The Greek Children's Doctor(59)

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.

It was the most idyllic spot she'd ever seen and she turned to Andreas in amazement.

'This is your home?'

'I was brought up here,' he told her, nodding to the driver as he  retrieved the bags from the boot of the car. 'But we spent a great deal  of time in Athens, too. My father had business interests there. He hated  leaving his family behind so we had a home there as well.'

'You're lucky,' Libby said wistfully, and he looked at her keenly.

'Did your father travel a lot?'

Libby tensed. 'Yes, but we were all very grateful for that. Things weren't too great when he was around.'

Wanting to escape from the memories that he'd aroused, she slipped off  her shoes and sprinted down to the sand, sighing with pleasure as she  felt the warm softness ooze between her toes.



'You're a child, Elizabeth,' Andreas said with a laugh from behind her,  and she shrugged, staring out across the sparkling sea to the orange sun  that was starting to dip behind the mountains.

'I don't know about that,' she said softly, 'but I do know that if you were brought up here then you were very lucky.'

She'd heard the affection in his voice when he'd spoken of his parents  and suddenly she envied him his childhood. Her own had been full of rows  and totally lacking in parental affection.

Would she have been different if she'd had his family background?

Would she have found it easier to trust people?

'I was lucky,' he agreed. 'I had a secure, loving family around me when I  was a child and I suppose that's why I don't find it hard to trust  people. Unlike you. I know that you've been surrounded by faithless men  all your life, but it's time to realise that they aren't the only sort.'

Her breathing quickened.

It would have been so easy to believe him. So easy …

And so foolish.

She gave a wry smile and kicked at the sand with her bare feet. 'So … '  she lifted her head and gave him a bright smile ' … are you going to show  me your house?'

He lifted a hand and touched her face gently. 'You are the mistress of avoidance, do you know that?'

She gave a careless shrug. 'I don't see the point in dwelling on the past.'

'If it's affecting the future, there's a point,' he said quietly, taking  her hand and pulling her back towards the villa. 'But we'll talk about  that another time. Come on. Let's get settled in.'

She followed him inside, almost drooling with pleasure as she saw the  interior. It was decorated in a mixture of white and cool blues so that  the overall impression was that it was just a continuation of the ocean.

'I know you're tired so I'll show you straight to your bedroom,' Andreas said roughly, and she looked at him cautiously.

She hadn't given any thought to the sleeping arrangements. 'Andreas-'

'Sleep, Libby,' he said gently, 'and then we'll talk.'                        
       
            



      

Suddenly realising just how exhausted she was, she followed him into a  bedroom, smiling with pleasure when she saw the bathroom. It was the  last word in luxury.

'I can't believe you brought me here. I ought to be fighting with you,'  she murmured, reaching forward and flicking on the taps, 'but frankly  I'm too exhausted.'

'Thank goodness for that.' Andreas gave a wry smile and deposited her  suitcase on the floor. 'I'll leave you to it. My bedroom is directly  opposite if you need anything.'

She stiffened. 'I won't need anything.'

His smile widened and she sucked in a breath, uncomfortably aware that  they seemed to be alone in this villa. Alone for the first time in their  relationship.