The Greek Billionaire's Innocent Rrincess(8)

and through the cave he could see the sea shimmering silver in the moonlight, but as he emerged

onto the beach he stopped abruptly, and his heart kicked in his chest. For a moment he wondered

if his mind was playing tricks on him, but the woman standing a few feet away from him was

undoubtedly real, and her hourglass figure was instantly recognisable—even without her clothes.#p#分页标题#e#





Kitty swam right across the bay and back again with clean, strong strokes and then flipped onto

her back and stared up at the moon, and the crystal stars that studded the midnight sky. She felt

bold and empowered—as unashamedly naked as Eve had been in the Garden of Eden. There was

something wickedly sensuous about the silken slide of the water over her bare limbs. She loved

swimming and in the water she felt as light and graceful as a water nymph—at peace with her

body instead of hating it for not conforming to the model slender form she had tried, through

numerous diets and exercise regimes, to acquire.



Vasilis wouldn’t be so ready to taunt her about her supposed sexual hang-ups if he could see her

now, she thought as she turned onto her front and allowed the waves to carry her back to the

shore. The beach was shadowed and mysterious in the moonlight. The huge boulders that stood

guard at either end of the cove loomed like faceless giants, but despite the darkness and her

short-sightedness Kitty could distinctly make out the figure of a man, and her heart almost leapt

from her chest.



Dear God! Had Vasilis followed her? Fear uncoiled in the pit of her stomach, a wave caught her

unawares and dragged her under, and she bobbed back to the surface gagging from the salt water

she’d swallowed but desperate not to cough and attract the attention of the intruder. It had to be

Vasilis. Few of the other guests at the ball were aware of the path leading from the palace to the

beach, but Vasilis knew about it and had come here several times with her brothers.



The prospect of meeting her tormentor on the secluded beach sent a shiver of trepidation down

Kitty’s spine. She had seen the way he’d looked at her on the terrace, his lecherous grin that had

changed to anger when she’d made it clear that she wanted nothing to do with him. Vasilis would

not have dared lay a finger on her outside the ballroom, but here there was no one to help her—

or hear her scream.



Clouds drifted across the moon, blotting out its brilliant gleam and plunging the beach into pitch

blackness, and, seizing her chance, Kitty tore up the sand and crouched behind a rock. Her breath

came in shallow gasps and her heart was pounding when the figure strolled down towards the

water’s edge.



‘Hello, Rina,’ he drawled. ‘This is the second time tonight I’ve caught you playing hooky.

Shouldn’t you be busy at work at the ball?’



For a few seconds shock rendered Kitty speechless. ‘ You! ’ she spluttered at last as the clouds above them parted and moonlight danced across Nikos Angelaki’s sculpted features. Attack

seemed the best form of defence and although her nakedness forced her to remain behind the

rock her voice was sharp when she snapped, ‘Do you know you’re trespassing? This is a private

beach.’



‘Indeed it is. It belongs to the royal family, and I have express permission from Prince Sebastian

to be here,’ Nikos replied coolly. ‘The only trespasser is you—unless the prince has suddenly

opened up the beach for use by the palace staff. Do you have permission to be here, Rina?’



Kitty stared at him wordlessly, not knowing how to answer without revealing her true identity.

She was agonisingly aware that she was naked, and she wished a hole would appear at her feet

and swallow her up. ‘The party hasn’t finished yet. What are you doing here?’ she mumbled in a

voice thick with embarrassment.



In the pearly light cast by the moon she saw Nikos shrug. ‘It was hot in the ballroom, and I

decided to walk down to the beach for some fresh air. I could hardly believe my eyes when I

came through the cave and caught sight of you.’



‘You should have said something. I believed I was alone,’ Kitty said miserably, burning up with

mortification when she recalled how she had stripped out of her clothes. She prayed Nikos had

arrived after she had run into the sea, but he swiftly shattered her tenuous hope.



‘I was afraid I’d startle you,’ he drawled. His voice dipped and the amusement in his tone was

mixed with something else. ‘Besides, what red-blooded male would have spoken out and risked

spoiling the show? I was so careful not to make a sound that I barely drew breath.’ He paused for