Page 26 of Modern Romance Collection March 2025 (1-4)

Now he would pay the price.

“There have been quite a few phone calls and emails asking for you to comment on the story. Ophelia said she will meet you at the office at ten.”

“Then let’s trust Ophelia to handle it until then,” Athan said, referring to his public relations manager, as he walked into the kitchen. “Ignore the calls and emails for the time being. I’m going to eat breakfast then head into the office. We move on, business as usual.”

It was surprising him less and less to find Lynna in his kitchen, and it didn’t do thinking about the fact he’d now found himself in his own kitchens more over the past few days than possibly his entire life prior.

She never looked up at him. Never greeted him. She always acted as if the food was the only thing that mattered.

“Well, our retaliation has landed,” he offered as she studied her pan of eggs. She was twisting around the liquid in an odd little spiral. Everything smelled like heaven.

She lifted her gaze from the pan to him. “I take it you are not to be arrested.”

Some of his bad mood lifted at the way she tried to make it sound like she was disappointed, but what he saw on herfacewas relief.

“Not as of yet. Instead, he went with the tabloids.” Athan looked down at his phone and read from the article his assistant had sent him. “‘An “altercation” at the house of Athan Akakios was reported late last night. Athan Akakios refused to comment—’” He looked up at her. “Not one person reached out to me for a comment before the story was run. How odd.” Then he continued to read. “‘Constantine Akakios, however, was willing to confirm that he was involved, and that he’d like time and privacy to deal with such an alarming altercation with his own son.’”

Lynna frowned. “But this is a lie,” she said with such affront in her voice, he wanted to run a hand over her hair, just to have a sense what naive, innocent outrage might feel like.

“Some will always be willing to lie for the right price. Truths don’t matter in the games my father plays. Besides, he was very careful. Much of this isn’t alieso much as twisting the story a certain way, with the right words. A Constantine specialty.”

“What will we do?”

We.That word had him…off-kilter for a moment. To think of her as awe. To be in any kind ofwe. She had said it last night, she planned to be his partner in this, and still he couldn’t quite wrap his head around it.

So, he pushed the feelings away and focused on the reality. “I will simply have to weather it. Retaliation won’t do. We’ll continue our plan as is. That’s why he’s doing ridiculous things like this. He’s terrified my plan will work. So we must remain focused.”

The frown didn’t leave her face, but she did turn her attention back to her pan. In deft moves, she transferred the food from pan to plate.

“I will go into the office. You will go shopping for our upcoming dinners,” he said as she pushed a full plate in front of him. “I normally take my breakfast to go.”

“Then go,” Lynna replied, preparing her own plate.

But he didn’t go. He sat and he ate, and he watched her do the same. The silence was casual, easy. Surprisingly so. He wasn’t so naive as to think she’d lostallanimosity toward him, but he liked to think he sensed a kind of softening.

When he finished his breakfast, he stood. “That was amazing as always.” He skirted the counter, and she watched him warily, as he’d hoped.

She held her fork between them as he walked toward her, like she might use it as a weapon.

It made him grin.

He reached out for her arm, gently took it and pulled her to him. “Have a good day, wife,” he murmured. “Everyone is supposed to believe us a happy newlywed couple, remember?” he whispered when she resisted. Then pressed a kiss to her hair.

She scowled at him, but she didn’t say anything.

“Smile, darling, we’re in love.”

He got the sense she was about to hurl a fork at him, so he beat a hasty retreat. In a better mood, he rode into the office. He didn’t bother to look up any more stories his father might have planted. He focused on looking at the clients currently controlled by people Athan thought would be more sympathetic to the memory of Lynna’s father over Constantine’s threats. The people who had quietly, carefully and never outright sent little signals over the years that they did not believe Aled had been the one to steal money or make deals with questionable people.

When Athan strode into the office building, there were speculative looks, but no one came out and said anything to him. He met with Ophelia at ten and she outlined a strategy for how to deal with the story. Since most of the dealing with it landed on Ophelia’s and her team’s shoulders, Athan spent the rest of his day focusing on hisjob. He called clients, read reports, put out small fires here and there.

But when his assistant informed him Ophelia was back later that afternoon, Athan knew not all had gone to plan.

She said nothing as she strode into his office. She placed her phone on his desk, pushed it across to him. He looked at the screen.

Shock Pregnancy Source of Rush Wedding!Beneath the wild headline was a photograph of Lynna. It must have been taken today, as it was in front of a shop in Athens. She was carrying shopping bags and dressed in one of her black ensembles. She hardly looked pregnant, but Athan supposed she didn’t have tolookit. It only needed to seem possible to people.

He looked up at his PR manager, who looked…grim at best.

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