Page 6 of His Forgotten Wife

If he was anything, Ares Demetrius was constant among a sea of fickle circumstances and unkind fates, a fortress that nothing and no one could budge from its foundations.

Suddenly, the humid September air felt sweeter on her face.

Relief made her steps light as she walked down another set of stone stairs that led her through to an open courtyard filled with blooming jasmine and sweet orange trees. String lights crisscrossed above, draping the laughing and drinking guests in a soft, ethereal glow.

Everyone looked effortlessly glamorous, with rapid conversations in Greek, fluid and full of laughter.

She brushed a strand of hair from her face, feeling heat rise in her cheeks as she ran a palm over her crinkled trousers—no match for the elegant silks and linens that floated around her.

Then there was her too-tight lime-green sleeveless top with the tomato juice stain right over her left boob because she’d been sleepy on the long-ass flight.

Not that anyone in the boisterous group paid her any attention.

No sooner had she thought that than she was suddenly flanked by two tall, rugged-faced men with identical features. They wore matching navy suits and leers.

There was no mistaking either of them for Ares, even though they shared the same height, for he would never crowd a woman like that. On second thought, she decided there was no resemblance at all except for the height.

These men were portly and had that prideful, almost predatory, look in their eyes that she usually found in the powerful men she dealt with professionally. Except Ares, again.

For a brilliant affluent businessman, Ares was like a grumpy bear that hid the mushiest heart. Only he didn’t use it much.

“The waitressing staff should not come in through this courtyard,” one man said while the other sized her up as if she were a hunk of meat. His accent was thick and his expression annoyed.

“Oh, come, Sergio. Do not be such a stuffy boss,” the second man said, licking his thick lower lip while holding her gaze.

“She’s allowed to party after hours of hard work, ne ?

Maybe she has come into the party with dreams of finding a rich man and work of a different kind?

” He swept his beady brown gaze over her, taking in her rumpled braid to her sensible flats showing her toes with their peeled nail polish, his mouth turning down.

“Although, I have to say the packaging could be better.”

Sergio laughed and joined his brother in the disgusting sweep of her body. “You are right, Stefano. There are assets to mine here.”

Living in New York was enough to prepare her for men like this. One swing and she could shut up both men in the best way she knew but the last thing she wanted was to create a scene. Here, amidst the Demetrius family and friends. The last thing she wanted to do was to embarrass her boss.

Reaching for patience she didn’t have, she took a step away from both men. And instantly regretted it. Now they hovered over her from the top step, looking down her blouse, the creeps.

“I’m looking for Mr. Demetrius,” she said stiffly.

Both men chuckled. “That is both of us, darling. Which one did you want exactly,” the one called Stefano mumbled while Sergio laughed.

Dolly studied them anew, aghast. Suddenly, she realized these two men were the infamous half brothers who had dared sue Ares, wanting a piece of the fortune he had built by himself. They wanted a cut of GenTech.

Apparently, they weren’t just greedy, but creepy pigs who sexually harassed working women. Her fury doubled, surging on Ares’s behalf too, aware of how badly they had shaken him up with the ridiculous lawsuit. “As far as I know, there’s only one Demetrius man that I or any woman would—”

“Sergio! Stefano!” came another deep voice from behind the two men.

Instantly, the leering expressions disappeared as the men shuffled sideways to make space for the new arrival. “That is no way to treat a guest. Must I remind you to behave like gentlemen?”

Dolly blinked. Tall, with a full head of gray hair and deep brown eyes, the older man who joined their group was incredibly handsome. With strong bone structure and deep-set gray eyes, he was a tantalizing glimpse into what Ares would look like in the future.

“ Kalispera , Miss…” he said in a deep voice.

Embarrassed heat flushed beneath her skin as she wondered how much he had heard of her taunt. “Miss Singh. I’m looking for Mr. Demetrius. Ares, that is,” she said, hating the little quiver in her voice. “I’m his assistant.” The little label left out so much but it was also a necessary reminder.

The two bullies shared a glance and a mocking smile. “Ahh…yes, the capable assistant-slash-fiancée that didn’t even bother to visit our dear brother while he was nearly dead,” one of them murmured with a gleeful smile. As if this wasn’t much of a surprise. As if he was disappointed by the outcome.

The comment stung less than the assessing gaze the older man cast her, displeasure at her presence evident in the taut set of his mouth. With one flick of his head, he dismissed his sons.

“I’m afraid you have made a wasted journey, Ms. Singh,” he said, confirming her suspicions that Ares hadn’t told them of his orders for her. “Ares is not ready to go back to work. His recovery is a long way off.”

Dolly straightened her shoulders, knowing that she had to make a stand here and now if she wanted to survive the next couple of months among these people. And not just for her sake either.

She had no doubt that she was going to run interference between them and Ares himself, on top of clearing up the mess between them. Which meant she had her work cut out for her.

“I’m aware of that, Mr. Demetrius,” she said, moving up one step so that the man didn’t look down on her. Ares might not use his size and glare to intimidate his employees—his cold detachment was enough for that—but she had met enough corporate bosses to know of the technique.

“Think of me as another cog in his recovery. As you must know, he’s already restless. My being here will help—”

“He has his family to look after him.”

“Ares summoned me here precisely because he needs me.”

“It doesn’t look like he has any need of you, Ms. Singh. At least not from where I stand.”

Dolly turned to look in the direction he pointed.

Her eyes widened at finding Ares laughing and slow dancing with a stunning brunette.

Apparently, all his numerous social hang-ups and personal space tics didn’t come into play with this particular woman, because she had her arms wrapped around his back, and his own clung to her waist.

Even the sight of him dancing with this woman couldn’t dampen the overwhelming surge of relief that flooded Dahlia. She greedily scanned the wide breadth of his shoulders and the top of his head—his wavy hair was cropped at the sides like he preferred.

And his profile…with his sharp nose and square jaw and high forehead, it felt as familiar as her own, and yet also…somehow, amidst this new setting and new people, also foreign.

She pressed her palm into the fabric of her trousers, fighting the urge to storm across the courtyard and trace those features with her fingers.

Tears prickled behind her eyelids and she took a deep breath to push them back in.

The last thing she needed was to betray her confounding emotions to antagonistic strangers.

Nor would Ares welcome her sentimental floundering.

The man was lethally allergic to displays of emotion, public or otherwise.

“You see, Ms. Singh, my son is happy and relaxed, surrounded by friends and family. He has spent way too many years away from us. Now he is back where he belongs.”

As if aware of her scrutiny, Ares looked up.

His mouth curving, his eyes twinkling, he looked like a different version of himself. A version Dolly had never met and she suddenly wondered if his father was right. If Ares was planning to make his return home permanent.

That’s good for you , that rational voice whispered. You want out of his life, remember?

Her boss’s smile dimmed, just the slightest bit, at the sight of her, though he didn’t loosen his hold on the woman or even stop their slow dance. But those penetrating eyes of his…ate her up with that intensity she understood.

Her skin tingled as she stood rooted there, feeling like a pinned butterfly all over again.

Her heartbeat thundered in her ears and she was vaguely aware of the senior Demetrius talking at her.

Offering to put her on a plane back home immediately.

Warning her in no uncertain terms that she wasn’t needed here.

The rational, surviving part of her wanted to take him up on the offer. Maybe even confide in him the ridiculous contract she and Ares had signed and beg him to have it nullified somehow. If anyone could clear up that particular mess, this man could.

Then she could simply walk out of here and never look back, could permanently put Ares out of her mind and other places he shouldn’t be. She could start over fresh at some other company, rid herself of this ridiculous attraction to a man who was so out of her sphere, he might as well be from Mars.

One thick brow quirked in Ares’s face, his questioning expression clear from across the distance. Even his slow perambulation of the courtyard stopped. The woman in his arms searched and found Dolly, over her shoulder. A frown tied her shapely brows together.

Sounds and feeling rushed back into Dolly’s head as if she had surfaced from deep under water. She could run away or she could stand by the man who deserved her support at a vulnerable time.

She shook her head, as if to shake off the temporary cowardice, and smiled up at the older man. “Thank you for your generous offer, Mr. Demetrius. But I do believe I have a job to do here. As soon as that is done—” she refused to shiver at the slow anger unfurling in his eyes “—I will be gone.”