Andreusl, Part #1 by Marian Tee

“Hey Siri.”
“Go ahead,” a robotic voice answered right away.
“Can you tell me how to act in front of a sort of ex-boyfriend?”
After a few seconds, Siri answered, “OK. I found something on the web for ‘can you tell me how to act in front of a sort of ex-boyfriend’. Take a look.”
Hallie quickly lowered her phone and almost groaned at Siri’s search results.
How To Make Your Ex-Boyfriend Jealous?
Ha!
Andreus? Jealous?
Ha!
“You’re no help, Siri!”
“That is subject to opinion.”
Cheeky robot!
She saw Andreus shaking hands with the officer, and anxiety gripped her chest. “Hey, Siri?”
“How can I help?”
She spoke in a rush and was grateful when Siri proved more helpful the second time around. Oh, thank God! At least now, she would know what to do if –
“Sorry I kept you waiting.”
The gravelly, all-too-familiar voice interrupting her thoughts almost made her jump, and Hallie was momentarily reduced into dumbstruck silence at finding Andreus already standing right in front of her. Ebony eyes captured hers then, followed by a lethally sexy smile that had her clutching the cart’s handlebar again like it was a squeeze toy for stress. It seemed like he was waiting for her to say something back, but what? Her mind was a complete blank. Or rather, it was except for what Siri had told her.
“I’m planning to put up a social networking site for chickens,” Hallie blurted out, and as Andreus’ eyebrows shot up in surprise, she doggedly forged on with the punchline, saying, “I’m just not sure it will help me make hens meet.”
Silence, long enough to make her fidget, and then Andreus murmured with a polite smile, “That’s funny.”

****
Greek billionaire Andreus Economou is Hallie’s first love, but he’s also the only man to break her heart – and he’s done it more than once, too.
Now that she’s twenty-four, and hopefully just a little wiser, too, Hallie decides that it’s time she stops running away from her feelings.
This time, she’s going to let nature run its course – and stop pretending she’s not in love with him.