Her playful tone changed to one of concern. “What’s going on, Nikos?”
“I was rude to you in Santorini. I’m sorry I lost my temper. To make it up to you, I wanted to offer my support. With Father missing in action, you shouldn’t have to face everything alone.”
“Thank you. I wanted to do whatever I could to support Peter and Ahmed in the negotiations—and I sense there’s a connection here to Papa’s kidnapping.”
“I’ve come across the Quan family before. They don’t play fair.”
Papa would be aghast if he knew Nikos was here. Still, maybe this situation could mend fences in their family.
“I had a meeting canceled in South Africa. Being close seemed like kismet.” Her brother’s expression was earnest, beseeching.
General Jemwa headed straight for them with the Chinese siblings in tow. Nikos was about to come face-to-face with his kidnapper. How would he react? She braced herself for an explosion. Her brother had a terrible temper. She’d witnessed it more than once over the years and had a scar to prove it.
“Ms. Paris, good to see you again. We can arrange for that steak you wanted tonight. And look who’s here, the brother I rescued from that horrid warlord many years ago.” Jemwa turned to Xi-Ping and Chi. “Did you know about Nikos’s kidnapping?”
“Maybe we should discuss the reason we’re all here. I understand we’ll have an early start in the morning.” Thea wanted to avert her brother’s infamous temper. Things were tense enough.
But Nikos surprised her. He merely gave Jemwa a curt, emotionless nod. “That’s okay, Thea; if the general wants accolades about his heroism, he’s welcome to share my tale of woe.”
Chi gave Nikos a cold look. “Well, the general won’t be reflecting on your shared history at the bargaining table.”
Nikos smiled. “If I were worried about Paris Industries’ competition, it wouldn’t be because of you. I crossed paths with Xi-Ping a few years ago when I imported goods into China. She’s a ferocious negotiator.”
Chi had a flat affect. “It’ll be me you’ll see in action. My sister is just window-dressing.”
Yikes, what a sexist! Xi-Ping stared at Chi in an unsettling way.
Thea ached to get away from the siblings—and to separate Nikos from General Jemwa, in case the situation soured. “General, would you like to join me for a drink with the prime minister? I see he’s finished the receiving line.”
“Of course.”
A subtle spark in the general’s eyes told her that Kimweri wasn’t the giant’s favorite person. Still, he tucked Thea’s hand under his arm. “Nikos, come see me later so I can hear how you’ve been doing. Always a pleasure to catch up with old friends.”
Friends? Hardly. Only a slight wariness in her brother’s gaze belied his enthusiasm for this meeting. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Rif staring at her. She didn’t blame him for standing alone in a corner. This was the cocktail party from hell, with more tension in the room than even she could tolerate. She glanced over her shoulder, almost expecting to see a knife aimed at her back.
Chapter Forty-Four
It had been a while since Nikos had had this much fun at a cocktail party. He only tolerated these events as a necessary evil when he was Nikos Paris. The best part about Ares was his ghostlike persona, since very few people met with him directly, and those who did craved the same anonymity.
And talking of fa?ades, the General had demonstrated how adept he was at lying, which came as no surprise. Even Thea had proved to be a talented poker player. If he didn’t know her so well, he’d have missed the subtle signals of panic she’d emitted as Jemwa approached them.
It meant she’d read the notes he’d slipped into her computer bag. Now that his past was out in the open, she would see the truth, that Papa wasn’t some kind of hero. She needed to understand how much he’d suffered because of their father’s greed. Hope sprung up inside him—that Thea did love him unconditionally. Together, they’d made a real difference with the African charity, but there was so much more they could do.
“You didn’t tell me your sister was so beautiful,” Xi-Ping said after Chi left to speak with one of Kanzi’s dignitaries.
“Feeling threatened?” Nikos asked. Thea had won the gene-pool lottery, inheriting their father’s dark hair and olive skin and their mother’s emerald eyes, but it was her intelligence that set her apart.
“Never.” Xi-Ping smiled, her tongue then stroking her lips. “Come to my room tonight—I’ll show you how threatened I am.”
He laughed. “I’m afraid I’ll need my beauty sleep to be fresh for tomorrow’s business.”
“What are you talking about? You aren’t involved in the negotiations.”
He raised his eyebrows. “I need to refresh my drink. Excuse me.”
“But—”
He headed for the bar. He might not know his father’s location yet, but he would soon enough. The twists kept the game stimulating.
Chapter Forty-Five