'Andreas.' Libby cleared her throat and tried again. 'Where are we going?'
He gave her a sideways glance. 'We're going on that date you owe me.'
Date?
He flicked the indicator and took the exit road that led to the airport and she lifted a hand to her aching head, totally confused.
'What date? Why are we at the airport?'
Andreas pulled up outside the terminal building and shifted in his seat so that he was facing her.
'You still owe me that date, Libby,' he said softly, lifting a hand to cup her face. 'I'm claiming it now. You've got a week off. You're spending it with me.'
She opened her mouth to speak but he was already out of the car, handing his keys to a man in a uniform and removing two bags from the boot.
Libby recognised one of the bags as hers.
She leapt out of the car, waiting while he paid the man and signalled for a porter.
'You packed a bag for me?' She stared at him incredulously and he shrugged.
'Not exactly. I had some help. Katy told me she owed you a suitcase full of clothes.'
Katy.
Libby groaned. 'I switched the contents of her suitcase when she went abroad with Jago. Katy always insisted on dressing really conservatively to hide her looks so Alex and I gave her a completely new wardrobe. She didn't know until she arrived in Spain and unpacked.'
Andreas laughed. 'Well, it seems as though you're not the only sister capable of being devious. And now we need to hurry or we'll miss our flight.'
Libby ran her tongue over dry lips. 'Andreas, I can't just go away with you.'
'Why not?'
Because she didn't trust him.
Because she was trying to put some distance between them and she couldn't possibly do that if they were together all week.
She opened her mouth to voice another protest but he was already striding towards the terminal building and she was forced to run to catch up with him.
'All right, if you want a date, I'll go on a date with you, but this is ridiculous.' She was half running, half walking, but he didn't slow his pace.
'Why is it ridiculous?' He shot her a smile and walked up to the check-in desk. 'I always told you that my idea of a date wasn't pizza. You just never asked what my idea of a date was. Well, this is it. We're going to spend some time together, Libby. No more avoiding me. No more avoiding what we have together.'
She stared at him as he handed over the passports and checked in, infuriated that he wasn't even giving her a chance to speak.
'We don't have anything together,' she said in a low voice, blushing slightly as the girl behind the desk glanced curiously between the two of them. 'It was just-'
'If you're about to tell me that it was ''just sex'',' Andreas interrupted, 'then I'd better warn you that the next time you say that I'm going to drag you behind the nearest pillar and prove you wrong. We both know that it wasn't ''just sex'', Libby, so stop saying things you don't mean.'
He tucked the passports into his jacket and walked towards the international departures area.
Her breathing was rapid and she felt totally out of control.
'At least tell me where we're going,' she asked a little later.
He turned with a smile. 'We're going to Greece, agape mou. I'm taking you to my home.'
Greece?
'But where will we stay? What will we-?'
'Stop worrying.' He stepped up to her and covered her lips with his fingers to stop her talking. 'You're not in control any more. I am. This is my date, Libby.'
With that Andreas bent his head and kissed her gently, smiling when she gave a start and backed away.
She glared at him. 'This isn't a date. It's kidnap. I could scream.'
His smiled widened. 'If you scream, I'm going to kiss you senseless in front of an audience. Knowing what usually happens when we touch each other, are you willing to risk that, Libby?'
Her heart thudded against her chest. There was no way she wanted him to kiss her again. It was much too disturbing. Strange things happened when he kissed her. Her body burned and her brain ceased to be capable of logical thought.
So instead of screaming she just sighed and pretended to look bored. 'A week is a long time with someone you don't really know, Andreas. What happens when you find that you don't enjoy my company?'
He laughed. 'Libby, we both know that we're crazy about each other. It's just that you're afraid to admit it.'
Crazy about each other …
Libby swallowed hard. 'And you think I'll admit it if I'm with you all week? Are all Greek men as arrogant as you?'
Was he really saying he was crazy about her?
He nodded, giving her a gentle push as they boarded the aircraft. 'We're an arrogant, chauvinistic race who know how to keep a woman in her place,' he teased. 'Now sit down and shut up. And preferably get some sleep. You're exhausted.'
'And whose fault is that?' Libby muttered darkly, fastening her seat belt and wriggling further into her seat.
'You're saying that I'm the reason you're tired?'
His deep voice was right next to her ear and her body heated. He sounded so sexy. Oh, for goodness' sake. So the guy had a sexy voice. So what? She was being utterly pathetic.
She tried to shift further away from him but there was nowhere to go. 'I'm tired because I've been working hard,' she said sweetly, and he gave a knowing smile that infuriated her.
'Of course you are. So, sleep, Libby.'
Libby closed her eyes tightly. She had absolutely no hope of sleeping, but at least if she closed her eyes she couldn't see those dark eyes and that sexy mouth. She needed some rest if she was going to resist him.
And she was going to resist him.
No problem.
Andreas shook his head as the stewardess offered him more coffee. They'd been flying for three and a half hours and Libby had been asleep the whole time. At some point her head had flopped onto his shoulder and he'd turned slightly so that he could cuddle her closer and make her comfortable.
He was worried about how tired she looked.
Her cheeks were pale and there were shadows visible beneath her closed lashes. He vowed to make sure that she had plenty of rest when they reached their destination.
He still couldn't quite believe that he'd managed to pull it off. He'd hoped that by picking her up straight from work with no warning she wouldn't have time to think up excuses. And it had worked. With a great deal of help from Katy and Bev.
So now he had a week alone with her. One week to try and persuade her how right they were for each other.
Libby woke feeling warm and safe and then she realised that the person she was cuddling was Andreas and she sat bolt upright, pink with embarrassment.
Bother.
Andreas made no comment. Instead, he shifted his shoulder slightly and reached across to look out of the window.
'Look at that,' he said softly. 'Isn't it fantastic?'
Still foggy-headed from sleep, Libby turned her head to look out of the tiny window and gave a gasp of delight.
Beneath them stretched perfect blue sea, twinkling in the sunlight as though someone had casually tossed a handful of diamonds into the waves. Tiny boats were just visible and she could see several pretty islands with sandy coves
'It's beautiful.'
'It's Greece.' Andreas smiled with satisfaction as he settled back in his seat. 'Still angry that I kidnapped you?'
Libby couldn't take her eyes off the sea. She wanted to dive straight in and feel the cool water on her exhausted body. 'I can think of worse places to be held hostage.'
'The only thing holding you hostage is your inability to trust anyone,' Andreas replied calmly. 'I'm glad you slept. Our journey isn't finished yet.'
Despite her qualms about spending the week with him, she felt suddenly excited.
Why shouldn't she enjoy a holiday?
She could keep Andreas at a distance here as easily as she could on the ward.
'Where exactly are we going?'
'Crete. My home.'
A car was waiting for them when they landed and Libby stared in awe at the scenery that flashed passed.
'It's beautiful. How can you bear to leave it?'
He smiled. 'The lure of British and American healthcare.'
'Well, I think you're mad. If this was my home I'd never leave it.' Libby gave an enormous yawn and settled back in her seat. 'Are we staying in your house?'
Andreas grabbed the bags and shook his head. 'Yes. Although none of the rest of the family will be there. My mother is visiting my cousin who's just had a baby and my uncles spend most of their time in Athens now.'
Libby shot him a wary glance. Would it be just the two of them?
Her heart lurched slightly but before she had a chance to question him further the driver had turned off the road and was driving down what was little more than a dusty track that led towards the beach.
Libby craned her neck curiously, wondering where they were going. Surely there couldn't be a house here? Nothing was visible from the road.
And then the car turned a corner and she gasped.
A beautiful whitewashed villa nestled at one end of a beautiful bay, the sand stretching away from it to form a perfect crescent.