she was tempted to believe him. she wanted to believe him. if he'd really survived being tortured, it explained a lot: his reluctance to admit that he'd been traumatized. his tendency to be suspicious and paranoid.

it wasn't surprising that his family wanted him to see a therapist. and it wasn't surprising that he'd be averse to it. who would want to relive such an experience? no doubt a big, strong guy like robby found it humiliating to admit he'd been victimized and totally helpless.

with a gulp, olivia realized his physical wounds might have healed, but the wound to his pride was still raw. she'd smacked his pride badly when she'd implied he couldn't be trusted.

eleni marched back into the kitchen with a bouquet of parsley clutched in her hand. "we're having dolmades, spanakopita, lamb, and salad for dinner. i'll need your help." she rinsed off the parsley in the kitchen sink.

olivia winced. she had a bad feeling about this. "that seems like a lot of food just for the two of us."

eleni sat across from her and chopped the parsley. "i invited spiro for dinner. dolmades are his favorite."

olivia groaned. "does he speak english?"

"a few words." eleni added the chopped parsley to the mixing bowl. "i can tell you're annoyed with me, but don't worry. the language of love doesn't need words."

olivia snorted, then sipped some tea. she doubted it would do any good to complain.

eleni dug her hands into the mixing bowl to combine all the ingredients. "we'll be busy for a few hours. why don't you tell me about the bad man who's got you so worried?"

olivia sighed. "he can't bother me here." she hoped. "he's in prison."

"prison? what did he do?"

"he raped and murdered thirteen women."

eleni made a sound of disgust. "i don't know how you can deal with such terrible people."

otis crump was more than terrible. olivia interviewed lots of criminals, but she'd never felt like she'd come face-to-face with evil incarnate until she'd met otis. "i'd rather not talk about him." she didn't want her grandmother exposed to all the gruesome details.

eleni shook her head, making tsking noises as she readied the grape leaves. "all right. now you watch, so you'll know how to do it." she spooned a dollop of the meat mixture onto a grape leaf, folded over the stem, then the sides, and rolled it up.

olivia wanted to shove all thoughts of otis out of her mind, so she took the rose from the vase and held it up to her nose. the scent filled her head, reminding her of robby.

"you're not watching me," eleni admonished her. her eyes narrowed. "your emotions have suddenly changed for the better."

olivia smiled as she stroked the velvet rose petals. "last night i met the guy who left this."

"your secret admirer? who is he?"

"his name is robert alexander mackay. robby for short."

eleni looked confused. "he doesn't sound greek."

"he's scottish." when her grandmother gave her a blank look, she elaborated. "you know, scotland? plaid kilts and bagpipes?"

eleni pursed her lips. "he's from an island?"

"yes."

"hmm. then he can't be too bad." she rolled another grape leaf. "did he come here? why didn't i meet him?"

"it was after midnight. you were asleep."

"why so late? is he some kind of smuggler?"

"no. he jogs at night. i saw him the first night i was here. and he saw me. from a distance. we didn't talk. then the next night, he left this rose."

"hmm." eleni frowned as she stuffed another grape leaf. "and you talked to him last night?"

"yes. in the courtyard."

"he didn't try any nonsense, did he?"

"no. he seemed...really nice." olivia returned the rose to the vase. "he told me i was brave and beautiful, just like grandpa told you."

"that's good." eleni tilted her head. "now i'm sensing worry and fear. what's wrong?"

olivia took her teacup to the sink and rinsed it out. she knew her emotions were waffling back and forth. one minute she was basking in the warm glow of her attraction to robby, and another, she was backing off in cold fear. "i told him about my abilities."

"how did he take it?"

"he...seemed all right with it."

"seemed? couldn't you tell how he was feeling?"

"no, i couldn't." olivia strode to the table. "has that ever happened to you? have you ever met anyone you couldn't read?"

eleni shook her head slowly. "no. never."

a chill tickled the back of olivia's neck. "doesn't that strike you as really strange?"

"i suppose. this is...making you fear him?"

with a groan, olivia sat and rested her elbows on the table. "a little, yes. i thought if i told him i could detect lies, he would make a run for it. but he didn't."

"you tried on purpose to scare him away?"

"yes."

eleni regarded her with narrowed eyes. "child, you're not making any sense. didn't you tell me you have trouble dating because you always know when a man is lying?"

"yes."

"so you don't want to date men you can read, and now you don't want to date the man you can't read. you have two choices, and you're rejecting them both."

olivia winced. she hated to admit it, but yia yia was making a good point. "i didn't realize i would ever have a choice. robby caught me completely off guard. i simply reacted emotionally."

"with fear."

"yes, with fear. it was scary as hell!"

"watch your language, young lady."

olivia groaned and rubbed her forehead. "i need to analyze the situation and figure out the pros and cons, so i can arrive at a logical course of - "

"child," eleni interrupted her. "sometimes, you don't need to think."

"i always think things through. i've spent years honing my ability to analyze any given - "

"do you like him?" eleni asked.

"yes, but - "

"you find him attractive?"

"yes, but - "

"then, it's settled." eleni waved a hand in dismissal. "there are no buts."

"there are, too! i don't know if i can trust him. i don't know what he's feeling."

eleni shrugged and started rolling another grape leaf. "he came to see you because he wanted to meet you. that means he was attracted to you. did he ask to see you again?"

"yes. tonight."

"then he is still attracted to you. it's not brain surgery, you know."

olivia slumped in her chair. was she overanalyzing again? "i won't know if he lies to me."

eleni arranged her finished grape leaves in the bottom of a pot. "i loved your grandfather dearly, and he loved me. but there were days, bad days when i could feel more anger or resentment from him than love, and it would hurt something terrible."

"i'm so sorry. i didn't know."

eleni sighed. "i never speak of it because over the years he always stayed faithful. he always found a way to keep on loving me. but it was hard. there were times when i wished i couldn't tell what he was feeling. so what i'm saying is this could be a blessing for you."

olivia swallowed hard. "i don't know. i still think it's scary."

"of course it is." eleni went back to stuffing grape leaves. "everything worthwhile is scary."

"you think i should continue to see him?"

eleni huffed. "i think you should help me with the cooking. i still have my hopes for spiro. and my friend, alexia - she's hoping you'll fall for her son, giorgios."

olivia smiled and reached for a grape leaf. she didn't care how handsome the greek men were. they couldn't compare to robby mackay.

robby had said she was brave and beautiful. there wasn't a whole lot she could do about her looks, but she could work on being brave. tonight she'd see him again. and if he tried to kiss her, she wouldn't chicken out.

chapter 5

shortly after sunset, robby met carlos in the garden at roman's villa for their weekly sparring match. barefoot, bare-chested, and dressed in white martial-arts pants, they bowed to each other on the rectangular-shaped lawn. the nearly full moon shone down on them, casting carlos's shadow across the green grass, but not robby's.

at the back of the garden, a row of white stone columns gleamed in the moonlight as they stood guard at the head of the reflection pool. the scent of roses and gardenias filled the air, and robby glanced quickly at the flower beds, wondering if he should pick a bouquet for olivia.

his attention snapped back to carlos as the were-panther began to shift his weight back and forth. robby had learned not to underestimate him.

"i could beat you easily if i shifted," the brazilian boasted as he danced around the garden's perimeter.

"i could beat you easily in my sleep. if i slept."

"too bad you can't dream about your angel," carlos said, his amber eyes twinkling. "i know her name."

robby frowned as he pivoted to keep carlos in view. he didn't recall mentioning olivia by name. after meeting her the night before, he'd returned to the villa to investigate her on roman's computer. she was employed by the fbi as a professional consultant and stationed in kansas city. she'd earned a master's degree at the university of texas. she was twenty-four and the oldest of three children. her family resided in houston, texas, where her father worked as a geologist for an oil company.

just as the sun neared the horizon, robby had finished compiling all the information into one report. he'd clicked on print, then stumbled off to his bedroom for his death-sleep.

now, he narrowed his eyes. "ye looked at my private papers."

"what do you expect me to do all day while you're playing dead?" carlos feigned an attack, then jumped back, grinning. "i'm a good investigator, too, you know. so out of the goodness of my heart, i decided to help you."

"hell, no. stay out of my business."

carlos shrugged with a nonchalant look. "fine. i guess you don't want to hear what i learned today."

the bastard. robby was contemplating how to get carlos to talk when the wily were-panther suddenly pounced forward with a flying kick.

he dodged it just in time.

carlos chuckled as he pranced backward in retreat. "ooh, muchacho. that was close."

"talk."

"yes, sir. lovely weather we've been having."

"about olivia, ye bloody hellcat!"

carlos laughed. "well, if you insist." he crouched low as he circled robby. "i went shopping for supplies around noon, and everyone in grikos was talking about the beautiful american girl who's come to visit her old widowed grandmother."

so the four burly uncles were actually one frail old woman. robby swiveled to keep up with carlos. "go on."

"the grandmother is eleni sotiris, and apparently she has some odd empathic abilities. the rumor is that olivia shares the same gift."

robby shrugged one shoulder. "i already know about that."

"oh." carlos gave him a sly look. "then i guess you also know that the grandmother's looking for a nice greek boy to marry olivia."

robby stiffened. the thought of olivia marrying another man was...wrong. more than wrong. it was infuriating. too late, he realized carlos had made his move, and he leaped to the side. the kick that would have struck him in the chest landed on his arm.

bugger. it smarted, but robby would never admit it. he deserved the pain for letting carlos distract him.

"one point for me," carlos announced.

"aye, though ye had to resort to trickery and lies."

"i'm telling the truth, muchacho. if you go to the taverna in grikos, you'll find them laying bets on which guy will win olivia's heart. so far, the leading contenders are giorgios, dimitrios, and spiro."

robby gulped. he was competing with three men? men who could see olivia during the day, who could court her while he lay useless in his death-sleep.

a surge of possessiveness grabbed hold of him. dammit, he wanted her for himself. but what on earth did he have to offer her? could he in clear conscience woo olivia, knowing it could eventually be a death sentence for her?

carlos spun and aimed a roundhouse kick at robby's chest. with vampire speed, he seized carlos's leg and hurled him through the air.

carlos fell on his rump. "umph."

robby cocked an eyebrow. "i thought cats always landed on their feet."

carlos snorted, then rolled onto his back and leaped forward into a standing position. "one point for you, big red."

"what do ye know of the three men?" robby moved forward, forcing the were-panther to retreat toward the reflection pool.

carlos grinned. "how badly do you want to know?"

"enough to rip yer arms off if ye continue to play cat and mouse with me."

"you can't blame me for acting like a cat." carlos feinted to the right, then danced to the left. "i heard the grandmother favors spiro. he's a goat herder."

"a goat herder?"

"a very good-looking one. i've seen him."

robby couldn't imagine olivia being content to live out the rest of her days on an island with a goat herder. even though he was undead, he could show her the world. he could help her with her work at the fbi. thanks to roman's scientific breakthrough, he could even father children. surely he was better suited for her than a goat herder.