“I merely took some time off this summer, nothing more.” Rafe slammed away any doubts. He’d built this company. He’d sweated and sacrificed and sealed a thousand deals to make Viper what it was.

  “There’s something else going on here, isn’t there?” Savas was not only observant; he was tenacious.

  Glaring at his friend, his irritation turning to anger. “There’s nothing else going on.”

  “There’s something missing. You don’t seem capable—”

  “Are you saying I’m not capable of running this company anymore?” He rose from his chair, instant, instinctive rage pouring through his veins.

  Savas stepped back, a wary look crossing his face. “I’m your friend. I’m saying I’m concerned.”

  He took his inappropriate rage in hand, trying to stuff it down into wherever it had exploded from. “I know. However, there’s nothing to be concerned about.”

  “I only want to make sure we’ll have your full attention going forward.”

  He tried to push out the promise, but it stuck in his throat. His friend eyed him, as silence fell between them. Rafe felt the muscles of his neck and back tighten, yet even then, he couldn’t say the words his CFO wanted him to say.

  “What’s going on, Rafe?”

  The quiet question sliced through his pride. His heart. What was going on inside him? During the last few months, he’d found himself incapable of coming to Athens without a crisis pulling him here. Before, he’d eagerly bounded to work, his enthusiasm pulling along his employees.

  Before the boys.

  Before Tamsin.

  Before he knew in his gut—

  “You can tell me what’s going on,” Savas insisted. “Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it.”

  “There’s nothing going on.” Rafe sat back down and clicked on his computer.

  “Nothing.” His friend’s voice was placid, but a strain of determination lined the word. “Nothing that has anything to do with the pretty lady who accompanied your mother and sister on the tour of this place several weeks ago?”

  “She’s the boys’ sister.”

  “Come on,” his CFO scoffed. “I have eyes.”

  “Keep your eyes off of her.”

  “Hmm.” The sound was speculative. “Jealous.”

  Rafe glanced over in time to see the edge of a knowing smile disappear from the other man’s face. Embarrassment turned to sarcasm. “You’re married. I know what Thea’s reaction would be if you ever looked at another woman. So, no. I’m not jealous.”

  “Hmm.”

  Irritation blended with the rage that still simmered. “Don’t you have work to do?”

  “Nai. As do you.” Savas paced to the door. “Though remember this, my friend. A woman shouldn’t distract a man to the point of hurting his business.”

  Rafe didn’t look at him. He stared at his computer instead. Still, the words swirled around him, bringing guilt to mix into the toxic brew inside him.

  “And yet.” Savas stopped at the door and turned back. Rafe felt his gaze on him, but ignored him. Whatever his friend had to say, he knew he didn’t want to hear it. “I remember what it was like when I first met Thea.”

  “I didn’t just meet Tamsin. I’ve known her for years.”

  “Her name’s Tamsin, is it?” Savas leaned on the doorframe, a slight smile on his face. “Good to know.”

  “Tamsin Drakos. Now that I think about it, it is good for you to know about her.” Rafe eased back in his black leather chair. “I’m hiring her.”

  “What?” His friend straightened, his face covered in shock.

  “She’s organized. Efficient.” He drummed his fingers on the edge of his glass desk. “I need you to find a place for her here.”

  “That’s not a good idea.”

  His fingers stopped tapping. “What do you mean by that?”

  “You can’t be distracted during this rollout.” Savas shook his head, his eyes pleading. “It’s also not a great idea to hire family.”

  “She’s not part of the family.” The words clutched in his throat, yet he pushed them out. “She needs a job and she’s talented. It’s as simple as that.”

  “Why do I think this isn’t simple at all?”

  As usual, Savas’s instincts were impeccable. Which only drove the frustration inside Rafe into a frenzy. “I don’t know what the hell you mean.”

  “Fine.” His friend sighed. “Be that way. But I don’t care how long you’ve known her. I saw the look in your eye the day she visited here—”

  “Now you’re making even less sense.” He turned to his computer and began to type.

  “—and I can’t think of anything else that would distract my good friend to the point of almost complete inattention to the company he built.”

  The rage billowed out from his belly, pouring through his bloodstream. “I have not been inattentive.”

  “You have been.” Savas’s tone was matter-of-fact and smooth. As if he were only discussing the weather instead of challenging Rafe’s very purpose. “It needs to stop. You know that.”

  “Enough.” He swung around in his chair and blasted him with a glare. “You’re stepping beyond your position, Savas.”

  His CFO eyed him. “I am talking to you as your friend.”

  “And I am talking to you as your boss.” He stood. “Enough.”

  A flush of red washed across Savas’ face. “I’ll get to work then, sir.” The door shut behind him with a clipped bang.

  He’d angered his friend. He’d disappointed Savas too, by not promising him what he wanted. Because he couldn’t. He couldn’t make the commitment the man had been searching for.

  What did this say about him?

  Rafe slumped into his chair, his gut churning.

  If he were a coward, if Tam were still his enemy, he’d blame it all on her. This confusion, this roiling, twisting feeling of being off-center, off-point. Off.

  However, it wasn’t her.

  Not entirely and not mostly. No, there was something deeper here, some kind of poison swimming inside him, tearing his goals and decisions apart.

  Restless, he stood and walked to the full-length window looking down on the open, airy atrium placed in the middle of his office complex. The palm trees’ leaves brushed the top of the windowed roof while the small pool in the center sparked as the fountain splashed. Tables were strewn around the water where his employees could take a coffee break or eat their lunches.

  He had a duty to his employees and to his family. He had responsibilities.

  He needed to get back into gear.

  Weariness swamped him. Sapped him dry and knifed him all at the same time.

  What the hell was wrong with him? And what the hell was he going to do about it?

  Shaken, he prowled out of his office. Telling his startled PA he’d be back, he ran down the white stone stairs, past the offices and labs, past the atrium and into the heat of midday Athens. Pulling his tie off, he took off at a brisk pace.

  The heat burned on his neck and he welcomed it.

  Because a cold touch of panic laced through his system.

  His breath ratcheted up as his pace increased. Sweat broke out along his spine. His heart beat, beat, beat in his chest.

  The crowds grew, tourists mingling with workers. The blare of car horns mixed with the sputter of motorcycles. An old woman tromped past loaded with bags. A child shrieked above him from a wrought iron balcony.

  Rafe strode faster.

  What was wrong with him? What was he searching for?

  What was he running away from?

  A street vendor called out about the freshness of his pastry. The smell of cinnamon and citrus blended with the scent of sweat and smoke. He’d walked these streets for years while he’d planned his next business move or plotted the next bid.

  This area all seemed alien to him now. As if he’d stepped onto another planet and couldn’t find even one familiar landmark. Or face. Or thought.

  He turned the corner, into a darker, older street. One filled with the ever-present pawn shops that now populated almost every street of Athens. He’d avoided them. He hadn’t wanted to see the desperation and fear in the faces of those who’d walked into these shops. They reminded him of the time when he’d been desperate and willing to do anything to climb out of the hole his father had dug for him and his family.

  No. Not your father.

  Drakos. It was Drakos who’d dug the hole. Don’t forget that.

  His heart beat faster. Faster. Was he having a heart attack? Not at his age. Not possible. Even if he wasn’t a doctor, he knew…

  A doctor.

  Rafe stopped cold. The people on this narrow street walked around him, a few giving him a puzzled glance before moving on.

  You dreamed of being a doctor.

  He closed his eyes as Tam’s words swirled in his brain and heart.

  You were going to be a doctor from the moment I met you.

  He’d left this old dream behind along with memories of his father and his brother and Tamsin. He’d forged a new life, one filled with tough decisions and heady heights. He’d constantly killed any need to go back and rethink the choices he’d made years ago.

  Until now.

  Now, here, he felt lost.

  Maybe he was having a heart attack. His skin was clammy, his breath erratic, his heart racing. If his father had stood before him right now, Loukas Vounó would have promptly taken him to the hospital.

  Avoiding the thought of his father, and of doctors and heart attacks and old dreams and frustration, Rafe swung his gaze around until it landed on something sparkly in one of the pawn shops.

  The bracelet was pretty. Nothing very special, yet pretty. He’d given his mother and sisters far prettier and more expensive trinkets over the years. He stepped closer. The silver caught the eye, but it was the luster of the pearls and the glow of the blue stones that drew a person in.

  Drew him in.

  Exactly as it had that long ago summer.

  When this bracelet had been worn by his young sixteen-year-old love.

  Rafe sucked in a breath and came closer. It couldn’t be. His fear and frustration—and hell, maybe his undiagnosed heart attack—must be fogging his mind.

  The silver twinkled.

  His memories were sharp and clear. And accurate.

  “You like it, sir?” The curl of satisfaction laced the voice coming from the shop’s open doorway. “It’s a pretty piece.”

  “Nai, it is.” Rafe straightened. “And I’m willing to pay a pretty penny.”

  The owner’s smile grew.

  He was a fool for admitting this. The man who’d negotiated million-euro deals knew that. But that man no longer existed. That man was lost in a fog of indecision and lust and fear and anger.

  “How much?” He didn’t care whether he was a fool or not. All he cared about was getting this bracelet and finding out one thing.

  The owner named a number and Rafe obediently stepped into the smoke-filled store, his brain spinning.

  What the hell was Tamsin’s bracelet doing in this pawn shop?

  Chapter 19

  “This is the longest he’s been gone and I want to know why.” Isaák’s voice was determined, as well as grumpy.

  “It’s only been two weeks, idiot.” Aarōn scowled at his twin in disgust, yet Tam knew her brother. The way he’d eyed the silent home office every day during the last week. The way he’d stared at Rafe’s empty chair at the dinner table every night. Aarōn was worried, too.

  “I’m sure he’s busy with business.” Dishing out the white bean soup, she kept her focus on the serving spoon. The boys might be worried, but she was panicked.

  She knew why Rafe wasn’t here.

  Because of the phone call. The phone call that had surprised her into lying.

  And he’d known it.

  “I think you should call him.” Isaák stared at her with an earnest gaze. “I honestly think you should.”

  “Me too.” His twin reluctantly agreed.

  She wasn’t going to call him. Not after she’d botched the one and only call two weeks ago. He probably wouldn’t even answer.

  Yet what was she going to do? Time was ticking away. The bomb named Haimon would explode in the near future and she hadn’t even begun to smooth the way into her confession.

  In fact, she’d made it worse.

  “Come on.” Isaák swirled his spoon in the soup, a frown on his face. “He’ll listen to you.”

  Rafe had intently listened to her that last time and read between the lines. The silence during the last two weeks had told her everything she needed to know.

  She’d screwed up.

  Swinging away from the table, she slammed the pot back onto the stove. She leaned over the sink and tried to think. What could she say to bring him back? And when he did come back, how could she ever find a way to explain what she’d done? He had withdrawn about something so trivial in the face of what else she had to confess, it was almost comical.

  She didn’t feel like laughing.

  “Uh-oh.” Isaák’s voice came from behind her, hushed. “You guys had a fight, didn’t you?”

  No, there’d been no fight. There’d been frozen rejection instead.

  The morning after she’d sent the photo to Haimon, she’d awakened to find Rafe gone. Gone to work when she so desperately needed him here. Here where she could begin to build a bridge across the abyss separating her truth from her actions.

  But he’d been gone.

  A small emergency, he’d texted. I’ll be back tomorrow.

  Instead, there’d been a call.

  The call.

  “Tamsin.” His voice had been tight.

  “Yes?” Dread had dripped its icy tentacles into her heart. Because she’d known immediately, instinctively; something was wrong. Could he have found out about her text to her stepfather? Was his security team more thorough than she’d imagined?

  “I took a walk today.”

  Her mind whirred to a halt. A walk had nothing to do with her text. “You did?”

  “And found something interesting.”

  What could he possibly be talking about? Her mind raced around. Had he run into Haimon? Had he found out something about the bid? Whatever he’d found, she knew it wasn’t good. Her mouth went dry. “Yes?”

  “Nai.” She heard a rustle in the background. Then a clink, clink as if something was hitting glass. “I found something from our past.”

  Her mind spun into a frenzy. Their past was fraught with pitfalls. Apparently, he’d fallen into one. It wounded her to think they’d both forgotten how many moments in their past had been good and strong and beautiful. “What did you find?”

  “Your bracelet.”

  She’d sucked in a breath, but still felt dizzy with disbelief. “My—”

  “I’m sure of it.” His voice went rough. “The pearl one. The one from your real father.”

  Had Haimon dared to visit Rafe? Surely, not. He would have landed in jail or been hustled off by security. “Where did you find it?” she managed to choke out.

  “A pawn shop.” The clink, clink became louder. Angrier. “Near my work.”

  What horrible, awful luck did she have following behind her? Her stepfather hadn’t wasted any time, had he? The thought of him slinking around near Rafe’s work, selling her precious bracelet, made her sick. “Um.”

  “Um?” Outrage filled the word. “Is that all you can say?”

  Her mind scrambled for some rationale. “I sold it.”

  “You sold your last link to your real father.”

  “Yes.”

  “You sold the bracelet you told me long ago was your most precious possession.”

  A gurgle of pain slid into her throat. “Yes.”

  “When?”

  The blunt question burned. Her mind scrambled again. “When we visited your office.”

  “When did you do that?” The disbelief in his voice was rampant now. “I don’t remember you ever leaving the tour.”

  She was digging herself deeper and deeper. Yet she couldn’t confess everything. Not on the phone. She hadn’t had time to put her thoughts together, to consider how to build this bridge to where he’d understand her actions. “I stepped away for a minute.”

  Silence fell over their conversation, a heavy blanket of distrust. The gurgle in her throat expanded until she felt as if she were being strangled.

  “Really?” Rafe’s cold voice at last cut through the dead air like a Spartan sword.

  How could she backtrack now? Her jumbled thoughts froze. She couldn’t get one word out.

  “You know what, Tamsin?” he finally said. “I don’t believe you.”

  There was more to the last statement than mere words. There was more than simple disbelief. The chasm that had existed between them for ten long years had yawned open once again, sucking everything that had been built between them during the last two months down into the abyss.

  He’d hung up.

  She hadn’t heard from him since.

  How could she build a wide enough and strong enough bridge to find a way across this divide? And the bomb named Haimon still ticked, promising even further erosion, an even deeper hole swallowing their disappearing relationship.

  Tamsin closed her eyes on the last rays of the sun, trying to push down the rabid panic clawing up from her heart.

  “What did you fight about?” Isaák piped in from behind her. “We can help fix it.”

  “We didn’t fight.”

  Somehow, she had to figure out how to get Rafe back here. She couldn’t confess everything by phone. She needed to see his eyes as she talked. She needed to watch his body when he responded. She needed to be able to reach over and touch him, hold him while she made him understand.

  “Tammy?” Aarōn said, soft and insistent. “Is everything okay?”

  How many times had one of the boys asked this of her in one form or another? A thousand? A million? Certainly when they’d been little and just arriving in London, their small hands wrapped around her neck, their fluff-covered heads tucked under her chin.