They looked like two princes, she thought. They were two princes. By right, if not by birth.

This Crown should belong to Nikos.

Finally the Archbishop paused for breath. He rose, a little unsteadily, and headed towards the bathroom.

Alexandros rose and slipped into his seat.

Once upon a time Alexandros had been her friend as well as Nikos’s friend. Once upon a time, when life had been innocent.

‘I’m sorry about this,’ he said softly. ‘Nikos is throwing you in at the deep end.’

‘This should be him-not me.’

He smiled and shook his head. ‘He works behind the scenes, our Nikos. His mother’s done an extraordinary amount for this island and so has Nikos. But they do it quietly and with no fuss.’

Another woman had made an almost unseemly rush to fill Alexandros’s vacant chair beside Nikos. Nikos smiled a welcome at her. The woman simpered.

‘Does he have a girlfriend?’ Athena asked Alexandros, before she could help herself.

‘Not seriously. Lots of short-term encounters but little more. I don’t think he’s ever got over Marika.’

‘That was nine years ago.’

‘How long does it take after a bad marriage to trust yourself to a good one?’ Alex asked quietly. ‘To learn to trust another after such betrayal…?’

They were quiet for a moment. Watching Nikos. Watching the woman inch her chair closer.

‘You and he…’ he said softly. ‘You know, we all thought it’d work.’

‘Me included,’ she said before she could stop herself.

‘Marika was a very attractive woman. And Nikos was very young.’

‘The same age as me. Nineteen.’

‘So maybe you need to forgive each other? Especially…’ He hesitated and then obviously decided to be frank. ‘Especially if you have a son.’

‘I don’t need to forgive Nikos.’ She looked at Alex full-on. ‘Nikos gave me my son. I regret nothing.’

‘So if he forgives you…’

‘He’ll have it flung back in his face.’