Receiver still in hand, Kat spun around and asked, "The owner? But...wait..." She narrowed her eyes before continuing, "Who owns this hotel?"
With great pride, Jordan stood tall and proclaimed, "We were recently acquired by Katsaros Industries. The best for all of us if I'm not speaking out of turn, ma'am."
"As in Viktor Katsaros?" She asked the question even though she knew the answer.
"Yes, ma'am. He also had that beautiful bouquet of flowers and basket of gourmet edibles delivered just for your arrival." The steward beamed with pride as he pointed into the sitting area.
Following Jordan's direction, Kat couldn't help but gasp at the biggest, most beautiful floral arrangement she'd ever seen sitting beside an equally enormous elegantly woven basket filled to the brim with enough food to feed Yogi, Boo Boo, the Ranger, and any other stragglers who happened through the forest. Had it not been for the phone cord she'd wrapped tightly around her midsection during the last few confusing seconds, Kat had no doubt she would've fallen on her butt from surprise.
Why is Viktor Katsaros sending me gifts? Aren't I supposed to be courting him? In a purely professional manner, of course.
Trying to act like she received expensive gifts in the course of her daily dealings all the time, Kat unwound herself from the phone cord and took off her jacket. She decided to go with the flow, at least until her meeting the next day with whom she was now thinking of as the infamous Mr. K.
She'd almost forgotten Jordan was in the room until he once again cleared his throat and looked down at her baggage. Putting on her best professional smile, Kat sucked it up and said, "Right. You need to know where to put all that luggage. How about the master suite and I'll follow you so I know where it is, okay? A girl could get lost in a place like this."
She was rewarded with the steward's chuckle as he bowed. "Yes, ma'am, Miss Romalesky, as you wish." Jordan rose up already holding her suitcases and headed into the palatial living area.
A quick right turn had them ascending what could only be described as a grand staircase. She followed the slow winding of the stairs, running her hands along the smooth mahogany railing and wondering exactly what Katsaros was up to.
It was no surprise to find the second floor just as beautifully appointed and completely decadent as the first floor. There were four bedrooms with linens so soft she had to believe they were woven by fairies and the same number of bathrooms decked out in honey onyx and Skyros marble. She only knew the details because Jordan had talked nonstop, giving her detail after detail of her lavish accommodations.
Finally, after returning to the first floor and shown the kitchen, guest bath, and wine pantry, Jordan headed for the door/elevator. One push of the button and the door slid open, the young steward stepped inside, bowed, and said, "Please call if you need anything, anything at all, Miss Romalesky. Enjoy your stay."
Before she could answer, he inserted his card in the slot she knew was on the panel inside the lift, the doors closed, and she was blessedly alone. It wasn't that Jordan was a bad steward. In fact, he was incredibly helpful and extremely likable...but Kat was beat. She needed time to think, to take in all she'd seen since arriving at the Corinthia.
Looking at her watch, she was shocked to see she'd only been in the hotel for a little over thirty minutes. It seemed like forever. Between the feeling of being watched and then the whole accommodation fiasco, not to mention the sleepless night before and her inability to nap on the plane, Kat was spent.
"I should be studying the proposal or deciding what suit to wear tomorrow. At the very least I should unpack my clothes so they don't look like I slept in them, but I think I'm gonna take a long hot bubble bath and then a nap. I'm sure I won't be sleeping tonight anyway and I'm about to drop."
One hour and two glasses of wine later, Kat poured herself into the massive king sized bed with million thread count Egyptian cotton sheets. As she drifted off to sleep, the heavily accented voice that had become her obsession called to her.
"There you are, amica mea. It seems like forever since we last met."
Chapter Two
"Katsaros."
"Hello, Mr. Katsaros, this is Carlyle. She just checked into the Corinthia."
"I want hourly updates on her movements."
"Yes, sir. As you wish, Mr. Katsaros sir."
"Thank you, Carlyle, and remember no one is to know of your assignment."
"Yes, sir, Mr. Katsaros," were the last words Viktor heard as he disconnected the call and returned his cell phone to his inside jacket pocket. Carlyle had been a loyal steward since his eighteenth birthday, as had many generations of his family before him.
Viktor was sure Katarina would need to rest after her trip and therefore, not leave her hotel, but he was taking no chances. Although he'd avoided her thoughts at all cost since their brief phone conversation over three months ago, it had been impossible not to feel her growing anxiety throughout the night and during her flight. When it became intolerable, he'd ordered Carlyle to wait for her at the airport and follow her until their appointment the next day just to be sure she was safe and well. It would be all the chaperoning she would ever need because Viktor had no intention of letting her out of his sight ever again once she was in his grasp.
Staring out the window of his office on the thirty-second floor of One Churchill Place, the ancient supreme commander saw not the people and cars moving below him or the sun attempting to break through the clouds above him, Viktor Katsaros saw only the face of the woman who had haunted his dreams for well over thirty years. She was his obsession, his infatuation... his everything.
It was just as Zeus had explained so very many, many years ago. The instant Katarina Romalesky had entered the world, Viktor had known. He'd felt it in his soul. Every cell in his body had become supercharged. Everything around him more vivid...more alive. It was as if the three millennia before had been a preamble, a type of poor preparation for the moment she was born.
The world around him ceased to exist. The only thing that mattered was joining his consciousness with that of the keeper of his heart, his custos animae. The only woman in the world with the ability to keep his immortal heart beating. He'd expected resistance, was sure her newborn mind would rebel at his intrusion, but had been overjoyed to find the opposite to be true. Katarina's consciousness had actually reached for him. Their bond was immediate and complete.
Over the years Viktor had been a mere shadow in the far reaches of her mind, out of sight but ever present, maintaining their bond while allowing Katarina to grow and mature. She had to make her own choices, had to live her own life, had to become the woman she was destined to be. It was the only way they would ever share an eternal life together. He could not interfere.
Katarina Romalesky was the strongest person Viktor had ever known in all his three thousand years. He remembered the day of her parent's death as if it happened yesterday. The profound depth of her grief had nearly driven him to his knees. The breaking of her heart shattered his world. The mighty grip of her pain rushed across land and sea to steal the very breath from his lungs. His comrades, the other Kings, were forced to physically restrain Viktor as he fought to go to his mate.
Weeks spent chained to the stone walls of his castle, howling like an animal, fighting with all his might, needing to be by her side, had nearly driven Viktor mad. It was something he'd never before experienced and would most definitely never forget. Not even in death had he ever lost control.
Collapsing to the floor, spent, barely able to draw his next breath, Viktor had reached for Katarina's mind, only to be met with a strength rivaling his own. Her determination pushed back his madness and allowed the King to think rationally for the first time in nearly a month. He stood in awe of her resolve to let nothing and no one, not even the loss of her parents, keep her from putting the pieces of her life back together. It had taken nearly a year but in the end, the keeper of his heart had taken control, pulled herself out of her own despair, and saved her father's failing company. Now, eight years after the tragedy, Katarina was the youngest CEO of a company that had been recognized by Fortune magazine.
Her uncanny ability to see an obstacle, formulate a plan, and take action was something they had in common. Katarina was a warrior in her own right. Their union would be explosive and complete, a true meeting of equals.