His gaze dropped to it before returning to my face. With a wicked smile he raised one imperious hand and traced his knuckles down my heated cheek.

‘Pick your battles with care, Calypso. You look stunning in this dress—every eye in the room keeps returning to you time and again, and I’m the envy of every man here. You should be celebrating that, not picking a fight with your husband.’

With that, he leaned even closer, replaced his hand with his mouth for the briefest of moments...

And then he walked off.

Leaving me shaking with a cascade of emotions.

The only reason I felt out of sorts was because that little incident in my dressing room had thrown me—shown me a different side to Axios that had intensified the illicit yearning inside me. And while standing next to Axios wreaked havoc with my equilibrium, watching him, the most prominent man in the room, walking away left me with a yawing hollow in the pit of my stomach.

Did I really want him? Or was I just terrified by the knowledge that the only eyes I wanted on me were his, not the guests’ who kept coming up to me, some blatantly questioning why the great Axios Xenakis had tied himself down to me.

I shook my head, hoping to clear it of these confusing thoughts.

‘I hope you’re not shaking your head because you wish to deny me your company?’

I attempted to control my bewildering thoughts before turning towards another one of Ax’s cousins.

At my blank look he said, ‘I’m Stavros. We met earlier.’

I nodded, attempted to smile. ‘Hello.’

His smile was reserved, but genuine. I found myself wishing for another smile. One that was edged in sizzling grey. I was really losing it.

‘Having fun?’

I shrugged. ‘I’m in a room full of some of the most powerful people on earth, sipping champagne and enjoying the status of hostess with the mostest. What’s not to love?’

As with most of the Xenakis clan, his expression grew speculative. ‘You sound...distressed. Is everything all right?’

About to answer, I looked across the room to where Ax had been talking to the trade minister moments ago. He was staring directly at me, as if he could see to the heart of my jumbled emotions.

That he could do that from across the room panicked me and irked me. Nevertheless, I had to hold on to what was important. And that was Andreos. Regardless of my personal situation, I couldn’t afford for anything to jeopardise my time with my child.

With a deep breath, I forced a smile and turned to Stavros. ‘I’m absolutely fine, Stavros. Sorry if I sounded a little off. Chalk it up to missing my baby.’

‘Ah, a little separation anxiety, ne? As the father of young children, I remember that state well, too.’

‘Yes... Speaking of which, would you mind excusing me? I’d like to call and check on him.’

This time Stavros’s smile was a little tight. ‘Of course. But I hope you’ll honour me with a dance when you return?’