The Greek's Surprise Christmas Bride. LYNNE GRAHAM

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      Letty rode home and Leo need not have worried that exhaustion would make her a less than cautious rider. Leo had set off a chain reaction inside her head. Out of his presence, she could think again, see possibilities and spot the issues he had overlooked. What about her sex life? Was she expected to keep a male version of a mistress somewhere? Or was she supposed to cross her legs like the virgin she was and get by without sex?

      In truth, Letty didn’t know if she would ever want sex with a man. Being a high achiever had never helped her social life. The more she had shone at school, the fewer friends she’d had and she had been christened a nerd and a geek. University and competing with her peers had provided a different learning curve but no boyfriend had ever contrived to make Letty want more than kisses and companionship. All of them had wanted more from her than she was prepared to give because she had always put her studies first. She had once toyed with the idea of just having sex with someone purely to find out what it was like, but she wasn’t sufficiently curious and was too cynical to expect fireworks from the experience, so she had retained her ignorance and her innocence.

      A man like Leo, however, would have made her want more and would have incited her curiosity. She knew that instinctively and it made her wary of him. He made her feel vulnerable and she didn’t like that either. He was too clever as well, too clever to be trusted. Had she had more respect for her grandfather, she would’ve asked his opinion of Leo Romanos but Isidore Livas was scarcely a disinterested observer and she could not put her faith in him. Presumably her grandfather wanted this alliance to go ahead and he was equally keen for Leo to become his heir. Letty had no doubt that Leo was a blazing success in the business world.

      When she arrived home, her mother needed painkillers and she went back out again to collect the prescription. The painkillers were highly addictive and that worried her, for her mother had been on them for quite some time. While she was out, she bought food for dinner and when she returned for the second time her mother was standing rapt in front of the table, on which sat a gorgeous bouquet of flowers, delivered in a vase and ready for display.

      ‘For you…’ the older woman said with warm appreciation, turning to study her flushed daughter with curiosity. ‘You’ve been keeping secrets. Who’s Leo?’

      Letty grabbed the card. It just said ‘Leo’, but that was all it needed to say.

      ‘Leo?’ she repeated, her mouth running dry. ‘He’s one of the residents’ relatives at the care home,’ she fibbed in desperation.

      ‘Is he young?’ Gillian pressed.

      ‘Yes, and good-looking.’

      ‘Well, don’t freeze this one out, the way that you do when men show an interest in you,’ her mother urged worriedly. ‘Be nice to this one.’

      ‘Mum, I’m only twenty-four. I’ve got plenty of time to meet someone. Stop worrying about me,’ Letty said wryly, giving the older woman a hug. ‘I’m off to bed.’

      She had hoped to climb into bed and go out like a light but her mind had other ideas: visions of her mother restored to mobility and no longer reliant on painkillers, her family in a home in a decent area with furniture that wasn’t worn and shabby and the boys clad in the sports gear of their dreams. Seductive images, she conceded ruefully, cursing Leo Romanos for tempting her before grabbing her laptop to look him up online.

      The Greek billionaire, the shipping heir, consummate tycoon…giver of flowers, charming when he wanted to be.

      Also a womaniser, she reminded herself, discovering a whole slew of images in which Leo appeared in company with various women but all of them were identikit brunettes. It seemed he had a type and his type was tall, curvy dark-haired women. Of what interest was that to her? Why was she even looking? Scolding herself, Letty returned to trying to sleep while attempting not to recall that Christmas was only just round the corner and that the coming festivities would be just as cheerless as the last.

      Christmas was impossible to do on a strict budget and, what with the loan payments due every month and keeping up with the household bills, there was no room for treats or extras. Her brothers were still children and it was hard for them to do without what other boys their age took for granted. If she married Leo, a persuasive little voice whispered inside her head, she could give her family a fantastic Christmas. All their worries would disappear, wouldn’t they?

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