She lifted her eyebrows. “All night, huh?”
I gently kissed around her face. “All night.”
“Is that a Greek thing . . . the stamina?”
I could feel my body heating as Kilyn squirmed about in my lap. “Hell, yes, that’s a Greek thing.”
Sinking her teeth into her lip, she smiled big. “I think I’m going to like having a Greek boyfriend.”
“Oh, baby, trust me. There are so many things about having a Greek boyfriend you’re going to love.”
Pushing her ass against my hard dick, she winked. “Starting with this?”
A low growl came from the back of my throat as I whispered against her lips. “Me trelaíneis, Kilyn.”
I HAD NO idea what Thano whispered and I didn’t care. I was too lost in his kiss to care about anything. The way he made me feel was unlike anything I’d ever experienced before.
The kiss was broken much sooner than I would have liked as the taxi driver cleared his throat. “We’re almost there, sir.”
With a pout, I slipped off his lap and sat next to him as Thano chuckled. Reaching into his wallet he pulled out money. When the taxi pulled up to what I was guessing was Thano’s parents’ house I stared out the window.
Holy. Shit. The house was amazing. It was beautiful.
“Thanks so much,” Thano said to the driver as he slipped out quickly and reached for my hand.
“Do I look okay?” I asked.
Thano laughed. “They’ve seen you before up at the cabin.”
Tilting my head, I narrowed my eyes at him. “Well, up at the cabin we hadn’t been sucking face and your hands weren’t all up in my stuff.”
“Your stuff?”
I hit him on the chest and dragged in a deep breath. Thank goodness I wore dress slacks today. Checking to make sure everything was in place, I looked up at him and nodded.
“I’m ready.”
“You say that now.”
Thano placed his hand on my lower back and began guiding me to the front door. Stopping. I frantically looked at him. “What do you mean?”
“Nothing, ladybug. Let’s get this over with.”
My heart began beating harder and I felt like I had just run in a marathon. I started sweating, my breath was labored, and my legs felt like jelly.
This was such a bad idea.
Was that my pulse I felt in my throat? Oh, Christ.
By the time we got to the top step, the massive wood door flew open.
Katerina stood there with a smile on her face. And behind her were all the women from the day they came to the Onion Creek Gardens.
“Are your parents having a party?” I asked in a hushed voice.
Thano chuckled and pushed me in front of him. He was feeding me to the lions.
Walking up, I dragged in a deep breath and smiled. Katerina looked me over and stepped to the side along with everyone else.
Thano followed closely behind me as we walked into a massive foyer. I didn’t dare look around . . . what if that was rude in the Greek culture?
Damn it! Why didn’t I buy that other book? Why didn’t I finish reading the one I bought?
Thano’s mother shut the door and walked up to me. No one said a word.
“She isn’t Greek,” someone whispered as Thano clasped his hand in mine.
When my eyes met Katerina’s, something happened. I wasn’t sure what it was, but I knew it was good.
Placing her hands on my arms, her face grew into a wide smile.
“Thank the heavens above it’s you he brought home!”
My eyes widened with a dazed look. A rush of adrenaline tingled through my body as I turned to look at Thano. He wore the same expression I was positive I had. Looking back at Katerina, I opened my mouth to say something but nothing came out.
“Are you feeling okay, Katerina?” someone asked from behind her.
“I am feeling wonderful! My Athanasios is in love and with the beautiful Irish Kilyn!”
I cringed and waited for the spitting to happen but it didn’t. The rest of the room was in total shock. Too stunned to commence with the spitting.
Grabbing my hand, Katerina pulled me into the house as we made our way into a huge dining room. My eyes about popped out of my head when I saw all the food.
“Jesus, Mama. When did you cook all of this?”
Katerina shot Thano a dirty look before turning back to me. “Kilyn, you sit here with Yiayia. Athanasios, you sit on her other side.”
Thano and I did as his mother said. When I sat down, I turned to Thano’s grandmother. She gave me a polite smile, but then said, “You’re not Greek.”
I smiled nervously, as I replied, “No ma’am, I’m not.”
“You’re the Irish girl.”
Deep breaths. Deep. Breaths.
“Yes, Yiayia, this is Kilyn.”
“Oh! Yiayia is grandmother!” I blurted out. Why was that now just hitting me?
Everyone turned and looked at me.
Katerina leaned over to, whom if I remembered right, was her cousin Maria and said, “The Irish always were a little slow.”
Maria nodded her head. “It’s all that beer they drink. Does something to the brain cells.”
I turned to Thano and leaned closer to him. “They do know I can hear them, right?”
He smiled. “Oh, they know.”
With a nod, I replied, “Just making sure.”
The next thing I knew, every kind of Greek dish was pushed my way. Even if I tried to pass over it, Yiayia was spooning some onto my plate.
“You’re too skinny. Now, Katerina, she could stand to drop a few pounds, but we need to get some meat on you for the babies.”
I glanced down at my already overflowing plate and swallowed hard.
My head popped up.
Wait. What? Babies?
Good Lord what was all of this food? I picked up a skewer that had the most delicious looking food on it.
“Souvlaki,” Thano said. “It’s pork tenderloin and veggies.”
My mouth began to water when I realized I hadn’t eaten since morning and I was starving. Using my fork to slip the food off the skewer, I took a bite and was instantly in heaven.
“Ohmygawd,” I whispered.
Thano wiggled his eyebrows and took a huge bite of something that looked like a pastry-filled delight!
He pointed to it and said, “It’s basically chicken in a patty.”
I dug into that next dish. It was better than the pork.
Shit. I’m going to gain twenty pounds just from this dinner.
Katerina handed me a dish and said, “Moussaka. Get a good helping of that. It’s Athanasios’ favorite.”
Doing as she said, I took a generous helping and then took a bite. Holy crap. It was like lasagna but ten times better.
“Have you ever had Greek food before, Kilyn?” Dimitris asked.
Shaking my head, I replied, “No. I mean I’ve had a Gyro before and what Katerina cooked at cooking class that day, but that’s about all.”
He gave me a warm smile. “My Katerina is a good cook. She can teach you.”
Thano grabbed my thigh and squeezed it under the table causing my entire body to enflame.
I turned to Katerina only to see her watching me intensely. “I’d love that very much.”
Her face turned up in a full-fledged smile. I was instantly reminded of my own mother and all the times I helped her in the kitchen.
More food was passed around as Thad and Nicholaus showed up. The look on their faces when they saw me sitting at their parents’ table was priceless. There was so much chatter and everyone talking at once that I had a hard time keeping up with everything.
When Katerina stood, she announced she was clearing the table for dessert.
“Oh, no,” I whispered. There was no way I could put anything else in my mouth.
I glanced around and realized I had been thrown in with the family and no one was really introduced.
“So,
should you introduce me to everyone?” I asked Thano in a hushed voice.
“Um . . . if we could get them all to shut up I would. I’ll give you a run down on who is who. Over there next to my father is my cousin Maria. Next to her is her husband Nick. Their daughter Maria is next to him. Then we have cousin Sophia, cousin Angie and her twin sister Maria.”
I lifted my eyebrows. Wait. Was that three Maria’s?
“Then you’ve got my mother’s sister Agnes and her daughter Sophia and her son Thanos.”
“Like your name?”
Thano shook his head. “No, his name is just Thanos. There is an s on the end.”
“Oh,” I mumbled. Just when I thought I was getting it.
“You’ve got my cousin Angelo and his wife Christine and their little girl Marianna.”
My head was spinning. Looking at Thano, I asked, “Why are there so many duplicate names?”
He shrugged. “I guess Greeks like to name their kids after one another.”
Katerina and one of the Marias came walking out each carrying a dish.
Thano’s mother looked at me and said, “We’ve got baklava, galaktoboureko, loukoumades, and chocolate cake!”
Chocolate cake! That I knew!
When it was all placed on the table, my mouth watered but my pants forbid me to eat another bite. That was until Yiayia started putting it all on another plate for me, declaring I hadn’t eaten enough.
“Are all Irish girls so small?” Sophia asked as she pushed the chocolate cake my way.
“Well, um . . . I’m not really sure.”
Everyone stopped and looked at me. Dimitris moaned and mumbled, “Here we go.”
Katerina placed her hands on her hips and wore a serious look on her face.
“Does your family not get together for holidays? Like Saint Patrick’s day?”
I couldn’t help it; I giggled as I looked around at all of them. When I saw they were serious I looked at Thano who was currently shoving what I think was the loukoumades into his mouth.
“Oh, well, um . . . my parents died when I was fourteen and I had no other family. I moved in with my best friend’s family and they are a . . . well, an um . . . a blended family of I think Italian, German, and something else.”
I honestly had no clue what Claire’s heritage was and I totally made that shit up on the fly.
Tears filled Katerina’s eyes as she asked, “You lost your parents at fourteen?”
With a slow nod, I was almost afraid to open my mouth to speak again.
The next thing I knew I was being hugged by every female that was in the house and walked outside to take a tour of Katerina’s garden. Looking over my shoulder, Thano stood there with a huge grin on his face and powdered sugar on his cheek.
Thad and Nicholaus stood on either side of him. When all three of them lifted their hand and waved I wanted to scream out for help.
Those bastards!
I was being led away by a Greek mob and I wasn’t sure I would survive.
“DUDE, YOU’RE REALLY going to let them whisk her away like that?” Nicholaus asked.
I couldn’t help but chuckle at the horrified look on Kilyn’s face. “She’ll be fine. Better to let her see what she is getting into now.”
My father walked up and stood next to me and sighed. “You do know Yiayia is currently assessing your girlfriend’s stomach. She’s probably trying to see if her Irish vessel is capable of carrying a Greek child.”
Letting out a roar of laughter, I popped another loukoumades into my mouth. Walking up to the window, I watched as Kilyn smiled and laughed while she and my mother walked toward the gardens. “What do you think of her, Dad?”
“I think she is a lovely girl and I can see how much you care for her by the way you look at her. And she you.”
Feeling a warmth spread through my chest, I looked at him and then back to Kilyn. “I do. I love her.”
My father remained silent next me. “You think it’s too soon, don’t you?” I asked.
“Who am I to think anything. The heart feels what the heart wants to feel. I am glad to see you have put the past where it belongs and you have moved on. The bigger question is . . . does this girl love you enough to put up with this family?”
Thad and Nicolaus both laughed behind us. “Aunt Maria is already saying Kilyn is out for Bampas’ money.”
My father huffed next to me. “Nonsense. I’m sure Kilyn’s parents left her a comfortable inheritance. He was a very successful man.”
Pinching my eyebrows together, I turned and faced my father. “How would you know that?”
He continued to look out at Kilyn and my mother.
“I knew him. Worked with him often to be exact. He was one of the top cardiac surgeons in the nation. He was coming back from a conference he spoke at in Canada when the private plane they were flying in crashed. I knew they had a daughter, but I had forgotten what her name was until that day up at the cabin.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
With a shrug, he looked at me. “Would it have made a difference?”
“No. It wouldn’t have at all.” Looking back out at Kilyn, my heart ached for her. I couldn’t imagine losing my parents at such a young age and then to go through what she went through.
“I bet she’d like to know you worked with her father, though. She really never mentions her parents at all. I didn’t even know he was a doctor.”
Slapping me on the shoulder, he grinned. “I will when the time comes. Let’s not overwhelm the poor girl all in one day.”
“Thank you so much for the lovely evening, Mr. and Mrs. Drivas.”
My mother waved her hands in the air. “Nonsense, just because you are dating my Athanasios doesn’t mean you have to be so formal. You will call us Katerina and Dimitris. And then after the wedding, Mama and Bampas.”
Kilyn’s jaw hit the ground.
“And that is my cue to sweep you away from the madness before they ask me to impregnate you here on the spot.”
Now her face turned white. “Wh-what?”
Hitting me on the chest, my mother said, “Nonsense, we have to have the wedding first, then we talk babies.”
“Oh, my,” Kilyn whispered pressing her hands to her face.
With my arm slipped around her waist, I guided Kilyn out the door and to the waiting taxi. Finally, I was going to get her home and have my way with her.
It wasn’t even five minutes and she was out cold with her head resting on my shoulder. Never in a million years would I think I would love something as much as I loved the sight of Kilyn sleeping next to me.
When the taxi pulled up to my apartment, I handed him cash and told him to keep the change. Kilyn must have been exhausted because she never woke up. Not even when I placed her in my bed.
After watching her sleep for almost an hour, I stripped out of my clothes and took a hot shower. I didn’t even have to turn around to know she was standing there. When her hands touched my back I felt goose bumps erupt over my body.
Closing my eyes, I held my breath as she wrapped her arms around me and peppered my back with soft kisses. Each time whispering my full name. Turning around, I let my gaze roam across her beautiful body. Cupping her face with my hands, I leaned down and pressed my lips to hers as hot water cascaded around us.
It started off slow and sweet. Each of us taking our time as our tongues danced together. Moving her around, I pressed her against the shower wall, deepening the kiss. Her hands moved up while her fingers laced through my hair. When she grabbed it and tugged, I knew she wanted more.
My hand moved down her body and between her legs where I slipped two fingers inside of her.
Moaning, I moved them slowly while she pressed her hips to me . . . silently begging me for more.
Breaking our kiss, I moved my lips along her neck as she softly whispered my name again.
Pulling back, I looked her in the eyes. “I don’t have a condom, baby.”
I could see the conf
lict in her eyes. We’d only been together once, and it wasn’t fair of me to ask her to do anything she wasn’t comfortable doing.
She swallowed hard. “I’m on the pill.”
Pushing a piece of wet hair from her face, I smiled. “I’ve never had unprotected sex, Kilyn.”
Her eyes widened in surprise. “Never?”
Shaking my head, I kissed her lips. “No. I’ve always worn a condom when I’ve had sex.”
“Savannah?”
“Always. She never wanted to be on the pill and insisted I wear a condom every time.”
The smile that spread across her face had my knees shaking. “So this would be the first time for both of us?”
I frowned as I thought of Peter. Kilyn must have seen it because she started to chew on her lip. “He wore one. At least he did that.”
“I’m so sorry, ladybug.”
She shook her head. “How do you say kiss me in Greek?”
With a huge grin, I said, “Fíla me.”
Wrapping her arms around my neck, she smiled and said, “Fíla me, Athanasios.”
Lifting her up, she wrapped her legs around my waist. Leaning her against the wall, I pressed my lips to hers. There was nothing slow or steady about the kiss. It was frantic and needy.
Our moans echoed in each other mouths. Pulling back, I gasped for air. “Are you sure?”
Nodding her head, she replied, “I’ve never been so sure of anything in my entire life. I want you. All of you with nothing between us.”
My heart slammed against my chest as I lifted her and slowly pushed in. My eyes about rolled to the back of my head it felt so fucking good.
“Shit,” I mumbled as I buried my face into her neck coming to a still. If I moved I was going to come.
Her fingers mixed with the hot water running down my back as she lazily ran them over my skin. “Thano,” she whispered.
I couldn’t even look at her my emotions were everywhere. I wasn’t confused and I didn’t feel guilty, it was the opposite. I’d never felt more complete in my entire life. As if all these years I’ve been waiting for her. Pressing my lips to her ear, I barely was able to speak. “I’ve never . . . felt anything . . . so amazing.”