The Deception by Lynne Constantine Page A

biting wind, and quickened his pace. Tall trees sparkling with Christmas lights lined the long driveway and soon the large, white colonial came into view. He smiled at Lydia from accounting and held the door for her. He handed his coat to a young man in wait uniform and inhaled the pleasing scent of holiday pine. He looked around at the house. It was nice, but not nearly as opulent as he would have expected. Nick could certainly afford to live in more grandeur, but he was a sentimentalist. He’d told Stewart that it made him happy for his girls to come home from college to the bedrooms they grew up in.
    “Stewart! Welcome. So glad you could make it. Come get a drink.” Nick put his arm around him.
    A pretty woman was busy directing two young girls as they brought platters into the dining room. Nick walked Stewart over to her.
    “Eleni.” She looked up, still distracted by preparations.
    “Eleni. This is the young man I’ve been telling you about. Stewart Elliott.”
    He gave her his most dazzling smile.
    “I feel like I already know you.” She embraced him and gave him a peck on the cheek. “Please have something to eat. I’ve been cooking all week.” She swept her hand in the air toward the dining room overflowing with food. “Get the spanakopita while you can. It goes fast.” She smiled and went back to overseeing everything.
    He needed a drink. He found the bar and ordered a vodka tonic, sipping it while he scanned the room. Where were the daughters? Then he saw her. The pictures didn’t do her justice. Their eyes met and she looked away quickly, making him think of a doe shying away from its prey. No time like the present. He walked over to her.
    “You must be Theodora.”
    She looked confused. “Have we met?”
    He smiled. “I’m Stewart Elliott. I work for your father. He talks about you all the time.”
    That seemed to please her.
    “Nice to meet you, Stewart.” Her mouth looked delicious.
    “Enjoying your break or ready to get back to school?”
    “I love being home. I only get back on holidays so I relish the time when I’m here. ”
    She was a homebody. He could work with that.
    “I know what you mean. I just came back from California. Stanford.” He waited for that to sink in. “As much as I loved it there, I couldn’t imagine staying that far from my family.”
    She nodded. “I know, right? I have lots of friends who think nothing of just packing up and moving across the country. I could never do that. Some have even left the country.” She laughed. “My father would probably hide my passport.”
    He laughed with her. She was so young. He remembered a photo of her in tennis whites.
    “My best friend has just left for fairer lands which leaves me, sadly, without a tennis partner.”
    Her face lit up. “I love tennis.”
    He feigned surprise. “Really? Any chance you could be my partner for doubles on Saturday. I thought I’d have to withdraw.”
    She beamed. “I’d be delighted.”
    She began to say something else then stopped. “Well, Stewart, I’d better go back to my hostess duties. Nice meeting you.”
    Was she actually blushing? She was adorable.
    “Don’t let me keep you from your duties.” He grinned then touched her arm. “Don’t forget your promise.”
    “Promise?”
    “Saturday. I’ll pick you up at ten?”
    “Perfect.”
    He took a long swallow from his drink and admired the view as she walked away.
    ___________
    Theodora could feel his eyes on her and she walked deliberately, not wanting to appear nervous or shaken. She was trembling inside. She couldn’t remember ever reacting to a man the way she had to Stewart. Those eyes. That smile. But it wasn’t only that – there was something more elusive – a familiarity about him making her feel as though she already knew him. But she was being silly. She wondered if Nicole had met him yet.
    “Theo dear. Can you give me a hand with the dessert?” Her mom was waving her into the kitchen.
    “Sure,