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Ten

"IF YOU NEED ANYTHING," Astrid said, "we're just downstairs." Pippi's mother pulled the door closed after giving her eldest daughter's guest a friendly smile. Outside, she found herself the subject of several expectant looks, and it was obvious they were all wondering the same thing.

What was a cosplaying Greek billionaire doing on their doorstep?

Astrid flashed them an okay sign.There's nothing to worry about.A smug smile formed over her lips.Because I'm absolutely certain your big sister has the man smitten!

Everyone celebrated...silently,with her daughters exchanging high-fives while Astrid's aunts started smiling smugly.Pippi had obviously inherited their good taste in men, and thank God for that!

Inside the room, Acheron and Pippi were gazing at each other, both of them waiting for the sound of footsteps, but all they heard was silence.

When he raised a brow at her, she could practically hear him asking, 'Do they truly believe we don't know they have their ears to the door?'

She lifted her shoulders in a shrug.I guess.Excitement was probably why her family was acting unusually dense.

A smile curved over his lips.I don't mind, though.

Pippi lifted her chin.Who says I care about what you - oh my God.It finally dawned on her that both of them were communicating silently like some stupid, lovesick couple, and dismay turned to mortification when she saw the gleam of amusement in his eyes.

"It doesn't mean anything," she muttered. "You're just...you're just easy to read."

"If you say so,mikrí mou."

She saw his gaze absently roaming his surroundings as he spoke, taking in every inch of the tiny bedroom she shared with her sisters, and Pippi couldn't help feeling defensive. "I'm sorry if it's not what you're used to," she said stiffly. No doubt, the combination of bunk beds and Spartan-style furniture would remind him of army barracks, and, if it did, well - so be it. She had nothing to be ashamed of—-

"I've lived in far worse conditions."

Pippi's thoughts came to a halt at Acheron's words.

"I'm sure you've read at least some of the rumors about my past, and suffice to say, not all of them was made up. My uncle - Yehor Kokinos - had offered my then-pregnant mother to disappear, and she was...the type that took kindly to bribes. Based on what I know of my uncle, I'm also fairly certain he meant for her to dispose of me—-"

Hearing him speak of such things rendered Pippi speechless with horror.His mom had been paid to kill him?

"She probably would have if he had paid her more—-"

"I'm so sorry." She could no longer contain herself, and she had to dig her fingers deep into her palms to keep herself from throwing her arms around him. "I know it won't make a difference, but I'm really sorry."

Acheron's broad shoulders moved in a dismissive shrug. "It taught me to be tough at the very least. Although I was already twelve when she died, I had learned to fend for myself years before that—-" Seeing her pale in reaction, he said gravely, "I had the worst childhood you could ever imagine."

Her heart broke for him. "I'm just so, so sorry—-"

"Sorry enough to give me another chance?"

The words 'of course' almost slipped past her lips when Pippi realized in consternation she was being manipulated."Mr. Simo—-"