Free The Greek's Stolen Bride by Kate Hewitt Page B

him, leave him when she discovered his plan for revenge. Fear that just like his mother, he might end up heartbroken and alone.
    He was a mess, Theo thought ruefully. One afternoon of admittedly unforgettable sex and he was dreaming of fairy tales. Happily-ever-afters. Well, perhaps he and Ariana could be happy enough. And that was all he wanted.
    "Theo?" she prompted softly and he smiled down at her, kissed her lips.
    "I imagine it always will be," he said, a promise, and she smiled sleepily up at him.
    "You know, you never even asked me about the Minotaur."
    Still holding her in his arms, Theo tried not to tense. "The Minotaur?"
    "The virus. How to solve it. Why I knew how to."
    "I imagine you knew because you're an incredibly intelligent and resourceful woman."
    She laughed, the sound sleepy, happy . "Not about computers. I overheard my father talking. Gloating, really. It's so simple that no one would ever guess it."
    Intrigued despite his desire to stay away from any talk about her father, Theo asked, "so how do you disarm it?"
    "You switch off the computer."
    "That's it?"
    "If you do anything first, touch a key, initiate a scan, try a command--the virus duplicates. You have to switch it off first thing for it to be destroyed."
    "Clever," Theo murmured and she turned to him with a smile.
    "But you didn't even care about it."
    No, he hadn't. "I was more worried about getting you off the island," he said, knowing it was a lie, and knowing also she believed him. Smiling, she snuggled in closer to him and slept.

CHAPTER NINE
     
    Theo woke close to dawn when his phone on the bedside table buzzed with an incoming text. Blearily he fumbled for it, Ariana still sleeping peacefully next to him, and blinked at the screen. Come to Athens asap. We're good to go.
    Theo tensed and then slowly eased himself away from Ariana. She mumbled in her sleep and then curled into the warmth he'd left behind. Yanking on his boxers, Theo slipped out of the room and downstairs. He dialed and Lukas picked up on the first ring.
    "It's happened?"
    "I finally unscrambled the data off his hard drive tonight. He had a hell of a lot of firewalls in place."
    "And?"
    "There's enough to see him arrested. With the current economy, I doubt anyone will have sympathy. He could rot in jail for the rest of his life, Theo."
    "I knew it." Theo sank into a chair, raked his fingers through his hair. "I knew he was corrupt."
    "To the core, and now we have proof. We have to act quickly, before he tries to protect himself. You know how powerful he is."
    "Of course I know."
    "Can you come to Athens?"
    Briefly, so briefly, Theo thought of Ariana sleeping upstairs. Then he hardened his resolve. He'd been waiting for this moment since he was a boy of eleven years old. "Yes," he said. "I'm on my way."
     
    Ariana woke slowly, luxuriously, blinking in the sunlight that poured from the open windows. She stretched and then tensed when she realized she was very much alone. Then she smiled, both in memory of the wonder of last night and the anticipation of seeing Theo this morning. He was probably downstairs, making her breakfast just as he'd been doing yesterday.
    She showered and dressed quickly, combing her hair into a plait and putting a little makeup for vanity's sake. Then, her heart singing, she headed downstairs.
    She felt the emptiness of the villa like a physical force, hitting her in the face. Everything was deathly still, utterly silent. She glanced at the kitchen, empty, unused. A quick peek in the other downstairs rooms told her what her heart already knew: Theo wasn't here.
    He was outside, she supposed, maybe on the beach. She slid open the glass door that led to the terrace, and took the steps down to the rocky cove. No one was there either, and no boat was moored at the little dock. Of course, Theo had already returned her father's boat, but when she'd stood on the terrace yesterday she'd seen a powerboat that she knew was his. It was gone.
    Had Theo actually