“I’d love to see the Matisse.”
“We’ll do it.” He kissed her thoroughly before calling his attorney.
“Yorgos? I have news! I caught up with Norville and the truth is out.” Zoe noticed how his eyes
gleamed in relief.
“Congratulations. This should change things with Lia. I’ll call her attorney the second we’re off the phone,” Yorgos replied.
“When Lia hears this, I have to hope she reconsiders how she’s handling visitation. Norville isn’t sure what he wants to do yet. I gave him your card to give to his attorney. I told him I won’t be in contact with him again. This was it. Just so you know, I’ll be back in Patras tonight.”
“Excellent. We’ll stay in close touch.”
Andreas hung up and clasped her to him again. Zoe knew an almost unbearable weight had been lifted from him and she hugged him back. Her heart was lighter, too. She could only hope that if Guion didn’t want anything to do with Ari, he would at least allow his son to see him one day or talk to him.
The chauffeur drove them across Nice to the old town past French and Italian architecture that made the city so charming. Two hours later they’d eaten fondue and he’d introduced her to tentura, a citrus wine made in Patras since the 1500s that was divine.
Later they wandered through the narrow streets and alleys before the limo drove them to the seventeenth-century villa where the Matisse collection was housed.
She clung to Andreas’s arm. “If I had to be locked up in one place for days on end, I’d choose to be here. The way Matisse painted flowers, or a woman lying on a bed, or a scene out of a window, his use of color, it all delights me. Do you have a favorite Impressionist painter?”
“Van Gogh speaks to me.”
“I love a lot of his paintings, too. I also love the sculptures of Rodin, especially The Kiss and Eternal Springtime.”
His eyes danced. “Those are two of my favorites, as you can imagine.”
She blushed. “Of course I’ve only seen those in pictures. One day I’ll get to Paris and see the real thing. What Greek artists do you like?” It was time to change the subject.
“There’s a sculpture of Hermes carrying the infant Dionysus done by Praxiteles in the archaeological museum in Olympia. My parents took me there when I was ten or eleven. My mother said the baby reminded her of me. I didn’t think about it again until Ari’s operation. Oddly enough the infant reminded me of him. Mother bought a postcard I still have.”
“That’s something I’d like to see.”
“I’ll show it to you when we get home.”
“Speaking of home, we’d better leave for the airport, Andreas. I’ve kept you walking around in here for hours. I know you’re anxious to get back.”
“If I’m anxious, it’s so we can be strictly alone.”
There was nothing Zoe desired more, but Andreas wasn’t out of the woods yet where Lia was concerned. As they walked out of the elegant villa to the waiting limo, she knew they were getting to the point of no return.
If after all this Lia still proved to be difficult, even knowing her lie had been exposed to Guion, then Zoe needed to leave for California. She absolutely refused to be the reason he couldn’t have the visitation he’d petitioned for.
They boarded the Gavras private jet and ate dinner. Andreas made some business calls to his assistant and one of his uncles. When they arrived in Patras, Andreas walked her to his car. But on the way into the city, he followed a freeway sign that led to an area called Kalamaki. Zoe hadn’t been there but knew it was an exclusive neighborhood of the city.
“I thought you were taking me to my apartment.”
“I want you with me tonight. I’m taking you to my villa.”
She sucked in her breath. “No, Andreas. I’ve told you this before. Much as I’d like to see where you live, I don’t dare. Lia could have people watching. All she’d need is another picture of you and me together walking into the house where she lived with you, and it would inflame her more. Your visitation petition needs to be ruled on first.”
When she saw Andreas grip the steering wheel tighter, Zoe knew she’d upset what had been a beautiful afternoon and evening. In the next block he made a U-turn and they headed back to the freeway that would take them into the city.
“I’d hoped to leave you at the villa where you could laze and swim in the pool while I’m at my board meeting tomorrow. Instead when I come by to pick you up after it’s over, I’ll discover you’re not there.”
“Andreas—” She’d really done some serious damage to his trust when she’d flown to Italy without preparing him. “I’m not leaving Patras. While you’re busy at your meeting, I’ll do some errands. Please don’t be upset.”
“You don’t seem to understand. I don’t want you out of my sight.”