For once Eva didn’t have to struggle through the math. She wasn’t certain what had changed, but something had. She kept thinking about the Parthenon—about ratios and geometry, and how math and art could be linked. Somehow that made it easier to apply herself to the problems—and Callum seemed stunned. She liked that. She did so well that he gave her the afternoon off. She wasn’t sure what she’d do with a whole afternoon without books, but she heard a car pull up and the front door open. Hearing Alexandra’s voice, Eva bolted for her and pounced on her in the hall.

“You’re back! Come talk to me while I change clothes and then we’ll head into the city to shop! Hi, Dareios!”

Dareios stood next to Alexandra. He was a good looking man, one of those Greeks who had pale hair and blue eyes. He’d been friends with Antonio for so long that Eva had always thought of him more like another brother, but Alexandra’s interest had become something much more than that. Eva was glad to see them both smiling—and both still very much in love.

Dareios gave Eva a kiss on the cheek and smiled at Alexandra. “I see I’ve lost my bride-to-be already. Go with your sister, Alex. It gives me a good excuse to have a nap.”

Alexandra laughed and turned to hug Eva. “Come on. You can go into the city as you are. And I need to start shopping for a wedding dress. How goes the math?”

Heading outside with Alexandra, Eva wrinkled her nose. “I hate it. I think Antonio got all the math genes in the family.”

Climbing into the limo, Alexandra told the driver to take them into Athens to the shops. He already knew all their favorite stores. The day was warm, with a cool breeze. Alexandra glanced at Eva. “Antonio is a banker. He’s supposed to like math. You just need enough to get into college. So stop whining.”

“I don’t whine. But I don’t want to think about lessons today. What are you looking for?”

Alexandra shrugged. “I’ll know it when I see it. I just want something elegant.”

They headed for the Attica, one of the biggest department stores in Athens, but Alexandra found nothing she liked. Next they headed to their favorite boutiques, including Linea Piu and Vera Wang. Eva found several dressed she liked, but Alexandra kept shaking her head. Finally, at Primalicia, Alexandra found a strapless gown with a hi-low hem that ended in front just above her knees and draping to the ground behind in a mock train. The silk held just the faintest hint of pink in the blush tones. The dress would only need minor alterations to fit perfectly.

“Alexandra, you look like a fairytale princess!” Eva told her, walking around her sister. “It’s perfect.”

Alexandra grinned. “I love it. Now, what about your dress? Claire isn’t here so we’ll have to get something that can be fitted to her later.” After getting final measurements to fit the dress, Alexandra changed and she and Eva started to look over bridesmaids dressed. Eva fell in love with a shimmery sheath in silver sequins, with little bows down the back that left a series of openings in the dress. “What do you think?” She held up the dress.

“Try it on.”

Eva did—and fell even more in love with the gown. Showing it off to Alexandra she did a small turn. The sequins picked up the surrounding colors, making the dress appear to shimmer with each movement she made. “It’s absolutely gorgeous! I was kind of expecting something I’d never want to wear again. But this…I’m sure I’ll find plenty of places to wear this again. Do you think Claire will like it? Maybe we should get hers in a different color?”

Shaking her head, Alexandra pulled out a different dress, something with similar silver sequins but with a fuller skirt. “I think this for Claire—if it fits her. And maybe we should pick out shoes to match.”

Eva nodded and went to change. They spent the rest of the afternoon finding shoes to match, and talking about decorations for the wedding. Exhausted, they stopped at a café for tea and milopitakia, an apple-filled cookie that was one of Eva’s favorite treats.

Sitting at the café table, Eva started to tear her cookie into bits, and Alexandra asked, “What is it? Callum?”

Eva threw down the rest of her milopitakia. “How did you guess?”

Alexandra shrugged. “A sister knows. Tell me about it? He’s cute.”

“A cute slave driver. But…well, I keep getting glimpses of someone else.” She told Alexandra about their trip to the Parthenon. “He seemed…so nice then. And the next day it’s back to books, lessons, and more books!” She wrinkled her nose.

“Sounds to me like maybe you like him.”

“Him maybe—the tutor not so much. I…I want to get rid of him.”

“Why not just ask Antonio to fire him?”

Eva sipped her tea and nibbled on a milopitakia. “I thought about that. And about…well, about getting him fired other ways. But when it comes down to it, I’d hate it if Callum ended up in real trouble.” She gave a groan. “Why does it all have to be so complicated?”

Alexandra put a hand over Eva’s. “Sounds to me like you’re growing up, little sister. Do you want me to talk to Antonio about Callum? Or talk to Callum?”

Eva sat up. “No. You’re right—this is my problem. Which means I’m going to figure out what to do about Callum.” She smiled. “Maybe I’ll just become an overnight genius and that will be the end to all this tutoring!”