“Theo,” I gasp as his tongue flicks over my nipples, sending warmth flooding to my core.
He looks at me, heat in his gaze. “Say my name again,” he commands. “I like to hear it on your lips.”
“Theo,” I repeat.
His hands slide up my thigh. “Will you yell it when you come?”
I open my mouth to respond but can’t form the words. We’re playing a dangerous game with my parents and Ty sleeping not far away.
“Will you?” he asks again, his hand sliding higher, brushing the sensitive skin inside of my thigh, one finger grazing my wetness.
“Theo,” I pant, tightness building between my legs. “Theo, we—”
The sound of the door opening shatters the spell we’ve woven around ourselves. I shove Theo away. He falls back into a gardenia bush, and then I lose track of him as I whirl around to intercept whoever it is, smoothing my shirt down. My heart drops when I see the familiar shape of my cousin.
“Daph?” he asks. His black curls are messy from sleep, and he’s wearing only shorts. Even in the dim light, I can see the bruises marring his skin from the day’s fight with Theo’s family.
“Ty. What are you doing here?”
He narrows his eyes suspiciously. “What are you doing here?”
I gesture to the garden. “Getting some fresh air.” When he tries to peek around me, I grab his arm and steer him back to the door. “Did I wake you?” I ask.
He looks over his shoulder but must not see anything because he lets me steer him inside. I shut the door behind us and flip the switch to turn off the outside lights—the better for Theo to make his escape.
Ty shrugs. “I guess I’m just uneasy after a day like today.”
“You have had a hard time,” I say, trying to sound sympathetic, not resentful. It’s not his fault I’m falling for the family’s archrival, though he does nothing to improve the state of the relationship between our families. “You should be in bed.”
We turn and climb the stairs. I say goodbye outside the room where he’s sleeping and continue onto my room. It isn’t until I cross my threshold that I hear his door click shut. Seeing Valentina still sleeping soundly, I rush back to the balcony and lean over the railing, searching the dark. I don’t have to look hard, though, because Theo is standing just below my balcony.
Before I can remind him of all the reasons why what we have won’t work, he whispers up to me: “Marry me, Daphne Jordan.”
I laugh quietly, thinking it’s a joke, but he doesn’t join in.
“I’m serious. It’s up to us to end the strife between our families. They can’t keep us apart if we’re married. I’ll sign a prenup so I’m not entitled to anything from your family. All I want is to be with you.”
I gnaw on my lip, tempted. Is he right? Can we really be together? Or is it just a silly dream between two desperate people? Maybe he’ll wake up in the morning and laugh about this whole situation. “If you’re serious, get the prenup signed, and I’ll send Valentina to ask where and when we should meet.”
“Okay,” he agrees. “Until tomorrow, then.”
He slinks into the bushes by the wall just as the door to the courtyard opens again, and Ty appears. I duck low, glad I didn’t turn on any of my lights. From my vantage point hidden behind my railing, I watch as he scans the garden and then turns his gaze on my balcony. Seeing nothing, he goes back inside, and when the coast is clear, I do the same.
Chapter Four
Theodore
Damien guides his Porsche 911 into the underground garage beneath the offices of Miles & Abbott, Attorneys-at-Law. When he parks it, he turns to look at me before unlocking the doors.
“What?” I ask.
He has dark circles under his eyes that not even a large coffee could erase. “Are you sure about this? You know there will be consequences.”
Am I? A part of me wants to say no, but an even bigger part of me knows that I’ve never been more certain about anything in my life. I’ve never been the good and responsible son, no matter how hard I tried, but this is my opportunity to make things right for my family and for Daphne.
Daphne.
Beautiful, brave Daphne. Just being around her feels right, like a weight has lifted off of my shoulders. We were meant to be together. Meant to end this battle between our families. Maybe that’s why I never bothered looking for love, why I put up with Rosie’s repeated rejections—because a part of me knew I was destined for something greater. A part of me has always been waiting for Daphne.
But I can’t explain all of this to reasonable, rational Damien who’s never loved anyone in his life as far as I know, so I simply say, “Yes, I’m sure.”
Almost reluctantly, he lets me out of the car, and we walk together to the elevator. The attorneys at Miles & Abbott have represented the Latsis family for years in corporate law, criminal law, and everything in between. They’ve also gotten Mac and me out of trouble more times than I care to admit. Today, I’m meeting with Harrington Abbott, a family law attorney. He’s never been directly involved with us, but he didn’t ask any questions when I called for the appointment, so I’m sure he knows all about us.
After a short wait, his receptionist shows me into Harrington Abbott’s office while Damien waits in the lobby. The office is what you’d expect—large furniture, walls of books, traditional mahogany guest chairs with metal grommets in the arms. I sit in one, and a few moments later, Mr. Abbott enters. Given the picture on his desk of a beautiful woman about my age with two young boys in her arms, I’m surprised to find he’s older than me, his hair already going a little gray around the temples. He shakes my hand with a firm grip before we sit.
“I finally get to meet the infamous Theodore Latsis.”
“Please, call me Theo,” I tell him.
He nods. “What brings you in today, Theo?”
“I need a prenup drawn up.”
His eyebrows practically disappear into his hairline. “For you? I haven’t heard of any Latsis wedding in the works.”
Trusting attorney-client confidentiality, I tell him, “That’s because it’s a secret.”
“Ah,” he says, already turning to his computer. “Who’s the lucky lady?”
“Daphne Jordan.”
He freezes, his hands hovering over his keyboard, and turns his gaze back on me. “A Latsis-Jordan wedding?”
I nod.
“And no one knows?”
“Not yet,” I answer.
I can see him processing the news. Our feud is notorious, having caused brawls in the streets, putting others in danger, and it’s only gotten more violent in recent years, since the death of my aunt. It doesn’t matter that I’ve never been the instigator; I’ve never done anything to stop it, either. Even though I didn’t agree with everything we’ve done, I never felt the need to take a stand...until now.
His eyes fall on the picture of his family on his desk and he nods as if reaching a decision. “I think this will turn out to be excellent news. I’m glad to see you stepping up for the family in a new, different way.”
I give him the parameters of the prenup—complete and total separation of property—we each leave the marriage with what we brought, and what our companies make during our marriage isn’t property of the other. While I wouldn’t mind giving Daphne everything, I’m doing this for her. To prove to her that our marriage has nothing to do with our businesses or our families. I want her because of her, not because of her last name.