The Billionaire's Elusive Lover (13 page)

Alec couldn’t believe his luck. He was livid that something so ridiculous could happen and on the morning when he’d finally gotten this gorgeous woman to be with him. All he wanted to do was to climb back into bed with her and ignore the crisis that had emerged. But his sense of duty wouldn’t let him.

He was just about to rush out the door, his security detail already alerted to the situation and standing by, when he looked down at Helen. She was curled at the top of the tiny bed, a pillow covering her chest and her long, sexy legs curled underneath her. He could tell that this was not the ideal “morning after”. If he had it his way, he would make love to her one more time, carry her into the shower and soothe every ache he suspected she was feeling, then take her out for a long, leisurely breakfast. Then back to his place for more of the same.

He cursed under his breath when his body reacted to the image in his mind. Dammit, how could he want her after a night of the most incredible sex he’d ever had? How could his body even think along those lines?

Alec stopped rushing, realizing that she was fighting tears and sat down next to her. She was twenty four years old and had just lost her virginity. This must be a monumental morning for her and he wasn’t exactly sure what to say. “Helen…”

“No, Alec. Please, just go,” she said, biting her lower lip and turning her head away. “You have something to do and I…” she took a deep breath, obviously trying to get her emotions under control, “I need some time alone.”

Alec didn’t like that. He didn’t like the fact that she was fighting back tears or the unreasonable need to take her into his arms and make the world right again for her. He wasn’t even sure what was wrong, since everything he’d been feeling ten minutes ago was extremely right.

“I’ll make it up to you, Helen. I promise.”

Helen nodded but she wouldn’t look at him. That, more than anything, bothered him. He put a finger under her chin, forcing her face to his but her eyes were closed. He gently touched her lips and heard her cry but didn’t understand it. “Helen, talk to me. What’s wrong?”

Helen wasn’t sure if she wanted to pound her fists into his chest or curl up in his lap and demand that he fix everything for her. She was too devastated to think properly at this moment though. She was angry with herself for letting this happen. She’d broken her vow to her father and nothing could make it right again, no matter how much she wished it could.

“You have to go,” she said and closed her eyes, refusing to look at him. She didn’t want to see his kindness. Or pity. She wasn’t sure which would be worse. All she wanted to do was to be alone so she could figure out how she was going to deal with this.

“Helen…” he started to say but she shook her head and pushed against his shoulders.

“Please, Alec. I just need to be alone and you have a crisis.”

Alec stood up but he wasn’t happy about this. “We’ll talk about this when I get back. I shouldn’t be more than three days.”

“Fine,” she said, swallowing painfully. In her mind, she knew she’d be unavailable for his calls. She promised herself she wouldn’t ever see him again, knowing that she couldn’t control herself where he was concerned. And she couldn’t do that to her father. She was too ashamed already. She wouldn’t add insult to the situation by becoming Alec’s mistress.

Alec sighed and reluctantly left her apartment. Once he’d closed the door, he had the sudden urge to go back to her, tell her to pack a bag and come with him. But that was ridiculous. She’d be bored in Greece, knowing what he had to deal with. He wouldn’t have any time for her which would only make the situation worse. There was nothing worse than a bored lover.

Of course, a part of him wouldn’t mind a bored Helen, just so long as she was with him. Where that thought came from, he had no idea so he pushed it aside and walked quickly to the bank of elevators. He found his security detail behind him, not even realizing that they’d been standing sentry outside the door.

“Is the plane standing by?” he snapped out, for the first time in his life he was irritated that his business life was imposing on his personal life.

“Yes, sir. The plane is already fueled and there’s a takeoff slot in thirty minutes.”

“Fine,” he said, taking a deep breath.

Chapter 8

Helen listened for the footsteps outside her apartment door, waiting until they were far away before she curled up in a ball and released her emotions. She found the sheet and covered herself as the tears streamed down her face. Curled at the bottom of her bed, she reviewed the evening in her mind, trying to find a point when she could have turned things around, stopped the actual finale from happening. But as the scene flitted from one to the next, she acknowledged that the only way she could have stopped her downfall was to have avoided Alec completely. And if she were completely honest with herself, she admitted that she hadn’t worked hard enough to accomplish that.

How could she have allowed this to happen? She was so ashamed. And embarrassed. She’d heard about the morning after but had never believed it would be this horrible. Humiliating!

The phone ringing beside her bed brought her out of her misery for a moment. Sniffing, she picked up the phone, hoping she didn’t sound like she was crying. With her luck lately, it would be her mother calling who would immediately know something was wrong. Knowing her mother, she’d be over here within the hour, demanding to know everything and congratulating her on finally experiencing sex for the first time.

“Hello?” she said through the phone.

“Hello?” a heavily accented voice replied. “Is this Ms. Helen Miller?”

“Yes,” Helen said, sitting up in the bed and immediately sensing that this wouldn’t be a pleasant phone call. “Who is this?”

“This is the Athens Hospital. I’m sorry to tell you this news over the phone but the distance….” The stranger started to say.

Helen’s whole body tensed. “Athens? What’s wrong? Is my father okay?”

The stranger hesitated. “Is your father Petros Alexander?” she asked carefully.

“Yes, Yes. What’s wrong?” Helen asked, terrified now. “What’s happened?”

“Your father has had a heart attack, ma’am. He’s stable at the moment but is asking to see you.”

A sob tore from her throat. “No!” she cried out. “Please tell me you’ve made a mistake. It can’t be my father!”

The woman’s voice became more firm in an attempt to break through Helen’s panic. “Mr. Alexander is stable but he is asking to see you. Can I tell him you will arrive?”

“Yes!” Helen gasped. “Yes, please. I’ll call back as soon as possible with the flight information. Please tell him I’m on my way and that I love him. Tell him I’m coming!” she cried out, her mind frantically trying to figure out all the arrangements she’d need to make. She took down the hospital’s contact information, promising to call the nurse back as soon as she’d booked a flight.

Helen hung up the phone immediately and logged onto her computer. With fingers that fumbled over almost every key, she searched for the earliest flight she could get out of London to Athens. She didn’t care about money in this circumstance. She had a credit card her father had given her for emergencies and this definitely qualified as one. She’d never used it for anything else, but right now, this wasn’t about her being independent and finding her way in the world on her own skills and resources. This was about getting to her father as soon as possible. After several minutes, she finally found a flight that would leave in an hour.

She called the hospital while shoving clothes into her suitcase, uncaring if they were folded or not. She didn’t carry much, knowing she’d left a whole closet full of clothes at her father’s house. They were a different sort, her father not liking her gypsy style very much and when she was with him, she tried to make him happy by wearing clothes that were a little more conservative and to his liking. So she only needed underwear and the basics until she arrived at his house and the hospital.

She quickly showered and pulled on a pair of jeans and a tee-shirt, slipping her feet into the first thing she could find but grateful that they were comfortable shoes for the long flight. Grabbing her suitcase, purse and passport, she rushed out the door.

After a grueling five hour flight and a chaotic taxi ride to the hospital, Helen finally arrived at the hospital and found out from the nurse’s station that her father was still in the intensive care unit. She was emotionally and physically exhausted after a night of very little sleep, and a plane ride ridden with guilt over her father’s health, sure that she’d brought this on by her behavior of the previous night with Alec.

With trepidation, she walked down the hallway the nurse indicated and pushed open the door. When she saw her father, with all the tubes and monitors coming out of his arms, the breathing tube in his nose and something else down his throat, she could no longer hold back the tears that had been held at bay during the horrible trip.

Slowly moving towards the bed, she watched her father, terrified that if she moved too quickly, she might startle him and create another heart attack.

“Oh, papa!” she whispered, unaware of the tears rolling down her cheeks and dropping onto the white bed sheets. She took his cold hand and sat down in the only chair in the room. Careful not to touch any of the tubes or monitors, she took his hand gently in hers, terrified at the lack of strength. He looked gray and his lips were almost completely white. She couldn’t believe the expression on his face. It was as if he was fighting but couldn’t come out of his sleep to put up a good battle front.

“I’m so sorry,” she wept, bringing his hand to her cheek as she watched his chest rise and fall. “I’ve let you down. I broke my promise to you and I’m so sorry,” she whispered, wishing he was awake so he could hear her apology. “I’ve let you down and I’ve shamed the family name and I promise I’ll never see him again. I’m so sorry you had to find out about it but I promise, papa, I’ll never speak to him, never see him again.”

She squeezed his fingers, wishing she could give him some of her strength. “Papa, please don’t die on me. I promise from now on I’ll be the epitome of a good Greek daughter. Just like you always wanted! I’ll meet all the men you’d like, I’ll seriously consider whichever man you think is best for me, just please don’t leave me. I need you so much! I need your guidance and I’m so confused but I promise I’ll never see him again. Just fight this, papa!”

The nurses rushed into the room, speaking rapidly in Greek but Helen, fluent in the language herself since she’d grown up speaking it whenever she was with her father, understood what they were telling her. Thankfully it was only vital signs they wanted to monitor but she listened, trying to hear anything that might tell her what was going on. And then she looked up…

Chapter 9

Alec was just about to leave the hospital room when the door started opening. He knew he had no right to be here. He wasn’t family but he had the power to overcome the hospital rules. Since it was Alec’s actions which had put the man into the hospital, he guessed it was only right that he see if there was anything he could do to help. He’d flown out here this morning after hearing about the man’s heart attack. When Alec had started the strategy that would eventually take the man’s ships out of his control, Alec hadn’t known that the man would be so angry that a heart attack would result.

When the black, curly head of hair appeared in his line of vision through the doorway, Alec thought he was seeing things simply because Helen had been on his mind so much lately. He’d deeply regretted the necessity of leaving her this morning and had set in motion plans that would expedite his current trip, wanting to get back to her as quickly as possible. Something hadn’t been right when he’d left but he couldn’t think what had gone wrong. Except him leaving. No woman liked to feel rushed after a night of sex. Especially after last night’s incredible sex, he acknowledged. Helen deserved better, he thought. It had been her first time and she deserved, needed, to be treated better. She’d given him a gift and in return, he’d left her the morning after, rushing out without an explanation.

As he watched, thinking he was losing is mind, the rest of her sexy body appeared, in jeans that hugged her cute bottom perfectly and a tee shirt that emphasized her voluptuous curves and tiny waist. She wasn’t wearing any makeup which, in his mind, only made her more beautiful. She had a natural beauty that stunned him, being used to women that wouldn’t dare show their un-made up faces to anyone, much less in his presence.

Her words at the bed of this man astounded him. She was pleading with the man who was obviously her father. Alec couldn’t speak for a long moment, his mind working through the details. He’d known that the man had a daughter but his reports hadn’t dug into her identity. Alec had been going after the man’s company, not his family. This was just business and if the man couldn’t take care of his business, then he didn’t deserve to run it, in Alec’s mind. Nothing personal, just business.

Now, seeing his Helen weeping beside the man’s bed, holding his hand, it suddenly became personal. Alec’s mind tried to work but he couldn’t put the pieces together just yet.

Then her words sunk in. What had she promised? Who was she never going to see? Was it him? Hell no! There wasn’t any way he’d let her follow through on that promise! And just who the hell was her father going to marry her off to? His Helen was going to become a good Greek daughter? How was she going to accomplish that, he wondered. Good Greek daughters married and had babies but his Helen wasn’t going to marry anyone! She was his!