The Greek Rule (The Greek Series) by Aleka Nakis

shorts and a white cotton tank top, brushed her teeth, put on some mascara, and pulled her curls into a high ponytail. She slipped her feet into her favorite sandals, and stepped outside to join the men.
    “Heather is sleeping,” Costa said. “I think she might sleep through the night. Baba and Mama should be up soon. You know how we Greeks need to ‘refresh’ for the night ahead.”
    “Oh yes,” she replied. “When I was little I used to fight my mother every afternoon. I never wanted to sleep. When I was a teenager, I looked forward to the siestas because we used to stay out all hours of the night. Now, I crave the luxury after a long morning of crunching numbers at work. Too bad Wall Street doesn’t see the need for a siesta.”
    “A sweet frappe to awaken your senses?” Alexandros had been sitting in silence until then.
    “Yes, thank you. I would love one.”
    He unfolded his long legs and rose from his seat. He hovered over the others for a few moments, shifting his weight from left to right like he was weighing something in his mind. His arms locked behind his back, he looked off toward the sea before addressing Costa.
    “Any questions? You know what to do?”
    His brother “tsk’d ” pensively and tilted his head upward indicating negative, no questions.
    “I want it done when I return.” Alexandros turned and strode off.
    Athena instinctively knew it was connected with what had upset him at lunch. Whatever it was, it must be very important to him.
    “Business. Don’t fret,” Costa said, in an evident attempt to diffuse the tension.
    The friends enjoyed small talk for a few minutes and then she carefully asked the question that had nagged at her since her arrival the previous night.
    “ Cardia Mou is the most beautiful name for your new villa. It’s fantastic. Don’t misunderstand my question Costa, but isn’t Kalithe a large enough for the whole family to vacation here?”
    “Of course it is,” Costa agreed. “But Kalithea is Alexandros’. It’s not my parent’s home. He built this place for his family. I built Cardia Mou for Heather.”
    Alexandros returned. He placed the frappe and a snack of koulourakia , her favorite cookies, in front of Athena.
    “Thank you,” she said, smiling at the attention he appeared to enjoy giving her. “I didn’t know business tycoons could be so domesticated.”
    Costa smirked and nearly choked on his drink.
    Alexandros simply returned her smile, ignoring his brother. “There’s a time for everything. It’s nice to make you smile, koukla mou .”
    Then Alexandros turned to his younger brother and his temperament changed. The smile faded, his dark eyes glared, and he handed his cellular to Costa. “Finish this. I’m tired of the drama.”
    Costa walked away from the table and spoke to someone on the phone. His shoulders stiff, his gate calculated, he circled around the pool. When he approached the table again, his jaw was set in a hard clench, the vein by his temple pulsed, but his eyes told a sad story.
    Anna had joined them during the conversation. Staring from one son to the other, she asked what was wrong.
    “Once again, envy has shown her greedy face,” Alexandros began. “Giorgios can’t stop wanting what doesn’t belong to him. He is back to his old tricks and habits again. I’m sure gambling and drinking are the least of it.
    “Giorgios has been funneling company funds into a personal account, and he had the gall to try to frame our Costa. We were investigating the transactions before he came to me and loyally informed me that Costa was stealing from the company.”
    “ Thee mou ,” the matron of the family whispered in devastation.
    “I gave him the rope, and he hung himself, Mother.” Alexandros let out a long breath before continuing, the anger vivid in his face. “It has been almost a month that the snake thinks he has come between Costa and myself. I thought it appropriate for Costa to tell him his plan failed.”
    Nodding,