Dimitri had bought for her, knowing she didn’t deserve them anymore. But when she opened the drawer that contained her lingerie, her fingers shook as she gently touched all of the lacy, sexy underwear and bras. Inhaling painfully, she scooped up all of the garments and piled them carefully into her suitcase. He probably wouldn’t even know that she’d taken them.
“Good afternoon, Ms. Miller,” the doorman to the building said as she emerged from the elevator. “Mr. Theopolis has already left but Tony is standing by, ready to take you to the office.”
Helen sighed. “Thank you, Chris,” she said in Greek. “But I don’t think that would be appropriate.”
Stepping out into the painfully hot sun almost knocked her to her knees again. Her stomach was in knots and she walked slowly to the bus stop, her heavy suitcase trailing behind her. She would empty out her desk and tender her resignation, knowing she would have to move back to London. She couldn’t work for Dimitri any longer, not that he would want her. She now knew that the position he’d created for her was not a real job. It had been his plan to get her here to Greece. He didn’t need her in that capacity any longer.
She still had the key to the corporate apartment that he’d given her back in London. She would stay there tonight and submit her resignation immediately. Surely he wouldn’t mind if she stayed just one night, would he?
Going into the office, she was already late since it was past ten o’clock. The first thing she noticed was that there was a tension that was not normal. The executive floor was always hopping with people working diligently on whatever task or takeover they had going, but this was a strange tension. She walked down to her office and sat down behind her computer, immediately writing several sentences that outlined her resignation.
Printing it out, she walked down the hallway to Alessandra’s desk. “Would Dimitri have a moment this morning to see me?” she asked, her fingers shaking as she held the letter behind her back.
Alessandra’s gray hair swished by her face, her frazzled eyes glancing up at Helen in relief. “Oh, Helen, you know you don’t need an appointment to see Mr. Theopolis. He always makes time for you. And this morning, maybe you could put him into a better mood. I for one would be grateful,” she said, reaching for the phone to call Dimitri.
Helen didn’t mention that her news might not create the atmosphere that everyone would want. In fact, it might even make it worse. But she kept silent, mentally crossing her fingers that Dimitri would actually see her.
“Helen is here, waiting to see you, Mr. Theopolis,” Alessandra efficiently relayed. The shock on her face as she listened to Dimitri’s answer told Helen just how angry he was.
Alessandra slowly put down the phone and looked up at Helen nervously. “He said he’d try and fit you in this afternoon,” she explained, her eyes confused. “But…I thought…we all thought…,” she started to say, but didn’t finish her questions. “Never mind,” she said lightly, smiling professionally as she picked up her pencil and pulled Dimitri’s calendar forward. “He has a few minutes right before lunch time. Would that be okay?” she asked.
Helen nodded and thanked Alessandra, then walked back to her office, her feet unsure of how to move it seemed.
She worked diligently through the morning but took a few minutes to book a flight back to London in two weeks, wondering how she was going to work through these fourteen days, loving him the way she did and knowing that he felt the same way. Maybe he’d release her from the job immediately since it wasn’t a real position, just one he’d made up. Well, he’d never said he loved her, but he must if he wanted to marry her, right?
Helen sighed and shook her head. There was no point in traveling down that path. It would only lead to more pain and she had enough of it as it was. Looking at the calendar, she groaned out loud when she realized that there was another dinner party scheduled for tonight. How could she have forgotten that? She’d just been discussing it with Dimitri yesterday afternoon.
No problem. She would simply discuss the issue with Marie and make sure that everything was in order. There was no need for Helen to be there in person as long as the staff was well qualified to