Chapter 10
Costa took care to veil his expression behind his eyelashes while watching Emily Maitland's antics during lunch. Over breakfast Emily had insisted the four of them spend the day together, since she and Fidelio would be leaving early the next morning for their trip aboard his brother’s boat. When a picnic was suggested Emily decided the beach below would be the perfect place, so she could swim and work on her tan. Now they were all on the beach with a basket Calamini packed, brimming with her home cooking, enjoying the pure blue sky and the ocean surf breaking softly on the sand as the tide went out.
He and Fidelio had tried to dissuade Emily, thinking of how exhausting the walk down to the beach along a twisting, rocky path through the cliffs would be for Tallia, but she had been adamant. Tallia, for her part, made no objection and even refused his offer to take a boat from the dock around to the beach and meet up with her sister and Fidelio.
Despite his misgivings, Costa had capitulated to the wishes of the others because he gave Tallia his word he would aid her in any way he could. To help Tallia fool everyone, Costa sent Fidelio and Emily ahead with the basket, while he took charge of a canvas bag full of towels, a parasol and a backpack of beach essentials like snorkels, Frisbees, sunscreen and such. Carrying the bulk of things gave him an excuse to walk at a more sedate pace, with Tallia on his arm.
Tallia was managing with greater ease, her leg showing more agility today, but he was still careful not to let her overexert herself. That was the excuse he used to hold her back when she tried to keep up with Fidelio and Emily. Tallia was adorably apologetic, thinking herself a burden, but Costa didn't mind hanging back with her, if anything it suited him perfectly.
He liked Tallia, more and more with each passing moment he spent with her. She was shy and quiet, but possessed of a sharp intellect and a keen sense of humor, both of which were all the more interesting because she spoke so little. When she did speak it was to say something. She didn't jabber endlessly like most women, just to hear the sound of her own voice. She could be silent, something that he knew the majority of people in the world found uncomfortable.
It pleased him immeasurable to discover that she was more than simply physically attractive. Her beauty, he realized, went all the way to the heart of her, which made his attraction to her all the stronger, because he had met very few genuinely good people in his life.
As they took their time meandering down to the beach, they spoke of her life in England. With a little prodding, Tallia told him about her career as a teacher, recounting stories of her students, her good memories, and her professional disappointments. She possessed a sincere love for children and was eager to return to teaching, she told him how it was fulfilling work and made her feel useful.
Costa could sympathize, as he felt the same about his job. He smiled as he listened to Tallia's low, soothing voice, taking every chance to draw her close as they navigated the treacherous path down to the beach. He was almost sorry her leg was doing so much better, since it gave him precious few opportunities to play the hero and catch her when she would stumble.
By the time they reached the small stretch of sand in the tiny cove below the house, Fidelio had a large blanket pinned down with rocks and was laying out the food. Tallia gasped with pleasure as she took in their surroundings, the jewel blue water, so clear one could see straight down to the bottom, the jagged black rocks that formed a sheltered crescent along the inhospitable rocky edges of the island, and the powdery white sand. Costa felt his heart swell when he saw the delight on her face, taking pride in his home and the joy it brought her.
Emily was turning cartwheels and back flips instead of helping Fidelio, laughing and shrieking like a maniac. Even though he had only observed her for a brief time, Costa already knew he did not care for Emily. Objectively he could see that Tallia's sister was gorgeous, but she was also a hyper, attention seeking, immature brat who made his hand itch to put her over his knee and teach her some manners.
Last night at dinner, Emily flirted with him openly in front of Fidelio, and this morning she had done the same at breakfast. Emily didn't seem capable of being around a man without flirting. She was so desperate to be the center of attention that she resorted to stupid comments, asking ridiculous questions, and making a spectacle of herself pulling clownish faces just to get what she wanted.
Reluctantly he had to admit to himself that she didn’t seem malicious or unkind, just saccharine sweet and childish, a combination he did not find in the least attractive. Unfortunately, Fidelio had on rose-tinted glasses where his fiancée was concerned and thought she could do no wrong.
"Seleni is so beautiful," Tallia murmured as they went to join the others, "you must hate to leave it even for business."
"Yes, it is very seductive," he replied, staring at her as he spoke, "thankfully we are not so far from Athens that I can not commute."
"Commute!"
"By helicopter," he explained with a straight face.
Tallia laughed and shook her head, "Naturally! How very convenient. I should get one of those when I go home, once I've won the lotto and all."
Costa shrugged, "There are some perks to being a wealthy man."
"Poor thing," she joked, "Is that it?"
"I was hoping you would take pity on me; it can be very lonely at the top."
"Oh, is that so? Surely you must have an extra seat on that helicopter?"
"Yes, but I'm saving it for someone very special. This is my fortress of solitude," he took pleasure in reminding her so she would understand he was not in the habit of having women here.
"Fidelio mentioned as much."
Costa smiled down at Tallia as she settled herself on the blanket, "You should be very honored to be here," he told her playfully.
"No doubt," Tallia agreed, "If I weren't I'd hate to think what might happen to me, superheroes being such a high-strung, temperamental bunch and all."
"So you have some experience with us?"
Tallia tried to purse her lips to hide her amusement, but could not restrain her laughter. She shook her pale head, clearly not accustom to flirting, "Not particularly."
Leaning in, he whispered conspiratorially, "Trust me, you're doing very well. You have me impressed, especially after surviving my trial by deranged lunatic in a sports car."
"Unlike some unfortunate goats?" she queried, once she stopped laughing at that comment. Her laughter surprised her, as did her growing rapport with Costa.
"Indeed."
"How many goats are we talking?"
Costa threw himself down on the blanket beside her, drawling, "I never road kill and tell," which set Tallia off into more peals of husky laughter.
"What are the two of you whispering about like naughty children?" Emily came over to demand, somewhat petulantly, and sat down in front of them with her back to Fidelio.
"First born secrets, run along young one, you don't know our secret handshake," Costa tossed at her coolly, loving the way Tallia bubbled over with mirth when he dismissed her sister.
Emily could only stare at him blankly for a moment, not knowing what to make of him. Costa was smugly satisfied to see her struck dumb by the realization that he was not going to fall at her feet. She looked from him to Tallia, and then shrugged and reluctantly turned to include Fidelio in their conversation.
The four of them spent the next hour gorging on the sumptuous food Calamini made for them. They ate a half dozen different cold salads, succulent homemade dolmas, fresh baked bread and goat cheese from the islands goatherd, fresh fruit and delicate pastries Neni specialized in creating, and washed it all down with two bottles of champagne. Not surprisingly, they napped afterwards and wandered the beach, none of them fit to go swimming until later in the afternoon once they fully digested and sobered up.
Tallia woke after a brief nap ready for some exercise. Wandering away from the remains of the picnic and the blanket on which Emmy was napping, she gave Costa and Fidelio a wave to send them back to
their heated game of backgammon when the two stopped to give her identical questioning looks. The beach was so small she wondered at their concern, since there was no possibility of her getting lost or drifting out of their line of vision.
Blissfully alone, she made her way carefully through the surf to an outcrop of rocks, bent on investigating some interesting looking tide pools. She found a nice spot and sat on a sun-warmed rock, where a territorial little crab was scuttling about. The little creature wasted no time approaching her boldly, and Tallia began playing with him, laughing softly as she evaded his flailing pincher. The poor creature looked so incensed, as he waved his oversized claw at her, that Tallia almost felt guilty for teasing him, though she told herself that it was not as if she were doing him any harm.
"You seem to be getting along quite well with Mr. Big Brother!"
Jumping with fright as Emmy's voice came out of no where, Tallia let out a shriek when the crab saw his chance while she was distracted, to clamp down on her goading finger. She reflexively shook him off with a flick of her wrist, sending the hapless creature flying into the ocean with a plop. Staring after him in dismay, Tallia, full of chagrin, had to wonder if he would ever find his way back to his home in the rocks.
"Don't sneak up on me like that Emmy," she scolded, feeling horrid for ejecting the hapless crab from his tide-pool.
"Sorry," Emmy sulked, "I'm just amazed you have Costa wrapped around your little finger. Fidelio kept warning me yesterday, when he fetched me on Tanos, that his brother would be a dragon, since he's hated all of his past girlfriends, but Costa is really just a big pussy cat!"
Tallia let out a soft snort, thinking she would never characterize a man like Costa as resembling a housecat. She, however, knew just how unpleasant Costa could be when he didn't get his way. When she recalled her first day on the island, when he took her out 'sight-seeing', she frowned. Now that she had spent some time with him and knew him better, Costa didn’t seem like the same person. He had let down his guard she realized, so she could see that he was funny and easy going, exactly as Fidelio described him to her in London. Now she thought of Costa as someone a person could count on, though no push over, a man who made those around him feel safe and at ease.
"Maybe its because Fidelio is serious about you and he wasn't about the others," Tallia suggested. She was fairly certain though, that Costa's sudden friendliness was the product of a guilty conscience, because of what he put her through. Of course, she could hardly tell her sister as much with out ruining everything.
It bothered her inordinately to think Costa might be putting on a show. Was he acting, she wondered? Pretending as if he liked them when what he really wanted to do was breathe fire all over her sister, which he now felt he couldn't do because he had scared and misjudged Tallia so badly. The last of her apprehension towards him was fading beneath his unfailing kindness and care, and Tallia was beginning to really like him. It hurt her to think he was politely faking and still held her and Emmy in contempt.
"You think?" Emmy asked her with a bright smile.
"I can't really say," Tallia hedged, "He's hard to read."
"What are you talking about?" Emmy exclaimed, "He's a big goof! I can't believe Fido was so worried about me meeting him."
"Yes, well… I'm sure he's on his best behavior. H-he probably has an ugly side when he's cross."
"I guess," Emmy replied flippantly, too accustomed to everyone loving her to think she might not have made a conquest of someone. "He's very handsome, don't you think? A lot better looking than the pictures I've seen."
Tallia gave a slight shrug by way of an answer, uncomfortable with the subject. She was painfully conscious of how handsome Costa was, and made a point to avoid looking at him when he was near precisely because his striking looks had the annoying habit of making her brain short out, especially when he was behaving so charmingly.
It was hard to remember that he was only being polite and playing the good host, when those unusual eyes of his bore into her with hypnotic intensity. Sometimes, she had the foolish thought that he really did like her and genuinely sought her company. She knew that was ridiculous and he probably still thought of her and her sister as interlopers on his private island, the place where he came to get away from the world and be alone.
"God Ally, you should have become a nun, you must be dead from the neck down if you don't think that man is a hot piece of arse!"
"Shhh, be quiet! He'll hear you," Tallia hissed, mortified by Emmy's loud remarks. The curving rock walls of the cove magnified sound and while she wandered across the beach more than once she had heard Costa and Fidelio quietly calling out points.
Emmy only laughed gleefully, not in the least embarrassed by the possibility that she might have been overheard. "It's Fido I hope who hears," her sister whispered wickedly, "There's nothing like a bit of jealousy to bring out the beast in a man!"
"Why would you want to make Fido- I mean Fidelio, jealous?" Tallia had to ask, wondering if she would ever understand her sister or the inner workings of relations between men and women. It was frustrating to her that even though she was older, compared to Emmy she was like a child when it came to her grasp of love and relationships.
"To spice things up," Emmy said with a naughty wiggle of her eyebrows. She let out a devilish laugh and went skipping away, whistling cheerfully to herself.
Watching her go, Tallia shook her head faintly, feeling hopelessly confused by the love games people played.