Chapter Eight

Dimitri stood around the corner in the hall and watched Landi pull that Jason person into her room. He’d seen her and AJ together and it had taken every last ounce of his training and control to keep out of sight. This was harder. He would have bet every last penny he owned that flames were coming from his eyes. Dimitri longed to beat his cousin and this man for daring to touch his woman.

Unsure of how to proceed now, Dimitri remained in hiding. He had gone to her door to try and ex-plain what had happened, but all he could do was blab incoherently.

He wanted to pull her into his arms, kiss her, and make love to her like he had done during that wonderful weekend they shared before…

Before I went and fucked it all up.

He had to explain, but he honestly didn’t know how. He couldn’t bust in her room right now, not with that other man there.

He hadn’t realized how much he would have missed her. Despite the fact he had been the idiot who had left her, he had cared deeply for her. He had loved her, still did.

Dimitri’s impromptu decision to withhold his reason for leaving her had sealed his fate, at least in her eyes. Even his teammates had told him he was a fool for not telling her.

Part of him was sure Landi’s friend Koali Zimmerman, nee Travis, knew what had happened be-tween them. Her attitude toward him had cooled considerably. She was unfailingly polite to him, but he knew that was out of respect for her husband, another one of his teammates.

Muttering in Greek, Dimitri went to the front desk. He was getting a room here and would wait in it until he could go back to Landi’s room and talk to her. As he walked across the lobby, his phone rang.

It was AJ.

“What do you want?” he snapped.

“I want you to leave her alone. She’s exhausted, and seeing you is only stressing her out.”

“You are in no position to tell me what I should and shouldn’t do,” he growled.

“Grow up, Dimitri. We both know I could have persuaded her to let me share her bed. Out of respect for you, I didn’t. But you need to think about this, carefully. She isn’t ready to hear you out.”

Dimitri bit back his response. AJ was right. He was very smooth with the ladies and would have had no issue getting anyone he wished in bed. “I’m not losing her again,” he vowed. “I’ll do whatever I have to to get her back.”

AJ chuckled. “I’ve no doubt of that, cousin. But give her a break tonight.”

“Point taken, AJ.”

“You know I love you, Dimitri Androcles. You are a brother to me.”

“I know. And I appreciate it immensely. Just stop flirting with my woman.

AJ’s laughter reached him easily. “I like her. She’s good for you.”

Dimitri sighed. AJ was right. Landi was good for him. All he had to do was convince her that he had made a colossal mistake and remind her of how good they were together. “Good night, cousin.”

“’Night.”

Dimitri hung up the phone and left Landi’s hotel for his own. Sleep, shower, and come sunrise, he would be ready for whatever Ms. Landi Nycks dished out.

A smile played up the corner of his lips as he walked. Ilanderae Nycks was one hell of a woman—explosive content in a small package.

Landi and Jason worked late into the night. They had one final presentation to deliver before catching a flight back home. Jason had mulled over the idea of leaving early, given the unrest that had erupted in the streets, but Landi had convinced him otherwise.

She hated leaving before completing the job. Part of her also wanted to make sure she wasn’t just running away from running into Dimitri Melonakos again. She shivered. Just the thought of that man, created havoc in her body.

Her throat grew dry and her skin grew clammy. Her mind was on his golden eyes, darkly tanned olive skin, and that thick black hair he had as she’d said goodnight to Jason.

She set the designs on the desk in her room and went to the bathroom to get ready for a few hours of sleep.

“Even after all this time, just seeing him turns me into mush. It’s like my body forgot how he left us. Alone. At the goddamn altar!” She slammed her brush down on the tile countertop. “Damn him!” she swore. “Damn him for still making me feel something!” It didn’t matter theirs had been a whirlwind two-week relationship heading for the altar. All that had mattered was how right it had felt on that weekend he’d asked her to marry him. There was so little known about him, except how he made her feel.

Furiously wiping away the traitorous tears that had snuck out from behind her eyes, Landi quickly brushed her teeth before climbing into bed. Squeezing her eyes shut, she did her best to shove Dimitri’s mental image out of her mind.

Sleep eluded her for a long time. The smell of his cologne, the sound of his voice, the gentleness in which he touched her, all seemed to take pleasure in torturing her. The seductive whisper of his voice tantalized her skin and she ached with want.

When her wake-up call came, Landi knew the day was going to be long. She didn’t feel the slightest bit rested.

“Morning, doll,” Jason said as he met her outside her room to go to breakfast.

“Hey, Jason,” she responded.

“Oh, boy, I know that tone. You didn’t get any sleep, did you?”

“I’m fine,” Landi snapped.

“Don’t take it out on me, Ilanderae,” he admonished. “I’m not the enemy here.”

She flushed. Jason was right; he wasn’t to blame. “I’m sorry, Jason. I’m just…”

He leaned in and kissed her cheek. “It’s okay. Let’s eat; we’ve got to go over the presentation again before we show it.”

“Okay,” she agreed. “I am sorry, you know.”

“I know. God help that man, I hope he has thick skin. Your tongue is wicked.”

“I don’t like people thinking they can push me around just because I’m short. Add to that, I’m in a cutthroat business. I’ve had to learn to speak up or get run over.”

He slipped her arm through his. “I know. Just don’t forget some of us are good.”

She sighed. “I know, I know. And I am sorry.”

Jason said nothing further and Landi knew he understood. They were each other’s confidants. Never lovers, just extremely close. Many thought Jason was gay, given he worked in the fashion industry and was always very well dressed. They were wrong. He had style and taste. She considered him a metrosexual, but he was definitely not gay. Landi had walked in on him in bed with a woman before.

She squeezed his hand and continued on toward the place they were eating breakfast. They chatted about the presentation while they ate and continued to do so during the ride to the office where the meet-ing was being held. As they climbed out of the taxi, Landi swallowed and smoothed her hands down the side of her skirt.

No matter how many she’d done, her nerves got tight before a pitch. This wasn’t just a job for her. This was her passion, her calling. She had worked hard getting her name out there.

Desires of the Moon had begun as a lingerie line, but she had quickly expanded it to all aspects of clothing wear. The men’s line, Lunarwear, had begun shortly after Jason had joined the company.

Now they were acquiring more retailers to carry her clothing. Landi was extremely picky about who sold her lines. She was proud of her clothing and took great pains to make sure there were few knockoffs.

She had begun taking her company globally in stores now, branching from Internet-only sales. It had taken many trips and many samples of her work, but now she was hopefully going to find a place for her line in one of the top boutiques in Athens.

Personally, it was hard for Landi to buy clothes over the Internet; she wanted to be able to try them on, and she knew customers wanted that ability as well.

Gripping her attaché, she waited for Jason and the garment bags he had. Together they entered the glass building.