Page 9 of The Heir Affair (Claimed by a Greek #1)

‘I’m so glad you find this situation amusing,’ Xander growled, switching into Greek to address his brother so Poppy would not be able to understand their argument. The last thing he needed was for his brother’s sarcasm to make this impossible situation even worse.

He had never felt more frustrated or impotent in his life—the fact that he was also now brutally turned on after that ill-advised kiss was not helping him control his temper.

His marriage to Freya could not go ahead.

That much was already obvious. Not only had he never had any real desire to take the woman to his bed, but his private life had just become a great deal more complicated.

Factoring in an arranged marriage now would only make the situation worse.

He had no desire to lose the port deal that had been ten months in the making, but his child would have to take precedence.

‘Is the baby yours?’ his brother asked, taking the hint and switching into their native tongue as well, while getting straight to the point.

‘Yes,’ he said, because there was no point in denying it.

The realisation a part of him wanted Poppy’s baby to be his did not escape him either.

A part of him that had a lot to do with the furious wave of desire when he had first seen her rounded belly in the bar, and noticed her full breasts, and wanted to believe he had staked a claim to her in the most elemental way possible.

‘Are you sure about that?’ Theo asked, even as he maintained the relaxed stance—probably for Poppy’s benefit so she would not realise the direction of the conversation.

‘She has no reason to lie,’ he replied sharply, annoyed his brother would accuse Poppy of such a deception, even though he had believed the same thing himself at first. But he hadn’t been able to maintain that delusion for long—her open, honest expression and her refusal to accept his help damning his suspicious nature.

His brother let out a harsh laugh. ‘Yeah, right. You’re a rich man, Xander.

’ He spoke in rapid Greek now as his gaze drifted to the woman who was still trying to pull out of Xander’s grip.

‘And she’s a waitress. Plus, you’re about to marry into European royalty.

You don’t think that gives her an incentive to pretend you’re the father of her kid?

How much has she asked for to keep quiet about your little accident? ’

‘She has asked for nothing. She does not want my money…’ Which was the most infuriating thing of all. Before either of them could say more, though, Poppy had struggled loose.

‘Sorry to interrupt,’ she announced in English, not sounding sorry at all.

‘And it’s been nice meeting you, too, Alex’s bad-boy kid brother,’ she continued in the same indignant tone that suggested she had guessed their switch to Greek had been a deliberate attempt to exclude her. ‘But I’m going back to shore now.’

‘Who’s Alex?’ Theo replied.

At the exact same time as Xander said, ‘No, you are not.’

He snagged Poppy’s arm yet again to prevent her marching off.

‘You cannot return to Galicos now,’ he continued, struggling to contain his increasingly volatile temper at her belligerent expression. ‘Did you not hear what my brother said? There are already reporters on the dock.’

He had always hated the press, and had kept a low profile in the media—giving only a few interviews over the years exclusively to the business press—for the simple reason he did not want people prying into his past, or judging him and his brother for the things they had once had to do to survive.

He wasn’t ashamed of those things. But having that part of his life exposed to media scrutiny would allow others to control the narrative and make assumptions about him that might not be beneficial to the image he wished to promote for Caras Shipping.

One of the main reasons he had insisted that the engagement to Princess Freya be announced only a few months before their proposed wedding was to maintain his low profile in the press for as long as possible.

But now, Theo’s news that Poppy and he had been spotted leaving the wharf together seemed surprisingly fortuitous, as it gave him an opportunity he intended to exploit.

He did not want her leaving the yacht. Not until they had got a few crucial things straight.

One of which pertained to the baby. And one of which pertained to the insane chemistry—which had not abated in the least in the past five months if that kiss was anything to go by.

He did not intend to let her out of his sight again.

And especially not in her current condition.

The idea of her supporting herself on a waitress’s salary was ludicrous.

He understood she had her pride. But he had learned at a young age there were several things more important…

One of which was the security only wealth—and lots of it—could give you.

‘So what? I’ll just ask whoever takes me back to drop me off away from the main dock,’ she said, still struggling against his hold. ‘Will you let go of me?’

‘No, I will not. You are not leaving this yacht. It isn’t safe. For you…or my child.’ He ground the words out.

‘Why not?’ She glared at him, freeing her arm a second time. ‘They don’t know me from Adam, and I certainly don’t intend to broadcast our connection.’

His anger flared. Was she ashamed of him, then? Why? What had he done to be treated with such contempt? Had she not kissed him back with the same hunger he was struggling to control?

Before he could formulate a coherent response though, which did not involve throwing her over his shoulder, carting her down to the Sunrise Suite and locking her in, his brother interrupted them both.

‘Chill out, guys. There’s no need to yell.’

‘I’m afraid there is every need to yell,’ Poppy yelled. ‘To get your brother to listen to me. He promised he’d take me back when I wished and now he’s breaking—’

‘Hey, don’t shoot the messenger, miss.’ Theo lifted his hands in a defensive gesture, but the admiration in his eyes suggested he was enjoying Poppy’s refusal to see reason.

It figured!

Xander swore at Theo then added in Greek, ‘Do not encourage her foolishness. You’re supposed to be on my side.’

‘I am on your side, Alex ,’ he teased, also in Greek.

‘Stop talking in Greek.’ Poppy slapped her hands on her hips, which made her blouse stretch over those full breasts.

He blinked, trying to ignore the renewed shot of lust and how much he wanted to capture those tight peaks between his lips.

Her breasts had been incredibly sensitive that day—would they be even more so now?

‘I know perfectly well you’re both talking about me,’ she continued, looking almost as frustrated as he felt while he tried to drag his mind away from her breasts and back to the problem at hand.

‘And it’s incredibly rude to discuss me while I’m standing right here in a language you know I don’t understand. ’

‘To be fair, miss,’ Theo began, the mocking smile turning into a grin, ‘no one has ever accused either one of us of having good manners.’

Poppy opened her mouth again, looking almost as annoyed with Theo now as she was with him. Which was a minor improvement. But before she could let rip at his brother, Theo stepped closer to her and rested a consoling arm over her shoulders.

‘Hey, I’m sorry, okay, miss…’ He dropped his voice to a friendly murmur. ‘What is your name, by the way? Xander didn’t introduce us…’

‘Poppy… Poppy Brown,’ Poppy replied, looked momentarily nonplussed with Theo’s familiarity.

The sudden burst of relief that Xander finally knew Poppy’s last name was followed by the bigger surge of jealousy.

If his brother didn’t lift his arm from her shoulders in the next ten seconds, he would throw him overboard.

Perhaps sensing Xander’s anger with him, Theo removed his arm, but he remained by her side, then shot Xander a conspiratorial look that seemed to be saying, Don’t worry, I’ve got this… Before he sent Poppy a far-too-charming smile.

‘I’m sorry to say, Poppy, that my brother is not wrong about the situation in Galicos.

’ Theo tugged his phone from his pocket, clicked on something and handed it to her.

‘Nowhere there is going to be safe. You were both photographed leaving the restaurant where you work, and it’s already hit the Internet. ’

Poppy took the phone to examine the photographs. Then pressed trembling fingers to her mouth.

Xander drew closer, to look over her shoulder at the social media app Theo had opened. And got a lungful of her intoxicating scent for his troubles. He forced himself to detach his gaze from the soft skin of her nape, to examine the photos too.

And immediately understood Poppy’s distress.

They looked like a couple in the snatched shots.

He had his hand on the small of her back, was clearly shepherding her to the cab, while she seemed small and fragile beside him, her rounded belly hard to miss.

Poppy flicked through the article on screen, which was written in French and had named the restaurant.

The app had a whole series of photos—had there been a photographer on the wharf?

The shots were surely far too professional to have been taken by an amateur.

And they clearly hadn’t wasted any time selling them to the highest bidder, because they had already appeared on this gossip website, with a series of captions identifying him as the man about to declare his engagement to Princess Freya.

Poppy began to tremble, the belligerence of moments ago gone. ‘Do you think they’ll be able to find out my name?’ she asked, but he could already hear her panic.

Theo retrieved his phone, then said, as he cast Xander a meaningful glance, ‘Yeah, I do. They know where you work, Poppy. It’s only a matter of time before someone you work with gives up the information.’

‘But they’re my friends. They wouldn’t…’