Surrender: The Greek Affair Series Book One (8 page)

“In Melbourne.”

“With his father?”

“Yes.” And she clams up, because she doesn’t want to talk about her family and he instinctively understands.

“Sorry, I did not mean to pry.”

But he did and she finds she has to explain that she did not abandon her child.

“He is there for a break. He lives with me.”

And with that he takes the conversation on another path.

“Do you like music?”

“I can’t live without music; it calms me. It also makes me a better person.”

“What do you listen to?”

“Everything!” and with that statement he switches on the radio with the iPod connected, and the sublime voice of Maria Callas singing Un bel di Vedremo from Madam Butterfly caresses her ears. How does he know what this music does to her? He looks at her as if understanding.

“Good?”

Oh yes, yes, yes… she lays her head back in the seat of the car and replies, “very, very good” and they need not talk. He has put it on repeat. The hair follicles on their heads are dancing and all the hair on their bodies are being caressed.

They arrive at the airport with Maria Callas blaring. He parks the car, and gives Hope a lingering look before he switches off the motor, silencing the music. She looks at him and they understand each other for whatever that meant to each of them.

It’s the height of the tourist season and the small provincial airport is buzzing with people waiting for the disembarking passengers from Athens, the last flight for the day.

Hope sees Pétro and waves, jumping up and down like a teenager. He sees her and she sees that wonderful cheeky smile. As usual he looks immaculate; he always manages to look like he has popped out of a men’s fashion magazine. He’s always fashionable and smart and after all, that is his trade. He designs accessories for big fashion houses all over the world, which allows him to travel and to live in any city, these days he lives between New York and Athens. But most of all, she feels his warmth already from a distance; he is so dear to her, as if he is part of her family, and in a strange way he is part of her family; he is the sibling she had never had. All the time she’s aware that Jason is standing a fraction behind her, watching her reaction to her friend.

Hope flies into Pétro’s arms and they hug and kiss on both cheeks and in his usual manner, he pushes her back at arm’s length and looks at her to make sure he approves of her dress sense.

“You look gorgeous, sweet girl. The sun has put a rose in your cheeks.” They hug again and she takes stock that she needs to introduce him to Jason.

“Jason, this my best friend Pétro. Pétro, Jason.” They shake hands.

Jason, “Pleased to meet you.”

Pétro, “Likewise.”

“Pétro, Jason is a new friend and he was kind enough to drive me to the airport tonight.” she looks at both of them, “Shall we get your suitcase?”

Pétro always manages to have too much luggage, even for a few days, there is nothing like fashion for him - it’s an obsession. They move towards the moving baggage. Jason is in front of them and he can’t see Hope and Pétro. Pétro looks at Hope, opens his eyes wide and mouths OMG. Hope nudges him hard sideways and tries to suppress a smile, biting her cheek and lowering her head. Yes, she knows he is devastatingly good looking. And she knows Pétro wants to know the whole story, but she doesn’t have a story, and neither is she likely to have one.

Once they have the suitcase, they get to the car, pile in and they are off. Hope sits in the front passenger seat and twists her body around to talk to her friend. “Well, news please!” “Sweetie, nothing really, as you already know about things and anyway, we have talked. I’m looking forward to just relaxing and partying a little.”

Hope looks at the time, it’s almost midnight: “What do you want to do, hotel for a rest or would you like a drink, or food?”

“Rest! What’s that?” he laughs, “Can we combine a couple of things, a drink with some good music and maybe a little dancing.”

Hope looks at Jason, “Jason you can drop us off if it’s too much for you.”

What did she just say? Has her mouth disconnected from her brain cells again?

He turns his head to look at her with a frown: “Are you dismissing me?”

“God no, did that sound like a dismissal? I just meant that I don’t want to drag you around or have you do things that we want to do.”

He looks at her for as long as possible considering he is driving, turns to face the road and says. “I was the one that offered to drive you to pick up your friend wasn’t I?”

Then he looks at her again, pouting his bottom lip. “Please, can I come with you?” and they both start laughing, introducing his playful side to her. And at that moment Jason falls in love with her laugh. For a woman with so much angst, she has a melodic and very happy laugh.

Hope looks at Pétro and he gives her one of those annoyed looks, as if she had screwed things up. Well, she almost did, and he says, “Ok, you two, stop trying to get rid of each other. Where are we going?”

They talk a little more about the venues available with good music and make a decision. Pétro and Hope chat away, while Jason concentrates on the road and is silent. He is very present in his silence though, and she hopes she has not been that insensitive with her comment to drop “us off”. What was she thinking? But yes, she knows she was not thinking. She can’t think when it comes to him. He makes her nervous in a very delicious way. She has never felt like this with any previous encounters whether sexual, or just flirtatious.

They end up at the same club where she saw Jason for the second time, and where he offered her a lift that she declined, it was only a few days ago, and here she is with him and her dearest friend - the three of them.

It’s great to be here again, she thinks They walk in and she sees all the people she was with last time. While the boys look for a place to park themselves and get drinks, she does the meet and greet around the club; lots of kisses… Greeks love to kiss and hug and she is no exception.

The boys have found a small table tucked away in a corner near a big palm in a huge pot plant. Their drinks come and they raise them and clink.
“Stin igiá mas”
.

They can’t talk much as they can’t hear each other over the music and Pétro feels the music, and drags Hope to the dance floor. They dance well together. They have been each other’s dates on many occasions. Hope feels free when she dances with him; she is herself and he is the only person in the world that knows all her secrets, her pain and her lost soul and she knows all about him.

He shouts in her ear, wanting to know what the deal is with Jason. She tells him there is no deal and he looks at her as if she’s crazy. She becomes painfully aware that Jason is looking at them and she suggests they sit down, as he has been left alone. They hold hands and go back to their table to Jason’s company. Hope hates making people feel like a third wheel.

They sit. She fans herself. She has a drink. She becomes aware that Jason is looking at her. They sit through a couple of more songs, tapping their feet and hands and one of Hope’s favourite songs comes on: ‘We’re on the road to Nowhere’ by Talking Heads. Just the title of this song epitomises her life. Her body starts to move in her chair, looking at Pétro and smiling, as he knows her tastes in music. Suddenly, Jason grabs her hand and before she knows it, she is on the dance floor with the best looking male from within a few hundred kilometre-radius, or maybe even, in the whole country! He pulls her to the middle of the dance floor and he bends over and says in her ear.

“So let’s dance to one of your songs,” How does he know?

And he begins to move and can he move! Hope suddenly becomes the best dancer she has ever been. He twirls her, pulls her close to his body, while he gyrates to the music, she feels his body with its hard abs, the suggestiveness of his moves make her want to rip his shirt off and watch the buttons fly all over the dance floor, while everyone is looking at them. No man should be allowed to dance so well, and move their body like this! She bets with herself that he moves like this with a woman’s body underneath him. It’s a sin. “He’s not allowed to be so sexy”, she thinks,” and so good looking at the same time, as well as intelligent!”

Jason controls Hope’s body on the dance floor and feels a heat between them, hoping it is not just on his side. Heat like this can only be felt if it’s reciprocated; it can not possibly be one sided.

He wants to control her body while she is underneath him, he wants to see her face as he pleasures her, to watch her as she comes, he would make sure she would come many times. As he holds her against himself he can feel how well she fits him, surely she feels that too?

He can see her dewy skin, her face and neck and he wants to bend over and lick it all off, knowing she would taste salty and smell like flowers. She always smells like fresh flowers; a little rose and jasmine, but it’s not perfume. It’s her delicate skin. Her curls as they twirl with her, smell like her skin.

Jason makes her blood pound just from his close proximity and his energy, and as he twirls her and she ends up on his chest, he breathes down the side of her cheek, and she gives in to all her carnal feelings. She lets herself go to the rhythm of the music and enjoys the song, telling herself that she’s on the road to nowhere anyway, so why fight this?

As he holds her she can feel the dampness of his shirt and the fresh odour from his perfect body and she tries her best to reign in her galloping libido. She looks over at Pétro and sees him looking at her. He gives her that cheeky smile of his as if to say, “I know what’s going on”… there is nothing going on except in her wayward body. The song finishes. Jason holds her hand and leads them back to their table.

“Hey guys, can we call it a day or night if you like,” Pétro voices wearily.

Simultaneously and in one breath they all say, “Ok. Let’s go”,

Jason asks Hope’s friend where he is staying so he can drop him off. Hope begins to panic. Hell, she’s going to be left alone with Jason at night. What is it about the night? Meeting on a bench in the afternoon when he was always in a hurry, that was easy. This is another ball game altogether!

They get into Jason’s car and all are silent. It’s late and they are tired. Jason takes Pétro to his hotel room and he and Hope make a date for the next day to ring each other. Jason drives Hope back to her house. It’s about 3am and not one word is exchanged between them. The air is heavy with anticipation and electricity that is radiating from both of them; two opposite poles cause this energy.

Hope feels lost. She has no idea what she is doing, out so late with a Greek god and Greek gods have so much power! Jason needs a cigarette so badly he is not sure if his palpitations are from that need, or the closeness of Hope. Maybe from both! He must stop smoking, but he must have Hope. They both get out of the car and walk to the gate of Hope’s staircase, leading to her upstairs flat.

“Thank you so much for everything tonight. You have been truly wonderful company.”

Jason stands in front of her staring into her iridescent eyes. He gently takes her face in both his hands and kisses her on the mouth very softly, barely touching her lips, he stands back dropping his hands, looks at her with a questioning look, as if asking for permission and waits.

Hope moves and kisses him back in the same tender way. He moves closer without touching her and runs his lips on her lips, and over her face where the sun has bleached the fuzz on her fine delicate skin, their hearts pounding in unison.

Hope feels foolish. The age difference rears its ugly head. She starts to chastise herself in her mind and tries to compose herself. And so, she pulls away. He stands there as cool as ice and she thinks, ‘stay in control’, while her knees are turning into jelly and she can feel all the hairs on her body doing a dance.

He is barely in control, but he knows he has to hold it together, because he might not get another chance like this. They say nothing, standing there for a while. Hope is fidgeting with her hands, with her head bent, while Jason stands there looking at her, his heart in his stomach, waiting for her approval.

After a minute or two Hope in a hypnotic condition takes his hand, and leads him through the Iron Gate up the stairs to the front door of her home. He comes willingly, but she is telling herself all this time, ‘What the hell are you doing, Hope? Get a grip,’ she grips his hand and leads him.

She lets go of his hand to search for her keys from inside her clutch bag, a bag that Pétro had made for her. She doesn’t turn the outside light on, as she is too embarrassed about what she’s about to do. She finds the key, puts it in the keyhole and turns the lock. This seems to be going in slow motion and she has lost the will to think.

She’s running the engine on something called lust.

Chapter Eight

They enter the house without turning on the lights; there is enough light streaming in through the verandah glass doors from the moonlit-lit night. Hope slides open the verandah doors and lets in the sultry summer breeze. It’s a full moon and they can see each other well. He looks around her flat and she avoids looking at him while she fiddles with things that need not be fiddled with. She is not actually doing anything, just pretending he’s not there and he gives her the space she needs to adjust her feelings. Hope feels vulnerable and at a loss as to what to do. It’s not the first time she has had a summer affair with a man on a Greek Island; summer affairs on Greek Islands are frequently enjoyed and then abandoned at the end of the summer, when real life sets in. But they both know that this is more than a summer affair - but not to what extent.