THERE WERE DEFINITELY some benefits to being second-in-charge of the island.
Popi didn’t feel that way most of the time. Most of the time being second-in-charge meant she had to run her ideas past Lea. It meant that any extravagances had to be preapproved by Lea. And sometimes being second-in-charge meant being the second place for a client to file a complaint, even if the situation was out of Popi’s control.
But today Popi’s position meant she could let herself into the small grocery store that carried so much more than food. She picked up some essentials for the kitten, from food to a litter box, and then she left an itemized list at the register of everything she’d taken. She would settle up when the island opened back up for business in a couple of months.
So much was about to change in the next six or seven weeks. Nothing would be as it had been. And her sister would not be there for any of it. And Popi blamed herself. If it wasn’t for her making a fuss, her sister wouldn’t have been on that boat when it exploded.
Popi shoved aside the guilt and pain. She had other matters to attend to now. There was the kitten locked up in her bathroom. And there was the sexy Greek man who insisted on staying in her life until he got his way. They’d see about that.
She wasn’t just going to hand over this baby because he was a Drakos. Everyone in Athens—in Greece—knew his last name. They knew it was synonymous with old money and great power.
That wouldn’t stop Popi from fighting for what was best for this child. Apollo might be the child’s blood relation, but she was the one carrying the baby—making it possible for it to be here. And she wouldn’t stop fighting for this little bundle of joy.
Once back at the bungalow, Popi was relieved to find that Apollo hadn’t returned. But she didn’t have time to rest. She had a kitten to care for.
In the bathroom, she was amazed to find that one little kitten could wreak such havoc. The toilet paper was strewn across the floor. Her purple-and-teal bath loofah that had been sitting on the edge of the tub was now across the room, and there was a kitten attached to it. The little guy was lying on his side while holding the loofah with its front paws and kicking it with his back. Popi could only hope that he wore himself out after making such a mess.
A little while later, the bathroom was set right and there was litter in the litter box. The kitten took right to the box. Popi could only hope that litter training was truly that easy and that there weren’t any future accidents.
“Is everything okay?”
The sound of Apollo’s voice made her jump. She hadn’t heard him return. She turned in the hallway, finding him standing right behind her—so close that she could reach out and touch him. The thought was tempting—very tempting—but she resisted the urge.
“I didn’t hear you come in,” she said.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.” He sent her a guilty grin.
When he wasn’t frowning at her, he was really quite handsome. She wondered if the baby would resemble him in some way. She hoped so.
“Relax. I’m okay. I was just focused on the kitten.” She frowned.
“What’s wrong? Is it the baby? Did you overdo it today? I told you to rest earlier today, but you wouldn’t listen.”
“It’s okay. It’s not the baby. In fact, I think he or she is sleeping right now.”
“Then why did you have that look on your face?”
“I was just thinking that I can’t keep calling the kitten ‘kitten.’ It needs a name.”
“And then you know what will happen, don’t you?”
She sent him a puzzled look, not sure what he was getting at. “What will happen?”
“A cat with a name is a cat with a home.”
She had to admit that she liked the idea. “Unless it already has a home.”
“Something tells me that it isn’t going anywhere.” He was looking behind her.
She turned to see what he was staring at. There was the kitten dragging the loofah up to her. The kitten sat next to her.
“Looks like you have a shadow,” Apollo teased.
“Shadow?” She looked at the dark gray kitten with the white neck and belly. She knelt down to pet the little guy. “What do you think? Are you a shadow?”
The kitten looked up at her with its pretty blue eyes and let out a little baby meow. Popi’s heart swelled with love for it. Unless the owner showed up, it looked like she had a baby kitten to raise too.
Then she envisioned the baby with a kitten to grow up with. Somehow that seemed right to her. Now that she had her heart set on this vision of her family, she had to hope the kitten hadn’t run away from a loving home and gotten left behind when everyone was shipped off the island for the renovations. And most of all, she had to pray that Apollo came to his senses and realized that the baby was best left here with her. Because if it came down to a court case, she had no doubt that he had the money to hire the very best army of lawyers and they would beat any defense she could muster.
Popi eyed Apollo, wondering if he’d really be that ruthless. There was a glint of determination in his eyes. Maybe she would have to mount her defense in a very different way—a way that didn’t include lawyers and judges. She would have to appeal to his mind and his heart.
What was she thinking?
Apollo noticed the looks Popi had been giving him off and on all day. She had something on her mind, and he was pretty certain he wasn’t going to like it.
It wasn’t like she was just suddenly going to change her mind and hand over the baby when it was born. She had her mind made up about him, and he didn’t know if he could change it.
When he was out in the wilderness, he didn’t have to feel like he wasn’t living up to other people’s expectations of him. And he didn’t have to feel like he didn’t stack up to his big brother—the brother who had the perfect life, the perfect wife and the perfect career as CEO of Drakos Industries.
When Apollo was off on one of his adventures, the world became a lot smaller. He could focus on the more basic parts of life, such as his next meal and where he would sleep that night. Maybe that made him selfish—he wasn’t sure. But at the time he’d gone off on his first adventure, he just couldn’t stand to listen to one more of his father’s lectures about how he was a disappointment. That was something Apollo would never say to his nephew or niece.
But he was starting to get similar looks from Popi—looks that said he’d let down his family and she would never trust him with the baby. The looks made him uncomfortable. After all, Popi barely even knew him. But she had heard stories from his brother. He could only guess at what his brother had to say about him, most likely none of it any good. In the last year or two, he and his brother had clashed—a lot.
Yet Popi still hadn’t kicked him out. And he didn’t miss the part about the village being deserted and it just being the two of them on the island. Did that mean he’d jumped to the wrong conclusions? Was it possible she trusted him? Just a little?
If so, it was a starting point from which he could reason with her and avoid a long, drawn-out, nasty court case that would be fodder for the headlines. The whole thing would be a mess.
“You really didn’t have to stay here.” Popi’s voice drew him from his thoughts. “I’m fine on my own. And I have a phone should an emergency come up.” Then she frowned as though realizing she’d said too much. “Not that there will be an emergency or anything.”
He wasn’t going anywhere. “I just feel better being here.”
She arched a brow. “Are you saying you care?”
He suddenly felt as though there wasn’t a right answer to her question. Not wanting to complicate things any further, he knew it was time to change the subject. “What would you like for dinner?”
A small smile pulled at her lips, letting him know she’d caught on to his diversionary tactics. “I don’t know what’s in the cabinets.” She rubbed her back as a frown settled over her pretty face. “But I’m not hungry—”
Thunk. Thunk.
They both turned to the front door as it swung back and forth. The sun had set by then, leaving them in the dark. There wasn’t even any moonlight tonight.
“The wind is really kicking up,” Popi said. “I’ve been so busy with the wedding and packing that I haven’t had time to check the weather in days.”
She moved to the open front door. Another gust of wind rushed through the doorway. She pushed the door closed against the wind and secured it.
“Do you get bad weather here?” he asked.
“Once in a while. But not often.”
Apollo started opening the kitchen cabinets. “It looks like we have pasta.” He continued to name off the various food items. And then he turned to her. “What do you feel like?”
She rubbed the small of her back. “Um...nothing.”
He moved to her. “Is your back still bothering you?”
She nodded. “I guess I overdid it today.”
“You should be resting.” He noticed the lines deepening between her brows.
She shook her head. “It’ll pass. It always does.”
Apollo expelled a long sigh. “I told you not to lift anything today.”
“I didn’t.” When he arched a disbelieving brow at her, she amended her response. “Okay. But that box wasn’t heavy at all. It had paper products in it.”
“Maybe you were just on your feet too long.” He glanced around the room for a place for her to sit, but they’d emptied most of this bungalow, as well as all the other bungalows on the island.
He scanned the now empty living room. He’d tried to convince her to keep some of the furniture, but Popi had been insistent that she could manage for one night with bare bones. He wondered if she was now regretting that decision.
He walked to the master bedroom to retrieve an inflatable mattress from the closet. He returned to the living room with it, some pillows and a blanket. He put them all down in the middle of the floor.
Popi was pacing back and forth. Her hand was still pressed to the small of her back. “What are you doing?”
“You need to rest and take some strain off your back.”
“I’m fine.”
“Don’t take this the wrong way, but you don’t look fine.”
“Well, aren’t you just full of compliments.” She sent him a teasing smile.
“I try.” At least she hadn’t lost her sense of humor. They were going to need it to get through this night.
It took a bit to pump up the full-size mattress. Once he detached the pump, he fixed the mattress up with pillows and blankets. But what he hadn’t counted on was trying to get a nine-month pregnant woman down to the floor. It took some maneuvering and cooperation, but at last Popi was off her feet.
She moved this way and that way, trying to get comfortable. And yet she continued to frown. She rolled onto her side and he placed a pillow behind her back.
“How’s that?” he asked.
“It’s good.” But the look on her face said that it was anything but good.
He knelt down beside her. “We need to get you to the mainland.”
He didn’t like taking chances where her pregnancy was concerned. He knew what could happen. His family had already sustained so many losses. He didn’t think he could bear another.
She smiled at him, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “I’m good, really. You were right. I overdid it today. I should have listened to you.”
Had she just admitted that he was right about something? He smiled. “You’re sure?”
She nodded. “See. The pain is already lessening.”
He studied her for a moment, trying to figure out if she was telling him the truth. There was no way they were staying on this island if she was going into labor. Not a chance. She needed to be in the hospital with a full, knowledgeable staff and equipment for any emergency. But in the end, even that hadn’t been enough to save his mother.
Why exactly couldn’t he have stayed gone for just a little longer? Just until the baby was born—when the beautiful surrogate mother and little one were safe and sound. He wasn’t any good at this stuff. This waiting and wondering was taking its toll. But he didn’t want Popi to see how worried he was.
“Maybe I should call your doctor.” He straightened and reached for his phone. “Just to be sure.”
“Don’t.” Her eyes pleaded with him. “I already ran to the doctor when I thought I was in premature labor last week. They assured me it was just Braxton-Hicks contractions.”
“What’s that?” He didn’t like the sound of it.
“It’s the body’s way of preparing for the birth of the baby.”
His gut was knotted up. “And you’re sure that’s what this is?”
She nodded. “We’re good.”
He still wasn’t convinced that all was well. But what did he know about pregnant women? He could only trust that what Popi was saying was the truth.
His gaze searched hers. “You’ll tell me if anything changes?”
“I will.”
He released a pent-up breath. He needed something to do besides pace. “I suppose I should find us something to eat.”
Just then Shadow emerged from whatever hiding spot he’d been cowering in since the winds started beating on the bungalow. The kitten let out a tiny cry, as though letting them know that he was hungry too.
“And I’ll get you a bowl of kitten food.” Apollo couldn’t resist running his fingers over Shadow’s downy-soft fur.
“And water. He keeps knocking his water bowl over.” Popi added just as the kitten climbed up on the mattress to be next to her.
Luckily Apollo had put down a couple of blankets to cover the mattress. Hopefully it’d protect it from the kitten’s needlelike nails.