The Greek Tycoon Box Set: The Complete Serial: Books 1-10
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Authors: Kay Brody
Book 4: Bringing His Baby Home
THE GREEK TYCOON:
The Complete Serial
By Kay Brody
THE GREEK TYCOON
The Complete Serial:
Prelude To The Greek Tycoon
Book 1:
Left Holding His Baby
Book 2:
Mending A Broken Heart
Book 3:
The Ties That Bind
Book 4:
Bringing His Baby Home
Book 5:
Back In His Arms
Book 6:
Fighting For His Life
Book 7:
Building A New Life
Book 8:
A Plot To Destroy
Book 9:
Picking Up The Pieces
Book 10:
A Very Greek Wedding
Rights & Disclaimer
This is entirely a work of fiction. All people, places and events contained have been completely fabricated by the author. Any similarities to real people, places, or events are completely coincidental.
The Greek Tycoon Copyright © 2016 Kay Brody
All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any manner or used in any way without advanced written permission by the author.
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Dedication
This book is for John.
You may not be Greek
or
be a tycoon (yet!) but you’re still the only one to make me swoon.
THE GREEK TYCOON:
Prelude To The Greek Tycoon
By Kay Brody
Chapter 1
“Mama, I’ve got the contract!” Atreus Kostas announced into the phone.
His mother relayed his message to the rest of the family in Greek and he smiled at the squeals of joy that erupted from the other end of the line. Without even asking, he knew they were all sitting around the table in the cramped kitchen that defined his childhood. He could see them jumping up from their chairs to hug and kiss each other upon hearing the news and it made him both proud and homesick to hear all of their voices.
“Son, you are a treasure,” his father shouted into the phone.
Atreus felt his chest swell with gratitude. All he’d ever wanted to do was make his family proud. Especially his father, who’d saved every last bit of his wages as a tailor to ensure that his children could go to school and get an education.
Atreus would never forget the night the power had gone out and his twelve year old self had stayed by his father’s side throughout the cold, dark night holding a torch so his father could finish his day’s work. That night his father spoke to him in a way he’d never done before.
“You’ve got to promise me that you’re going to do better than me, son,” his father had said as he worked.
Elias Kostas was not usually one for deep, philosophical chats but it seemed the cloak of darkness gave him the confidence he needed.
“But Dad,” Atreus had begun, “you’ve done great! I could only hope—”
“No, son. Don’t speak, just listen,” Elias interrupted. “Yes, I have a wonderful family, and that is my biggest success. I have an amazing wife. Beautiful, intelligent children. Educated children. But there are things I have not done that I should have. And, perhaps, things that I have done that I should have not.”
“Like what, father?”
Atreus remembered the breathless feeling he’d had then, the sense of something truly momentous happening. His father was confiding in him, speaking to him like an equal, speaking to him like he was a man.
“There are too many things to name,” Elias had whispered toward the floor before looking up at his son with bright, intense eyes. “But I know one thing for sure, Atreus. Everyone in the world has potential for greatness, to some degree or another. By greatness I mean the ability to achieve something truly remarkable. It might not be remarkable to the world, or even to their next door neighbor, but to them, to their life, it is remarkable.”
Atreus listened intently, the abandoned shop silent save for his father’s deep, strong voice.
“Like getting married,” Elias continued. “That is remarkable in its own way. When I got married I thought I could never be any happier than that. But to everyone else in the world, except my closest family and friends, it didn’t matter much. And when your mother gave birth to you, I held you in my arms and felt my whole world change. Now, your birth was not remarkable to the world. Babies are born every second. Heck, probably a hundred babies are born every second. But it was life-changing for us. Earth shaking, even. It was the proudest moment of my life.”
Elias reached up and took both of Atreus' hands in his.
“But, Atreus, my boy, you have so much more potential than me; than most people. So, while I want you to do all of those ordinarily-remarkable things that will bring you such joy, like falling in love and getting married and having children, I want you to do even more.”
“Like what, father?” young Atreus asked, the light of the torch flickering as the cold wind snuck in through the cracks in the shop’s doors and windows, each gust threatening to extinguish the flame.
Atreus' heart was beating so hard it felt as if it might burst out of his chest. He was proud. He was excited. He was even a bit scared as his father laid out what felt like a special mission; a man’s mission. And he couldn’t wait to accept it and set forth on his journey.
“What is it that you want me to do, father?”
“I want you to put all your intelligence and talent to good use. Do something great. Build something important. Make a lot of money so that your family and descendants will never have to worry about debt or survival or having what they need.”
As he thought back, Atreus felt like he was standing there in that little shop. He could feel the cold air on his face and picture the smoke coming from his father’s mouth as he spoke. And he remembered how strange it had felt to imagine himself as a grown man with children. With descendants.
“Then,” his father had continued, “once you are comfortable and secure, I want you to help as many people as you can. I want you to do something so remarkable that the whole world sits up and listens. Something that makes such an impression on the world that, when you leave it, you will be remembered.”
Atreus had never thought of death before that moment, but as soon as his father mentioned it, life suddenly seemed short, like he had to pack in as much as he could before it was all over.
“The world is full of suffering people, Atreus. People who, like it or not, need people like you. And, as good as life is, you should never forget that.”
As he stood there in his luxury hotel suite in Dubai, clutching the telephone receiver that had just transported him through both space and time, Atreus knew he was one step closer to becoming the man he aspired to be. He and his best friend from high school, Nikolas, in an innovative partnership with a Saudi sheikh, had managed to wrangle a huge contract hauling construction materials from Saudi Arabia to the UAE. Their first set of trucks was up and ready to go. The purchase of their first boat was in the pipeline. Things were finally on their way and it felt great!
His grin grew even brighter as he looked over at Nikolas, who was swinging his legs off the executive desk, admiring the view from their room and looking just like the schoolboy he’d been when he and Atreus had met.
“I can hear them from all the way over here!” Nikolas said with a smile.
*****
Chapter 2
Atreus and Nikolas walked down the dusty streets of a half-built Dubai, their suitcases wobbling over ruts in the road as they pulled them along behind them. They marveled at the number of construction projects going on all over the city and were excited to be playing a role in its future development. All of their hard work and patience had paid off and it felt electric to finally be achieving the success they’d been dreaming of for so long. The whole world looked different, full of a million more possibilities.
When they reached the airport, they stopped at the departures board to check that their plane was still on schedule.
“You see that?” Atreus said, pointing at all of the flights listed.
“What?”
“Look at all of those places. Beijing, Singapore, Addis Ababa, Mumbai, Sydney, New York, Abu Dhabi—”
“I can read,” Nikolas interrupted. “What’s your point?”
“We could go anywhere,” Atreus said, excited. “We could just pick up and go to Japan. Or Tanzania. Or Sweden. Or Russia. Anywhere. We could literally go anywhere in the world and do something that makes a difference! Something that matters!”
Nikolas chuckled in a light hearted sort of way and Atreus knew immediately that they weren’t on the same page.
“You’re right,” Nikolas smiled. “And do you know where I’m going?”
“Where?”
“Back home to Athens, to get some of my mom’s freshly baked lagana, some damn rain after being stuck in this desert and the smile of Serene Palios.”
Atreus’ heart skipped a beat, the way it always did when Serene’s name was mentioned or when her beautiful face crossed his mind. It seemed that she had a magnetic pull on every young man in existence. They were all eager to make her smile, to make her laugh, to make her their own. Even Atreus, despite vowing he wouldn’t, had fallen under her spell.
Her dark eyes had such intensity, it was like she could look into a man’s soul. Her jet black hair reflected sunlight with such a glossy sheen that it begged to be stroked. The light caramel shade of her skin glittered with the oil she applied to it every day and she sparkled with every step. A whole aura of allure and magic surrounded her.