gentle, almost tentative smile.
“All right,” he said softly. “This’ll be good. It’ll be
fine, I promise.”
* * *
In Marianna’s dream, she was wandering through a jungle,
chopping down the undergrowth with a rusty machete. She knew Nikolos was
somewhere ahead. If she could just get to him, she would be safe. She just
needed to find him. She knew he was in there somewhere.
The more she chopped at the undergrowth, however, the more
tangled she became. They twisted up to grab at her legs, her arms, to wind
around her waist.
She started to panic. If she didn’t get to Nikolos, he
would leave without her. She knew he would. She had to get to him.
To her dismay, she heard the whine of the airplane engine
rising up out of the ambient noise of the jungle around her. The whirring sound
started low then became higher and louder. She struggled forward, so tired, but
determined.
She stumbled into the clearing, looking up into a clear
night sky. The plane hung in the darkness like a steel bird. She couldn’t stop
a cry of sadness from escaping her lips. Her eyes followed the plane, as if her
entreating gaze would make it come back.
“Oh Nikolos,” she whispered.
“Yes, sweetheart?”
She spun around, and there he was, an inquiring look on his
handsome face, and she was so happy he hadn’t left that she woke up.
Marianna blinked. Nikolos was indeed looking at her with
that curious grin, but they weren’t in the jungle. Instead, they were in a
small but luxurious plane. She was leaned back in a reclined seat, and he sat
next to her, checking the news on his phone.
“Where…what’s happening?”
His half smile was sweet and slightly rueful.
“Before we go any further, I want to remind you that you
gave me permission for this. You agreed to let me drive, and I took it a little
further to arrange for us to fly instead.”
“But where are we going?”
“We’re going to Ojo Azul.”
Marianna shook her head. “I don’t understand…”
“It’s one of my family’s vacation homes. It’s lovely, and
it has always been my favorite. I grew up on Ojo Azul as much as I did anywhere
else, and I wanted to show it to you…”
She bit her lip, remembering the argument that had come
before this with a wince. “I don’t… It doesn’t matter what you did with the
duchess. I was completely out of line to be so angry, and I’m sorry.”
He nodded.
“Thank you for your apology, but I can see where I was
wrong as well. I don’t know why I didn’t tell you about Grace and what we did
before, except perhaps that I was afraid. I am not used to being afraid. I don’t
want to lose what we have…or are you going to tell me that we don’t have anything
at all?”
She was shaking her head before the words were even out of
his mouth.
“No, it’s not nothing to me,” she whispered. “It’s…it’s
just complicated.”
He nodded. “Many things are, but perhaps for the next two
days, it does not need to be?”
“The next two days? I thought we had our schedule set for
us.”
His grin was sweetly boyish. “I decided to change it up a
little. We’re staying at Ojo Azul for the next two days. When we return, things
can be complicated. Right now, though, we’re just going to be ourselves.”
The idea struck her with the force of a lightning bolt.
They could stop. They could simply be themselves, and leave the world behind.
The idea was so simple and so attractive that she nearly burst into tears.
Instead, she smiled, and she took his hand. It was warm,
and she clung to it as the little plane began its descent.
Chapter Eight
Ojo Azul was a large Spanish-style hacienda built right on
the beach of one of the smaller islands off the coast of Greece. Nikolos told
her there was a very small village on the other side, but half the island
belonged to the royal family.
“It’s quite safe. My siblings and I ran all over this place
when we were young. We played at all sorts of adventures as my mother
“All right,” he said softly. “This’ll be good. It’ll be
fine, I promise.”
* * *
In Marianna’s dream, she was wandering through a jungle,
chopping down the undergrowth with a rusty machete. She knew Nikolos was
somewhere ahead. If she could just get to him, she would be safe. She just
needed to find him. She knew he was in there somewhere.
The more she chopped at the undergrowth, however, the more
tangled she became. They twisted up to grab at her legs, her arms, to wind
around her waist.
She started to panic. If she didn’t get to Nikolos, he
would leave without her. She knew he would. She had to get to him.
To her dismay, she heard the whine of the airplane engine
rising up out of the ambient noise of the jungle around her. The whirring sound
started low then became higher and louder. She struggled forward, so tired, but
determined.
She stumbled into the clearing, looking up into a clear
night sky. The plane hung in the darkness like a steel bird. She couldn’t stop
a cry of sadness from escaping her lips. Her eyes followed the plane, as if her
entreating gaze would make it come back.
“Oh Nikolos,” she whispered.
“Yes, sweetheart?”
She spun around, and there he was, an inquiring look on his
handsome face, and she was so happy he hadn’t left that she woke up.
Marianna blinked. Nikolos was indeed looking at her with
that curious grin, but they weren’t in the jungle. Instead, they were in a
small but luxurious plane. She was leaned back in a reclined seat, and he sat
next to her, checking the news on his phone.
“Where…what’s happening?”
His half smile was sweet and slightly rueful.
“Before we go any further, I want to remind you that you
gave me permission for this. You agreed to let me drive, and I took it a little
further to arrange for us to fly instead.”
“But where are we going?”
“We’re going to Ojo Azul.”
Marianna shook her head. “I don’t understand…”
“It’s one of my family’s vacation homes. It’s lovely, and
it has always been my favorite. I grew up on Ojo Azul as much as I did anywhere
else, and I wanted to show it to you…”
She bit her lip, remembering the argument that had come
before this with a wince. “I don’t… It doesn’t matter what you did with the
duchess. I was completely out of line to be so angry, and I’m sorry.”
He nodded.
“Thank you for your apology, but I can see where I was
wrong as well. I don’t know why I didn’t tell you about Grace and what we did
before, except perhaps that I was afraid. I am not used to being afraid. I don’t
want to lose what we have…or are you going to tell me that we don’t have anything
at all?”
She was shaking her head before the words were even out of
his mouth.
“No, it’s not nothing to me,” she whispered. “It’s…it’s
just complicated.”
He nodded. “Many things are, but perhaps for the next two
days, it does not need to be?”
“The next two days? I thought we had our schedule set for
us.”
His grin was sweetly boyish. “I decided to change it up a
little. We’re staying at Ojo Azul for the next two days. When we return, things
can be complicated. Right now, though, we’re just going to be ourselves.”
The idea struck her with the force of a lightning bolt.
They could stop. They could simply be themselves, and leave the world behind.
The idea was so simple and so attractive that she nearly burst into tears.
Instead, she smiled, and she took his hand. It was warm,
and she clung to it as the little plane began its descent.
Chapter Eight
Ojo Azul was a large Spanish-style hacienda built right on
the beach of one of the smaller islands off the coast of Greece. Nikolos told
her there was a very small village on the other side, but half the island
belonged to the royal family.
“It’s quite safe. My siblings and I ran all over this place
when we were young. We played at all sorts of adventures as my mother
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