Keeping a secret from the Greek Tycoon

SIX

JUSTINA

"If there's some paper you want me to sign, Mr. Vallis, I'll sign it. I have no intention of chasing you for child support or claiming your property. Adonis and I are fine as we are." I swallowed hard. That had to be why he was here. His eyes held mine without blinking, and I could tell he had questions of his own.

He pressed a finger to his lips, and an awkward silence stretched between us. "So you actually believe I'm that shallow. Out of nowhere I find out I have a son, and the only thing you think crosses my mind is..." He paused. "...property and child support? Why do you have this one-sided opinion of me?"

I stayed quiet, weighing his words. If I could have it my way, I'd scream in his face that I wasn't buying the act.

"Years ago," I began, hating that I had to keep the rest buried, "a woman walked into your office and told you she was pregnant. Do you remember what you told her?" I didn't wait for an answer. "You told her to kill him. That child you didn't want. I wanted him, so I kept him, and I've managed to raise him on my own, all without your help, Mr. Vallis. So I'm begging you, please go. Leave us alone and don't come back."

Gregor took a slow breath, his eyes shadowed enough that I couldn't read what he was thinking. I wiped a tear from my eyes and looked back at Adonis, still oblivious to everything unfolding around him. He was a young boy. He deserved happiness, not this. Heaven spare him from ever learning that his father was the reason his mother suffered.

"So all you want is for me to walk out of this room, pretend none of this happened, and go on with my daily life?" he demanded, stepping closer.

My head dropped. I didn't answer. The sight of him turned my stomach, and I could barely keep the contempt off my face.

"Look at me." It wasn't a request. In my own stupidity, I obeyed, telling myself I wasn't afraid of him and had nothing to fear. "I wish I could walk away. But until the DNA results prove I'm not his father, I can't."

"You don't need a piece of paper to convince you, Mr. Vallis. Your heart already knows where it belongs."

I knew I was right. I could see the fear in his eyes. The truth would rip his carefully built life apart, and lucky for him, I had no interest in tangling my life with his.

"You're quite right," he said, not done yet. "I don't need a piece of paper to convince me. The fact that you're so desperate to get rid of me the second you've gotten what you wanted is more than clear, Miss Justina. So my heart must be in the right place. I have no doubt Adonis is my son."

A surge of maternal panic hit me like a drug. I would not let him win. Adonis was mine. Mine alone. I stepped back, already planning my next move. Telling him I'd lied wouldn't undo where this conversation was headed. Every fear I'd had was coming true.

"And that changes what?" I asked, my gaze sharpening.

"It changes everything, Miss Justina. Adonis is clearly ill. I might be his cure, and I sure as hell won't let anything happen to him. If it's all right with you, I'd like him to come stay with me."

"Never," I shot back through gritted teeth.

Darkness flashed in his eyes as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a black card. He handed it to me, and I skimmed it. His business card.

"If you want to work this out, call me, and maybe we can split custody without going to court."

The mention of a court case knocked the wind out of me. There was no way I could risk that, not after everything I'd lied about. If the court found out, I'd lose custody outright. In the eyes of the law, Gregor had everything a child could need. What did I have? Against every instinct, I took the card and accepted the compromise.

***

GREGOR

It wasn't like me to play games to get what I wanted. Real life worked differently than business, but I'd been pushed to a breaking point. My eyes went to the boy on the bed, his expression tight with concern. It still felt unreal. Looking at him now, he really did resemble me. My gaze drifted back to his mother. Her face was flushed red. I couldn't ignore the exhaustion ringed around her cloudy brown eyes, or how thin she looked, clearly malnourished. Probably the price of being a single mother. She didn't want my help; that much was obvious, but I was inserting myself into this whether she liked it or not.

"I'll leave you to it. I want you to think this through before you decide anything." I wanted my last words to reassure her that I wasn't the monster she thought. That I was simply misunderstood. I wondered if I'd see things her way if I actually remembered the night in question.

She still gave me the cold shoulder, but the fire behind it had dulled. Her spitfire edge had given way to something closer to fear, and I knew exactly what she feared. Powerful people always got what they wanted. Everyone knew that.

Without dwelling on the questions circling my head, I let myself out of the hospital. The second the door shut behind me, I heard Justina break down, her little boy rushing to comfort her. The hatred she had for me was staggering, enough to make her cry the moment I was gone. It cut through me, knowing I was that horrible to her and hadn't even realized it. On my way to the car, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I checked it. A call from Charissa. How convenient. Reluctantly, I picked up.

"Greg, I've been trying to reach you all day. Do you know how hard it is not to hear from you for days?"

I wasn't in the mood to be soothed. I had more pressing things to deal with than Charissa's usual forgiveness routine. She knew exactly what it would cost her when she chose a contract over our future. The whole relationship had been slowly killing me, dragging along all its usual drama.

"Charissa, can we not do this right now?" I said. "My day's already been bad enough. This isn't the time to ask for forgiveness."

My cold tone didn't dent her mood at all. I reached the parking lot, climbed into the back seat, and told the driver to head to Vallis Enterprises. I was late for work. As the car pulled off, I found out why Charissa was in such high spirits.

"Well, your sour mood is about to disappear when you hear this."

"What?" I asked, bored.

"I'm back, Greg. I'm back in Greece."

Well. She was right about one thing.