Rumour?
Libby stared at him, wondering just how much he knew. The hospital grapevine had obviously worked overtime. 'Did you know that Philip tried to buy me?'
'No.' Alex's smile faded and his blue eyes suddenly lost their warmth. 'I didn't know he was turning up or I would have been there. He and I need to have a chat.'
Libby watched as her brother's fingers tightened around his mug. For a brief moment both of them had forgotten Adrienne's presence. 'Defending my honour, Alex?'
'Maybe.'
Libby swallowed, touched by her brother's protectiveness. 'Would you have hit him?'
'Into the next county,' Alex drawled lightly, 'so maybe it's just as well I didn't go. I gather someone outbid him?'
Oh, yes. Someone had definitely outbidden him.
Libby stared at her plate, her mind suddenly full of Andreas. His broad shoulders, his powerful musculature and the aura of strength that surrounded him.
All her instincts warned her that he was the sort of man who broke hearts.
He was absolutely the last person that she ought to be daydreaming about.
So why couldn't she get him out of her mind?
'Lib?' Alex leaned forward, his blue gaze sharp. 'Come on. Tell your big brother.'
Libby felt her colour rise and cursed inwardly as she saw Alex smile knowingly. It was impossible to hide anything from him.
'He's not really my big brother,' Libby told Adrienne, keeping her voice light to disguise the hammering of her heart. 'We're triplets. He was born about three minutes before our sister Katy. I was last.'
Adrienne stared at them in fascination. 'Triplets? You lucky things. How wonderful to be one of three.'
'Not that wonderful,' Libby said, glaring at her brother, but Adrienne sighed wistfully.
'I think it's great. I would have done anything to have had a brother or sister and you've got both.'
Alex leaned forward, his voice gentle. 'You're an only child?'
Adrienne nodded. 'And my mum and dad died in a boating accident in Greece when I was tiny. I've lived with my Grandma for the past twelve years but she had to have a hip operation and now she's decided that she's too old to look after me now and that's why I've come to live with Andreas.'
Alex listened carefully to this tumbled speech and his gaze swivelled to Libby.
'And who's Andreas?'
'He's the man who bought me last night, Alex. Remember? I was for sale, and you were supposed to buy me.'
Completely unrepentant, Alex lifted a dark eyebrow. 'How much did he pay?'
'Andreas bought you?' Adrienne's eyes were like saucers and Libby suppressed a groan. She'd forgotten that the child didn't know the story.
'He just bought a date with me, that's all,' she said quickly, throwing a warning glance at Alex. 'The money was for a good cause. It was all very harmless.'
Except that the sum hadn't been harmless. He'd paid a small fortune for the privilege of spending an evening with her.
Adrienne's eyes were very round. 'Wow. That doesn't sound like him. Andreas is very picky about women. Especially women he doesn't know. He doesn't trust them. Grandma says it's because he's handsome, Greek and a millionaire,' she said ingenuously. 'They're after him for the wrong reasons. So why you were sleeping in our spare room?'
Aware of her brother's amused gaze, Libby gritted her teeth. 'It's a bit complicated.'
Alex drained his coffee-cup. 'I'll just bet it is,' he muttered under his breath, and Libby rolled her eyes in frustration.
Whoever thought it was great to be a triplet had never had a brother as infuriating as Alex.
'None of this would have happened,' she snarled, 'if you'd fulfilled your brotherly duty and bought me.'
Alex stood up, as cool and relaxed as ever. 'Of course, there's always the possibility that he might have outbid me if he's that rich.'
'You're filthy rich and I'm your sister!' Libby looked at him in exasperation. 'You should have been prepared to pay whatever it took.'
'To keep you out of the clutches of a handsome Greek millionaire?' Alex's eyes brimmed with laughter. 'I don't think so. I think he could be just what my baby sister needs.'
Libby stared at him, a suspicion forming in her mind. 'You did it on purpose, didn't you?' she said slowly, her eyes narrowing as she looked at him. 'You never intended to buy me.'
'I've always been very careful with my money,' Alex said lightly, 'and, anyway, there's nothing like a new love affair to take your mind off your old one. You needed a distraction from Philip.'
He lifted one broad shoulder in a careless shrug and with a conspiratorial wink at Adrienne he strolled out of the room, leaving Libby fuming.
He was so infuriating.
'He's gorgeous,' Adrienne whispered, her eyes still fixed on the door as if she was hoping that Alex would reappear. 'Really, really handsome. Those blue eyes are amazing.'
'He's dangerous,' Libby muttered, pushing her plate away and reaching for her coffee. 'Wherever he goes, he leaves a trail of broken hearts and sobbing women.'
At that moment her brother was not her favourite person.
'Like Andreas,' Adrienne observed wisely, and Libby smiled wryly.
She could imagine that it was true.
Andreas Christakos was staggeringly good-looking and if he was rich as well then that would be enough for most women.
But not her.
She was far too cynical to be taken in by a handsome face and buckets of sex appeal.
And she certainly wasn't interested in his money.
She stood up and smiled at Adrienne. 'Come on. Let's do your hair before he picks you up.'
Andreas rang the doorbell and glanced at his watch in frustration.
He was much, much later than he'd planned. Stabilising the little girl in A and E had taken a long time and in the end he'd admitted her to the ward, leaving instructions with the staff that they were to call him if there was any change in her condition. It had been a nasty attack.
The door opened and, instead of Libby, he found himself staring at a tall, dark-haired man with very blue eyes.
Andreas tensed and the warmth of his greeting froze on his lips.
This was not what he'd expected. It had never occurred to him that Libby could be living with someone.
His reaction to the evidence that she had another man in her life was so intense that he sucked in a breath as he felt a rush of that most basic of emotions-
Jealousy.
The man extended a hand, his expression friendly. 'I'm Alex-Libby's brother. You must be the guy who bought her. I tell you now, you should get yourself a refund. The girl's high maintenance and she costs a fortune in chocolate and shoes.'
Brother?
The tension left his shoulders and Andreas smiled warmly. The knowledge that she lived with her brother and not her boyfriend caused him a significant amount of relief.
'Come on in.' Alex stood to one side to let him pass. 'The girls are in the bedroom. I don't know what's going on but there's lots of giggling.'
'It was kind of her to bring Adrienne home.' Andreas glanced around him, noticing the elegance of the spacious apartment. 'Your sister is good with children.'
Alex gave a short laugh. 'Better with children than she is with adults. Can I get you a drink?'
Andreas smiled and shook his head. 'No, thanks. I need to take Adrienne back to school.' He ran a hand over his darkened jaw. 'That's if I can persuade her to go back.'
At that moment a door opened and Adrienne came flying out, her face happy and smiling.
'Guess what? Libby's promised to pick me up from school and take me shopping one day soon.'
She had? Why would she do a thing like that?
Andreas hid his surprise. A day shopping with a twelve-year-old girl bent on choosing a totally unsuitable wardrobe wasn't his idea of relaxation. Why would Libby have volunteered for the task? She had no reason to want to help Adrienne.
He looked at Libby curiously but she carefully avoided his gaze.
Adrienne slipped an arm through his and looked sheepish. 'I'm sorry I ran away. Did you ring the school? Were they furious?'
'Yes, I rang and, no, they weren't furious. They were worried.' Andreas rubbed a hand over the back of his neck, wondering how he was going to help her to settle in. For all his experience with women, he knew nothing about twelve-year-old girls. 'It's a good school, Adrienne.'
Adrienne pulled a face. 'I suppose the teachers are OK but I haven't got any friends.'
'You've only been there for a week,' Libby said quietly. 'These things take time. Remember what we said.'
'Yeah.' Adrienne nodded and then looked at Andreas. 'Can we go for a pizza before you take me back?'
Relieved to have avoided a long drawn-out debate about whether she should go back at all, Andreas smiled. Whatever Libby had said to the child, it had obviously made an impact. 'Yes, we can go for pizza.'