Lynne Graham Books (ESSENTIAL | PLAYBOOK)

Then his real father had appeared. The old man had shown Lily photos of Rio’s real fiancée — a shipping heiress. “Step aside, little flower,” the tycoon had sneered. “Or he loses everything.”

That stung more than cruelty.

By nightfall, she was installed in his Athenian penthouse — a palace of glass and marble overlooking the Acropolis. Her room was down the hall from his. The bed was cold. She lay awake, staring at the ceiling, remembering the boy who’d once brought her wildflowers and told her she was enough.

Lily’s spine stiffened. Dad had been a gambler, a charmer, and a liar. She’d spent her twenties cleaning up his messes. “I don’t owe you anything, Rio.” lynne graham books

He looked at her. Just looked. Then: “You still sleep on the left side of the bed.”

She froze. “How do you know that?”

Rio smiled. It didn’t reach his eyes. “Whatever you need to tell yourself, agapi mou .” The wedding was in a Greek chapel on a private island. Lily wore a simple ivory dress — not because Rio was cheap, but because he’d insisted she choose. “I won’t costume you,” he’d said coldly. “You’re not a possession. You’re an investment.” Then his real father had appeared

She’d been eighteen. He’d been a struggling law student, not the heir to a shipping empire. They’d made love in her father’s greenhouse, and Rio had said, “One day, I’ll build you a garden by the sea.”

And for the first time in her life, Lily Hart — now Lily Karras — believed in happy endings.

“Perhaps.” He moved closer, and the scent of cedar and power overwhelmed her. “My father is dying. His one demand before he goes is to see me settled. Respectable. Married to a woman of… humble virtue.” His mouth curved without warmth. “You fit the bill perfectly. Six months. A contract. In return, I erase your father’s debt and give you the shop free and clear.” “Or he loses everything

The ceremony was a blur of candles and chanting. When Rio slid a diamond band onto her finger, his thumb brushed her palm, and she felt a shock of heat she despised. Later, at the reception, he kept her close. His hand on the small of her back. His voice low in her ear. Smile. They’re watching. You look beautiful when you’re furious.

Lily laughed through her tears. “You already have a greenhouse?”

Rio stepped inside without being invited. His suit was Savile Row, his watch a Patek Philippe, and his presence filled her cramped flat like a tidal wave. “Your father owed me more than you know. And now you owe me.”

“I don’t want six months.” He cupped her face. “I want forever. But I was too proud to say it. So I wrote a contract instead.”

“Marry me.”