable conversation to have. "It is your choice, and if you ever do feel the least bit threatened, I want you to have all of the protection that you need. Just keep my offer in mind, you can accept it at any point."
She did keep it in mind, but now that she was aware of the paparazzi, she was seeing them everywhere. Sometimes it was as obvious as the man who stopped dead on a street to take a picture of them. Sometimes it was as obscure as the woman who skillfully captured a picture of them from under the cover of an empty baby blanket. The only reason she had figured that out was that the light had come down to hit on the lens, causing a flare.
Heidi did her best to put the paparazzi out of her mind the way that Jaque had. It worked, sort of. After all, she was in a relationship with one of the most remarkable men she had ever known. She had never known what she should look for in a man, but now she knew that she had been looking for Jaque all of her life so far.
One thing that had always appalled her was how lazy some men were. From her classmates to even her professors, she had known men who were sloppy and uncoordinated, who had instead relied on the people around them to pick up the slack. Somehow, they got by while other people suffered. Jaque, however, worked as hard as she did. When she arrived in the mornings, he was often there already. When she appeared at his door for a promised date, he would just be finishing up. There was something magnetic about his ambition and the way he shaped the world to look like what he wanted it to look like.
However, as hard as Jaque worked, he also knew how to play. This was something that Heidi was just learning herself, and Jaque was happy to be her teacher. When the day was over, it was over, and whenever she tried to bring up something from the company, he would mock-frown at her, placing a gentle finger over her lips.
"We can surely speak of that tomorrow, can we not, little American?" he asked. "You will make me feel boring if you can think of nothing to speak of but work …"
Of course there was always more to speak of than work, and as they did more together, there was always more to speak about. Sometimes they went out and did what all the tourists did, seeing the gorgeous sites of Athens and the surrounding Greek countryside. Sometimes, he took her out on his private yacht, showing her what the world looked like when there was nothing but blue all around them and above them.
However, the incident that stayed with her the longest was the one that had occurred all unexpectedly one early evening when she was waiting for him to finish up with a meeting in town.
Heidi had come out to meet him after her day was done, and due to the crush of people outside, she had found her way into a small international bookstore. It was a charming place, the lights low, and the shiny new books arranged so attractively. A little calico cat had twined around her ankles, and a tall woman with fantastically long earrings had waved at her from the counter, telling her in beautifully accented English to call for help if she needed it.
Bookstores were bittersweet things in some cases. She could remember all too clearly being a small shy girl who had wanted to take all the beautiful books home, but being shooed out for spending too long among the tall shelves. Even now, she had to straighten her shoulders, reminding herself that she was not that little girl anymore.
She was a grown woman with a job, and if she wanted to buy a book, she would. While Heidi waited for Jaque to show up, she browsed, knowing she was going to get something. Finally, she had it narrowed down to a book about the history of Athens and another about the maritime culture of the ancient city.
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