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Whether she remained here with Georgios or flew back to England alone, it would always hold a special place in her heart. She refused to consider that Theo might have something to do with it.

They pulled up outside the villa with a squeal of brakes, tumbling out, laughing over something Eleni had said. Theo was driving, so he took the vehicle round to the garage at the side of the house and Georgios draped a careless arm about Miranda’s shoulder.

'I've enjoyed today very much,' he said. ‘I hope you have too? Spraining your ankle can’t have been much fun-’

‘It’s been wonderful,’ said Miranda, smiling up into his face. A strange feeling came over her. How could Georgios touch her, talk to her, smile at her, yet not recall living with her, making love to her? She carried his baby. He had a right to know. It was wrong to keep it a secret, no matter what Theo said.

Eleni and Nikos had run on ahead. She was alone once again with her husband. It suddenly became important that she tell him. ‘Georgios,’ she began, ‘there’s something you ought to know. Theo was lying when he said you’d never been to ’

But Georgios was not listening. His hand had dropped from her shoulder, his steps faltering until he stood motionless, staring towards the villa, at the woman who had appeared on the verandah.

She was a tall striking woman with flashing black eyes and a haughty tilt to her chin. She wore a bright red dress that clung to her voluptuous figure like a second skin, her long fingernails painted to match.

Her lips were parted in an uncertain smile as she moved towards Georgios, her hips swaying sexily. Not for one moment did she take her eyes from his face.

Miranda looked from her to Georgios. It was clear the woman knew him, but did she know that he had lost his memory? His brows were creased in a tight frown as he struggled to remember.

Even as she watched comprehension dawned and he paled. ‘Zoe! You’ve—come back?’

He spoke in English, but the woman answered in Greek, accentuating her words with quick nervous gestures of her elegant hands. She paused to look questioningly at Miranda, then continued as if she was not there, finally flinging her arms round Georgios’s neck and pressing her lips to his.

Whatever Miranda had expected it was not for Georgios to return her kisses with an eagerness that embarrassed her. She tinned away, was relieved when she saw Theo walking towards them, his dark eyes taking in the touching little scene.

Neither Georgios nor the woman named Zoe heard him approach. They were temporarily lost in a world of their own. Miranda felt her cheeks flame even as Theo placed a protective arm about her shoulders.

‘I think Georgios’s memory has returned,’ she said in a choking whisper. ‘At least he seems to know this woman. Who is she?’

His fingers tightened, digging painfully into the soft flesh of her upper arms. ‘That—’ said Theo grimly, ‘is Georgios’s wife.’

Georgios’s wife, wife, wife. The word echoed mockingly in Miranda’s ears. Seconds later she fell in a dead faint.

Miranda
gained consciousness as Theo carried her into the villa. Her eyes fluttered open and she struggled in his arms, recalling all too vividly the piece of information he had given her.

He held her more tightly and she looked up into his strong face, seeing a compassion and gentleness that had never been there before.

‘Tell me it’s not true!’ she shrilled. ‘Tell me I’m dreaming.
I
am Georgios’s wife, not that woman! Where is she? Where is Georgios? I must talk to him. He’ll remember me now, he’ll tell me you’re lying. Put me down, Theo.
Put me down!’

To her own ears she sounded hysterical. She
was
hysterical. This was a nightmare. It couldn’t be true. Theo was making it up, it was yet another way of getting rid of her. Yet he looked concerned—as though he cared how she felt. Which was ludicrous. Theo cared about no one except himself—and maybe his mother.

‘Lie still,’ he ordered softly. ‘You’re in no state to walk.’

‘I want Georgios,’ she repeated stubbornly, not caring that she sounded like a child in a tantrum. She tried to look over his shoulder, but the whipcord arms bound her to him. She felt the throb of his heart and the warmth of his body, but for once was immune.

Theo laid her on a couch in the sitting room. The second he released her she struggled up, but he pushed her back down and kept his arm for a moment across her waist. ‘The time has come for the truth,’ he said. ‘I had hoped to spare you this ordeal. I had hoped to get you back to England before any of this came out. When I sent for Georgios I never realised things had gone this far. He has a lot to answer for.’

‘He sure has!’ Miranda sounded bitter. ‘That woman’s not his wife—he married me. And what do you mean,
you
sent for him? Why? Because he was living with me and you wanted to put an end to the relationship—or was it really because his mother was ill? I must admit she didn’t look so ill as I expected. Was it an excuse?’ In that moment she hated Theo very much. If he hadn’t interfered none of this would have happened.

‘My mother is extremely ill,’ he said gravely. ‘Only her strong constitution keeps her going. She refuses to give in. It upset her a great deal when Georgios and Zoe split up. Not a day went by when she did not ask about him. I didn’t tell her he was living with another woman—it would have broken her heart. It didn’t do her much good when he lost his memory, but at least he was home. I think she’s only hanging on to see him and Zoe back together.’

Miranda closed her eyes and shuddered. If Zoe was Georgios’s wife—and it did not sound as though there was any doubt about it—what did that make
her?
‘What happened?’ she asked weakly. ‘Why did he leave her?’

‘She left him,’ said Theo tightly. Miranda looked at him and saw the grim line of his mouth. ‘She was never happy. She’s a very strong-willed woman and she found Georgios—weak. She walked out frequently, but always came back. I think deep down she loved him. On the last occasion, though, she swore she would never return. It was an ultimatum. She expected Georgios to go after her. He didn’t, he simply disappeared too. No one knew where he had gone.’

‘I suppose that was when he came to England?’ said Miranda weakly. ‘How did you find him?’

‘I employed someone to trace him,' he said. ‘My mother was so distraught that I needed to know where he was in case—he was needed here. I told no one.’

‘But you knew he’d married me?’

‘I knew he was living with a woman,’ said Theo. ‘I didn’t realise he’d been foolish enough to go through with a bigamous marriage. My God, if he’d wanted to bed a woman he could have done it without breaking the law!’

Miranda looked at him coldly. ‘As a matter of fact, the idea was mine. Strange as it may seem, there are some women who prefer to keep themselves for the man they marry.’

‘Meaning you wouldn’t go to bed with him unless he put a ring on your finger?’ He looked disgusted. ‘Poor Georgios! I wonder what he’d say if he knew I could make love to you any time I want to.’

‘No, you couldn’t,’ cried Miranda indignantly. ‘How dare you say such a thing!’ But beneath her outrage she had to admit it was true. He had never pressed her that far, but such were the feelings he could arouse that if he ever persisted she would be unable to refuse. ‘And I suppose it was you who returned my letters?’ she demanded. ‘You’ve known about me all along, despite what you’ve said!’

Theo inclined his head. ‘It was a necessity, and he’s certainly got himself into a mess now because of your precious virtue. How he’s going to explain you to Zoe, I don’t know. More especially the baby. She’s not going to like that, not one little bit. If they’d had a child in the first place it might have saved their marriage—your child could ruin it.’

‘My
child?’ Miranda looked up the length of his body until she found his eyes.
‘Mine?
It’s as much your brother’s. I want to see him. Where is he, for God’s sake? Go and find him, will you?’

‘I think,’ said Theo, smiling calmly, ‘he’ll come looking for you before long. It will be quite interesting to see how he tries to get out of it.’

Again Miranda shuddered and closed her eyes, and she was so pale that Theo bent over her. ‘Would you like a glass of water, some brandy maybe? I realise it’s been a shock. I wish I could have spared you finding out like this.’

‘You could,’ shot Miranda strongly, looking at him with cold resentment in her beautiful green eyes. ‘You could have told me. Why was it all so hush-hush? Even poor Georgios didn’t know what he’d done. Can you imagine the shock he must be feeling now?’

But no more than she felt. It crushed her completely to realise she was not legally married to Georgios. That her poor baby would have no father. How could he have done this to her? Why had he done it, for goodness’ sake?

‘He has no one but himself to blame for marrying you,’ said Theo harshly. ‘But so far as his amnesia is concerned, well ’ He sat down on the edge of the couch near Miranda’s feet. ‘The doctors felt it was his body’s way of shutting out something that was painful. The fact that his marriage wasn’t a success was his own fault—and he knew it, so subconsciously he didn’t want to remember. The doctor said that if we reminded him of his inadequacies it would retard his progress, that maybe he would never regain his memory. He told us not to mention his wife at all because she was the psychological block.’

He looked at Miranda bitterly. ‘I realise now that you, too, must have lain heavily on his mind. There
was more than we realised that he didn’t want to remember. When you came on the scene claiming you were his wife, can you imagine how I felt? I’d no idea how I was going to stop you from telling everyone what he’d done. My only consolation was that no one but me knew he’d been to England.’

At last Miranda was getting a clear picture, but it did not excuse his brother for what he had done. The more she thought about Georgios’s deception the more angry she became, and because Theo was with her it was Theo she attacked.

‘So you decided to be as nasty to me as you possibly could, rather than tell me the truth? Didn’t it occur to you that it would have been by far the kindest thing to do, instead of making me feel as if I was going out of my mind?’

‘I couldn’t take the risk,’ he said.

‘What risk?’ she snapped.

‘That you might tell Georgios. Can you imagine the strain it would have put him under? It was exactly what the doctor was trying to avoid.’

‘No more than the strain he must be feeling now,’ she cried. ‘He won’t thank you for what you’ve done, I’m quite sure.’

Theo looked at her coldly. ‘He hadn’t lost his memory when he married you. He knew exactly what he was doing. If it bothers him now it’s his own fault.’

‘My God, you’re hard!’ said Miranda strongly. ‘I’m glad you’re not my brother. You’d do no one any favours. What do you want me to do now, go home before Zoe discovers what he’s done?’

‘After thinking about it, I feel he won’t tell her,’ he said. ‘And I don’t want you to say anything either. For one thing, it won’t help their marriage, for another Zoe would be sure to tell my mother, and this is
something she must never find out. He must not bring disgrace to the family.’

‘Georgios should have thought of that,’ she cried. ‘Why should I keep quiet? He’s ruined my life, does he deserve any better?’

Theo looked into her heated face and there was sorrow in his eyes. ‘My mother does,’ he said quietly. ‘You admitted you’re fond of her, so for her sake, if no one else’s, I ask you to hold your tongue.’

Miranda turned her head away, clenching her teeth in bitter despair. Her whole life was in shreds because of this family, and he asked her to say nothing!

‘I think I’d like to go to my room,’ she said faintly. She needed time to think, to sort herself out. Georgios had evidently taken Zoe off somewhere to patch up their quarrel, Eleni and Nikos were—goodness knows where. They had probably found themselves a quiet corner where they could be alone, having not yet discovered that the errant Zoe had returned.

No sooner had she spoken than she felt Theo’s arms about her, swinging her up, holding her firm against his muscular chest. ‘It’s best,’ he said. ‘You need to rest.’ He felt her trembling. ‘I think I should call the doctor. In your condition--’

‘You know nothing about my condition,’ she cried angrily. ‘For Pete’s sake stop fussing! I’m perfectly all right. I want to be alone with my thoughts, that’s all. You’ve no idea what it’s like to be told your husband is no longer your husband, that he never has been, that you’ve been breaking the law, living in sin.’

‘In sin?’ He looked amused. ‘I thought in your country no one cared much about that sort of thing these days?’

‘I do,’ she declared loudly. ‘Put me down! I can
walk upstairs quite easily. There’s no need to treat me like an invalid.’

Very carefully Theo did as she asked. ‘Would you like Eleni to keep you company? Or Katie perhaps to help you into bed?’

‘I’m not going to bed,’ she protested. ‘Just leave me alone. It’s your fault this has happened. If you’d told me the truth when I got here I’d have accepted it by now and gone back home. I hate you, Theo, I really do, and I pity any girl who’s foolish enough to marry you. You’ve no idea what makes a woman tick. I doubt you’ve ever taken the time to find out. You always do what you think is best, regardless that someone might get hurt!’

She swung away and headed towards the door, wishing her legs felt stronger. They were going to let her down before she got out of the room. But somehow she made it, and when Theo did not follow she was able to pause outside and rest.

He had not looked pleased by her outburst, but it was time someone told him a few home-truths. She was right, no matter what he thought. He was almost forty, and not married. It spoke for itself. No one wanted him. He was far too dictatorial, he had had his own way for too long to ever care about anyone else.