Harlequin Romance April 2021 Box Set Page 2
Though he hadn’t taken her to bed or proposed, he’d told her he was in love with her. After insisting that she was the only woman for him and one day they’d be together forever, she’d assumed he’d meant marriage and that it would be soon.
A week later he’d sent her a postcard from Rome, telling her he loved and missed her. But there was no return address or mention of meeting up with her or future plans for them to be together. She’d thought, of course, he would ask her to travel to Portugal with him so she could meet his aunt and uncle.
Giannina had learned his mother had died in childbirth, and his father, a military man, had been killed on active duty. That left his father’s brother and wife to raise him. She’d longed to meet them and their children, and for Philip to get to know her parents and family, but it never happened.
Over the last three years, she’d received hundreds of postcards from him at her address at the newspaper. He never signed them and simply told her he was on a story. One day he would come for her. On every card he added that he would always love her.
What a fool she’d been to believe him. Devastated to realize his career ambitions were greater than any love he’d had for her, she no longer looked for those postcards. After a few months, she determined to forget him.
Too bad she kept seeing his name in the news for writing prize-winning stories that exposed fraud and corruption in various governments. No one would question he was the best at what he did. The meaningless postcards kept coming, always declaring his love. She’d stopped reading them. His words meant nothing to her.
She took the advice she’d once given her brother about moving on and she started to date other men. Giannina refused to be like Nico, who’d spent his life mourning his first love, whom he believed hadn’t loved him after all. Even if in the end a miracle had happened to her brother, she didn’t believe in them.
* * *
Alex left his newly rented apartment on Nikis Avenue and walked through Aristotelous Square in the center of Salonica. A combination of dread because he’d lied to the woman he loved, plus excitement because he was about to see her again, gripped him. He approached the Halkidiki News building a block away more nervous than he’d ever been in his life.
After three years separation, he was about to lay eyes on his breathtaking Giannina, who’d enamored him first as a young girl, and later as a woman. It had pained him that he’d met her too soon in London for them to be married. But that wasn’t the case now.
The joyous news that General Ruiz and his junta had just been arrested along with one of the two assassins of Alex’s parents meant the nightmare haunting him was over. No more threats of danger. Tonight he would be witness to the other killer’s arrest. He needed to tell Giannina the news before she heard it from anyone else since it involved her uncle.
That was only part of the reason why he was in Salonica. The other part would be the fulfillment of his dream to marry her. If all went as planned, he would soon sit on the throne of the Aegean island kingdom. And if his prayers were granted, she would agree to be his bride.
But it meant revealing himself as twenty-eight-year-old Prince Alexandros Pisistratus of Hellenia, the young prince she’d once met and played with in the palace grounds. All this time he’d lived a lie and hadn’t trusted her with the truth. Philip broke out in a cold sweat knowing it would take a miracle for her to forgive him, let alone be his wife. She wouldn’t listen to his reasons. Who would? That’s what terrified him.
Through an infallible source he learned that Giannina wasn’t seriously involved with another man yet. But he had zero hope she would fall into his arms when they came together in a few minutes. In order for that to happen, he needed time to build her trust again, but he feared it was far too late. He’d broken her heart.
Alex knew all about that devastating feeling. He’d been the walking wounded after having to fly away from her for her own safety. Life had lost its savor since then. It frightened him that if he couldn’t win back her love, he’d never be truly happy again.
Because of his love for Giannina, she would have been the one unknown factor who could have prevented him from carrying out his plans to get rid of the dictator who’d taken over his country in the wake of his parents’ murders, General Ruiz. Even in his disguise as Philip Dimas, he hadn’t dared allowed that to happen. Her safety had meant everything to him.
After his parents’ deaths when he was fourteen, Zikos Novak had whisked him away to Dubrovnik. That was the home of the vastly wealthy Novak family on his mother’s side dating back three hundred years with an estate and a fortune in oil. Zikos had developed a plan for Alex to win back the throne once the general and his henchmen were captured and arrested.
Alex owed his life to Zikos, the man who’d rescued him from Hellenia after the murders. Zikos, also Hellenian, had been chief adviser and best friend to Alex’s father. He’d given him the fictitious name Philip Dimas to hide his true identity.
To make the transformation complete, his black hair and brows were dyed dark blond and his black eyes were covered by blue contact lenses. As he grew older, he had to shave every day without fail. So far his disguise had worked perfectly.
While he attended the university in Dubrovnik and became a journalist, Alex never gave up on his quest to avenge his parents’ murders and restore the throne to his family. After graduation he left Croatia to establish his journalism career while he surreptitiously hunted down his parents’ killers to bring them to justice.
Still on the hunt for the assassins, ten days ago Alex got the surprise of his life through the Hellenian underground. He made the gut-wrenching discovery that Gianinna’s uncle Ari Hatzi, of all people on earth, had been identified as one of them. Alex couldn’t believe that the woman he adored and had wanted to protect was his enemy’s actual niece.
To think that all the time he’d been searching for the killers, her uncle had been a member of Gianinna’s family, trying to track down Alex. Hatzi had once been the managing editor of the Halkidiki newspaper. Now he was wanted by the Greek police for blaming a false news story on Giannina, who’d been put in as editor-in-chief.
Alex had read her father’s retraction and knew that she and her family had no love for Hatzi. He also knew that when he brought her this news it would be earthshaking. But she was the only person who had the right to know everything before the rest of the world heard about it.
He entered the newspaper office wearing a business suit and was shown to the editor-in-chief’s office on the third floor. A charming woman introduced herself as Khloe Paulos, the managing editor, and told him to go on through.
His heart thudded as he walked into Gianinna’s impressive private office and found her working at her desk, dressed in a chic tan and white short-sleeved summer suit.
Between her classic features and passionate mouth, plus the mold of her five-foot-seven body, she looked even more exquisite than he’d remembered. She wore her brunette hair in a side part that reached her shoulders. Gone were the long tresses. Those light brown eyes he’d stared into so many times studied him without blinking or warmth. The expression persona non grata came to mind as he drew closer.
“Senhor Dimas—” She spoke in the Portuguese accent he’d once taught her and felt gratified she’d remembered. “So it was you who phoned. I gave up on seeing you a long time ago. As for those pitiful postcards...”
A groan escaped when he realized how much damage he’d done. Alex had felt searing hurt coming from her and was reeling in pain himself. He sat in one of the chairs placed before her desk. It took all the mental fortitude he possessed not to reach out and beg her forgiveness before explaining anything.
“I didn’t know how else to keep reminding you that you were the only woman for me, and still are.” If she only knew she was his whole life!
“I lost count a long time ago.”
He deserved her contempt an
d so much more. “Believe it or not, those postcards have always conveyed my love for you, but my life was forced to go in a different direction. I couldn’t make the plans with you I’d hoped we could make at the time.” He’d promised he’d be back, but she didn’t want to hear it now.
Giannina cocked her head. “It doesn’t matter, Philip. We’ve all had our flings, but that time in England was over ages ago. No harm done. Since London you’ve become even more famous all over Europe. Your accomplishments precede you.”
He cleared his throat. “Not without a lot of help.”
* * *
“Don’t be modest. The latest stories of uncovering the money laundering in France and the failed assassination attempt of the prime minister in Germany have put you and you alone right at the top of your game.”
It was clear Giannina had done her research and was pretending their relationship in London belonged to ancient history. But he could see a nerve throbbing in the base of her delectable throat that told him this meeting had disturbed her as much as it did him. Could he dare believe it gave him a modicum of hope?
“If anyone is at the top of their game, it’s the brilliant editor-in-chief of the Halkidiki News. I knew you’d be exceptional when you took over the reins.”
She shook her head, dismissing the compliment. “Why don’t you get to the point. Since I know I’m not the reason, what has brought you to Greece?”
More and more he feared he’d truly lost her. This was agony, but it was past time she knew the truth. “My love for you, Giannina,” he said forcefully. “But I realize you don’t want to hear that because you don’t believe it.”
“You’re right. What’s the real reason?”
Unbearable as this was, he needed to go on. “I’ve come with incredible news. General Ruiz and his junta have just been arrested and Hellenia is now a free country again.”
A soft cry of surprise escaped her lips. “I can’t believe it.”
“It hasn’t been leaked to the media yet, and there’s more news. I’ve been investigating a related story, but you’re the only person who has the right to it. I’m afraid it has to do with your uncle Ari Hatzi.”
At those words, lines marred her beautiful features. “He’s the latest story you’re after?” She sounded angry. “His outrageous antics have already been covered. He was fired for it and has disappeared.”
“I’m talking about the unspeakable crime he committed a long time ago.”
A frown marred her features. “What else has that despicable man done besides run away before signing the divorce papers my aunt filed?”
“I remember you telling me that you never cared for him, but you didn’t want to hurt your aunt by letting her know.”
“That’s right, but you’re talking in riddles. What are you trying to say?”
She sat back in the chair. “I’m waiting for your news on my hateful uncle.”
He dreaded telling her the truth about something for which she could never be prepared. It would hurt her, but it had to be said. Tragically, Alex knew she’d never accept comfort from him.
“A few days ago, I learned through my sources in the Hellenian underground that an eyewitness has named Ari Hatzi as one of the two assassins of the king and queen of Hellenia.”
CHAPTER TWO
“WHAT DID YOU SAY?”
Giannina’s face paled and she looked so stunned, Alex wanted to take her in his arms and never let her go. How would he ever be able to make her understand the reason for his deception and get her to fall in love with him again? Right now he couldn’t see a way. The knowledge shattered him.
“It’s true. As you said, he’s been in hiding. The last sighting of him has led a contingent of loyal Hellenian patriots to Mount Athos, where he’s been living and impersonating a monk.”
A cry escaped her lips. “You’re talking about the Ari Hatzi who married my aunt? The uncle who blamed me for a false story printed in the newspaper about the prince of Hellenia being alive on Mount Athos?”
He nodded. “The very one. I’m on my way there now to witness his arrest. It’s going to happen tonight.”
She stirred in the chair. “What newspaper has sent you on this story?” came the biting question.
Alex shook his head. “No one sent me. I’ve given up journalism. This is my last story, but only you have the rights to it because I love you, Giannina. You can choose to publish it or not.”
“Love?” She mocked the word. “Don’t insult me with that excuse.” In the next breath she got to her feet and paced the floor for a moment.
He knew this news had rocked her underpinnings, but her rejection of him was killing him. This was so much worse than what he’d imagined.
“Before it becomes public and he’s exposed by the world media, no one has more right to know what your uncle has done than you and your family. Even though the assassination of the royal family happened a long time ago, it wounds me that your family will bear some of the scrutiny when the news breaks. I wanted you to be warned and wish to heaven there were a way to protect you from it.”
Giannina turned to him, her expression tortured. “My uncle really helped kill them?”
“I’d give anything if it weren’t true, but there’s irrefutable proof,” he murmured.
She let out a moan. “It was a horrible, ghastly tragedy and gave me nightmares for a long time. Our family feared for the prince. No one knew if he was dead or alive.” She looked away. “I’ve wanted to believe he’s still living out there somewhere. Unless my uncle did something to him too. I hope he’s still alive.”
Alex struggled for breath, knowing how badly he was going to pay for this sin of omission.
“Do you know I met the prince when I was eleven? My father took me with him when he had business talks with the king in Hellenia. The prince had a dog and we played together. It was fun.”
It was more than fun for Alex. Moved to the core by what she’d just told him, he said, “You actually remember it?” The subject of the royal family of Hellenia had never come up when they’d been in London. They been so enamored of each other, and it was old news.
“Yes. After the murders, there was news the next day that the prince had been killed too. Some stories said he’d been dragged from his bed in the dead of night and tortured. The possibilities were endless.”
He hadn’t expected all these thoughts from her. Thanks to Zikos, who’d found Alex asleep and taken him to safety in Croatia with no one aware of what had happened until it was too late to find him.
“I told you about my aunt Olga.” Giannina kept talking. “She made a scrapbook devoted to the royal family because Ari was Hellenian. He had to become a Greek citizen in order to marry her. I remember poring over those early newspaper clippings with pictures of the prince,” Giannina continued.
“My aunt followed the news that went on in his country. When the tragedy happened, my aunt never got over it or her fear for the welfare of the prince. I’m afraid I didn’t either after having met him.” She shuddered. “To think my uncle was responsible is incomprehensible to me.” Her voice shook.
“I’m afraid your uncle used your aunt for many reasons, including Salonica’s close proximity to Hellenia. You’re only two hundred miles from Hellenia’s capital city of Loria. The country held certain exclusive trade relations with Salonica, including a valuable partnership with your family’s shipping line, which General Ruiz tried to maintain without success.”
Alex was now in possession of all the details about Gianinna’s uncle who’d inveigled himself into the Angelis family.
“Becoming your aunt’s husband gave him entrée to one day use your newspaper to support the dictator’s ideology. But your uncle was stopped in time. You got in his way and became editor-in-chief. That’s why he was cruel to you. For my own satisfaction I want to see that monster arrested.”
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nbsp; She turned to him with a pained look. “Are you absolutely certain this man impersonating a monk is my uncle? You believe he’s living on Mount Athos?” With her guard down for a moment, the Giannina he’d fallen in love with came out, making him desire her more intensely.
“I’m positive. Otherwise I wouldn’t be here risking everything to approach you when I know how much you must despise me.”
After a pause, “When will you be leaving?”
“Tonight at seven. I’ve hired a boat.”
He heard her sharp intake of breath. “Since you came to me with this story, it’s mine to do with as I like. Is that what you said?”
Philip could hear her mind working. “You know I did.”
“Then I’m coming with you to see him for myself and take a picture.”
His heart leaped. That sounded like his Giannina, who had an adventurous streak. Nothing could have thrilled Alex more. It meant he could be with her for a little longer.
“There’s just one problem. If women were allowed to go there, I would have asked you to come with me so we could witness his arrest together.”
She smiled. “I’m not worried about the rules forbidding women on Mount Athos. I’ll accompany you on your boat as far as the dock at Ouranoupoli, where women are allowed. After the arrest is made, can’t the police bring him on board? I have a few choice words to say to my uncle.”
“You and the Hellenian people. I’ll arrange it.”
Her bold determination defined the woman Alex was crazy about. She’d get no argument out of him. He walked over to the desk and wrote down his cell phone number on a notepad. After heading for the door, he turned to her.
“If you change your mind, give me a call. Otherwise I’ll come by at seven for you.”
“I need to talk to my brother first. I may not be able to reach him until later tonight.”
“I’m afraid we have to leave at seven so I can be on time for the arrest.” By tomorrow she would know the truth of everything. “For what it’s worth, Giannina, thank you for seeing me when you have every reason to tell me to go to hell.”