Free His Forbidden Bride by Sara Craven Page A

trel is.
    Nice, thought Zoe, sinking into her chair with an inner sigh of contentment,
    was not the word.
    She reached out a hand and touched the petals on the smal jar of golden
    rosebuds occupying the centre of the snowy cloth, then paused as a swift
    glance around her revealed that hers was the only table with such a
    decoration.
    The waiter came bustling back, bringing chilled water and a basket
    containing crusty bread and, she realised with growing unease, two sets of
    cutlery.
    She began, 'Excuse me…' but he was off, weaving his way among the
    tables to return a moment later with an ice bucket and a bottle of white wine.
    This time, Zoe pushed back her chair with determination. 'I'm sorry,' she
    said 'There's obviously been some mistake.'
    'No,' Andreas said. 'No mistake at all.' And he slid almost casually into the
    chair opposite and smiled at her. 'I hope you are hungry. Kostas has lobster
    for us.'
    She sat, frozen in fury, staring at him, while the waiter fil ed their glasses. As soon as he'd departed, she leaned forward. 'Let's get one thing straight,' she
    said in an icy undertone. 'There is no "us".'
    'No?' His brows lifted mockingly. 'Yet al it takes is for two people to be
    together—and we are certainly that.'
    'And just how did this togetherness come about?' Zoe demanded. 'How did
    you know where I was planning to eat? Or did you book tables in every
    taverna in town?'
    He shrugged. 'Sooner or later, everyone comes to eat at Kostas' taverna. I
    thought you would like it here, and took a chance.'
    'Wel , it hasn't paid off,' she flung at him. 'I'm going.'
    'You don't like lobster?'
    'This has nothing to do with food.' She rose. 'I don't like being
    second-guessed and manipulated. Particularly when I'd made it clear I was
    lunching alone.'
    He said meditatively, 'That word "alone" again.' He paused. Tel me, pedhi mou , do you know what "Zoe" means in Greek?'
    'No,' she denied curtly.
    The dark eyes met hers, held them. 'It means life,' he said. 'So—how can
    you be so afraid to live?'
    Colour rushed into her face. 'That's a vile thing to say. And total y untrue.'
    The dark eyes raked her harshly. 'Then why do you reject friendship when it
    is offered?'
    'Friendship?' she asked bitterly. 'Is that what your col eagues had in mind
    just now?'
    'You believe that I am like them?' His tone was incredulous.
    She looked down at the table. 'How do I know?' Her voice was muffled. 'How
    can I possibly tel ? We only met yesterday. We're barely acquaintances.'
    'That is something I am trying to change,' he said. 'But not with any great
    success. Sit down, Zoe mou , and I wil tel you anything you wish to know.'
    'Besides,' he added gently as she hesitated, 'Kostas wil be sad if we waste
    his wonderful lobster.'
    Mutinously, Zoe resumed her seat 'I don't know why I'm doing this,' she
    muttered.
    'Because you're hungry,' Andreas said promptly. 'Also thirsty.' He lifted his
    glass. 'To your eyes, agapi mou .'
    Startled by the intimacy of the toast, and conscious that she was blushing,
    Zoe reluctantly touched her glass to his. 'Cheers,' she said awkwardly.
    The waiter reappeared with dishes of houmous and tzatziki, a bowl of black
    olives and a platter of mixed salad.
    'You like Greek food?' Andreas proffered the bread.
    'Everything I've had so far has been wonderful.'
    'That is just as wel ,' he said drily. 'On Thania, you wil find little else. No fast food or English pubs,' he added with a touch of grimness.
    'Aren't they a fact of life in holiday resorts?'
    'On other islands, perhaps.' He sounded quietly certain. 'But not here. We
    do not wish to go down that road. Thania belongs to its islanders. They fish,
    and grow their olives and make their wine, and are content with that.'
    'And sometimes they garden for rich men,' Zoe said. She tore off a piece of
    bread and dipped it into the tzatziki. 'Wil that make you happy for the rest of
    your life?'
    'Probably not,' he said. 'But gardening is only part of my duties, as I