Page 69 of Not My Greek Wedding

Before I know it, I have reached the far end of the beach, when I spot Andreas sitting at the beach café nursing a drink. I find the sight of him gives me another lovely warm glow inside.

‘Mia.’ He stands and waves me over when he sees me, and I make my way towards him.

‘How are you? Please, let me get you a drink?’ he offers.

‘Sure, I’ll have a coffee, please.’

I take a seat as he orders me a drink from a waitress who is clearing a nearby table.

‘I’m sorry you had to encounter my brother like that yesterday,’ he says. ‘It must have been embarrassing for you.’

‘I was a bit surprised, yes, but don’t worry, I don’t think we ever really had anything in common,’ I tell him, realising I really mean it. Christos made my pulse race sure, but he did little other than talk about himself.

‘It was just such a shock to discover that you were brothers,’ I tell him.

‘I can imagine.’ He manages a smile. ‘But we are very different.’

‘I kind of gathered that.’ I smile as my coffee arrives. ‘And I have to tell you, we went out on more than one occasion,’ I say,figuring it best to get the truth out there right away. ‘He took me out on the family yacht. We went snorkelling.’

‘That is his signature move,’ he says, shaking his head. ‘And it seems a lot of women are impressed by that. I think my father is a fool to let him use the yacht, although sometimes I think he is unaware of it,’ he tells me.

‘I won’t lie, it is a pretty good way to impress a date,’ I say as I sip my coffee. ‘But it didn’t impress me enough to want to sleep with him,’ I tell him, although I have my fingers crossed behind my back because truthfully I was in fact more than a little tempted.

‘It would be your business.’ He looks me in the eye. ‘But he is not ready to commit to one woman.’

‘So it would appear,’ I have to agree.

I think back to how Christos told me his father owned many businesses in Fira, including shops. I never imagined that the guy who worked in the gift shop would turn out to be his brother.

‘I’m glad I ran into you,’ I tell him sincerely. ‘I really did have a wonderful time yesterday. And please believe me when I say, it was nothing with Christos, really. He invited my friend and I to the nightclub, and I guess I got caught up in all the glamour.’ I shrug. ‘But you know, we never really talked.’

‘I can imagine. My brother likes to talk about nothing but himself,’ he says, raising an eyebrow.

As I lay in my bed last night, I realised it wasn’t Christos I had regrets about not seeing again. Especially after seeing him in his true light. I was thinking of Andreas and how he makes me feel.

‘And I enjoyed yesterday too.’ He smiles that easy smile as he looks at me, and I feel something warm inside. ‘Apart from how things ended at the house.’ He pulls a face. ‘But how about we draw a line under it all. Maybe try again.’

‘What do you have in mind?’ I ask, feeling completely relieved.

‘I was wondering how would you feel about us spending a little more time together before you leave? There is something I would like you to see. A place not far from here, near a beach I know of. When are you free?’

‘Well, I’m free now, so…’

‘Perfect. I have my car.’ He picks his car keys up from the table. ‘Shall we head off?’

‘This all sounds intriguing,’ I say as I follow him to his car, wondering what he is so keen to show me.

‘I will not keep you in suspense for long, and don’t worry, I am not going to kidnap you or anything.’

‘That’s a relief, as my family don’t have a lot of money, so I wouldn’t rely on getting any ransom money,’ I joke.

I realise then that he belongs to a family that certainly doesn’t need ransom money.

‘Do you have another day off work then?’ I ask as we drive along, wondering why he isn’t at the shop today.

‘Just the morning,’ he tells me. ‘My cousin is now happily working until lunchtime every day. I think she is happy to earn some money before she goes back to university,’ he explains.

‘Ah, is that the young woman I saw at the shop the other day?’ I ask, recalling the pretty woman with the long dark hair.

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