Page 240 of Modern Romance October 2025 5-8

Not only that, but she was also missing Dante like a limb.

Two things became abundantly clear to Charlotte, after Jane’s confession. One: she had to see her fiancé again. Two: she had to make that pig of a man Zeus pay for what he’d done to Jane.

A quick phone conversation with Dante and the plan was made—they’d leave for Athens the next morning.

‘Are you sure you don’t want me to come with you?’ he offered, at the base of the Papandreo offices, with their shiny marble tiles and tall ceilings.

She squeezed his hand. ‘I appreciate the offer, but this really is something I have to do on my own.’

A frown smudged across his lips. ‘But you don’t.’

‘I do,’ she replied. ‘I love you, in every way, but this is my problem, my mistake, and I’m going to fix it on my own.’ She kissed him quickly. ‘But wait here, because I’m pretty sure I’ll need a drink afterwards. Or something even more distracting,’ she said, kissing him again, her gut rolling because she knew she would never, ever get enough of him.

‘Okay,’ he said. ‘Whatever you need, I’m here.’ And he always would be.

She took the lifts to the executive floor and approached a bank of elegant receptionists. One glanced up and made eye contact, offering a tightly dismissive smile.

‘I’m here to see Zeus Papandreo,’ she murmured.

‘I’m sorry, Mr Papandreo is busy.’

‘Busy?’ she repeated, shaking her head. ‘I don’t think so.’

‘If you’d like to leave your name and some details regarding your concerns, I can...’

‘Do you value your job?’

The woman compressed her lips.

‘I ask, because I have a feeling Mr Papandreo will have no hesitation in firing you if he finds out you didn’t let me see him.’

‘I—I’m sorry,’ the woman said.

‘This is an urgent family matter,’ Charlotte said, crossing her arms over her chest. ‘Now, which office is his?’

Only, that was obvious, by the way the receptionist glanced towards it.

‘Excellent.’ She began to stride towards it, but the receptionist was standing. ‘Wait, wait!’ She called. ‘At least let me notify him that you’re here.’

Jane slowed her walk—it was the only concession she’d give.

She heard the receptionist’s rushed explanation to Zeus, and then a quick call of, ‘You can go in, but he only has a few minutes!’

Charlotte didn’t even think about the fact she was coming face-to-face with her brother. She couldn’t.

She didn’t think about the fact that the man she was about to meet shared half of her DNA. That she’d wondered about him for years.

All she cared about was the hurt her best friend had suffered and how much they were both to blame.

She pushed the door inwards, her anger at fever pitch.

From the moment he turned to face her, it was obvious that Zeus hadn’t expected Charlotte. ‘You,’ he exclaimed, staring at her with a tense line across his shoulders.

‘You! Well, if I didn’t hate you before, I sure as hell have a reason to now.’

His laugh was dark. ‘Are you kidding me?’

‘Nothing about this is remotely amusing.’