Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 79991 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 267(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79991 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 267(@300wpm)
I haven’t yet wrapped my head around that when my phone rings. I was so caught up in her that I almost forgot I was supposed to be using it to threaten her.
Nothing will kill an erection faster than the sight of my grandfather’s name on the screen. I pick up the phone and climb off the bed but don’t bother freeing her. We’re obviously going to have to have a talk about a few things.
“Hello? What—”
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing? When were you going to get around to telling me who you’ve been keeping with you all this time? What are you playing at?”
An icy finger moves up my spine and freezes my blood. Son of a bitch. How does he know?
I barely have time to process the question before the answer reveals itself. “You’d better hope you haven’t harmed a single hair on her head!” Josef Alvarez howls. “How dare you? Who do you think you’re dealing with? Is this all a fucking game to you?”
Can she hear any of this? I doubt I would be able to tell if she could—she looks just as terrified as ever. I’m sure she can tell I’m being reamed out, but if she knew exactly what her father was saying, she might look a little more pleased with herself than she does now.
“You’re only finding out now?” I ask.
“Listen here,” my grandfather growls. “This is not your time to ask questions. You have gone ahead and behaved recklessly without first clearing things with me. You and I will have this out later, mark my words. For now, we need to find a way to repair the damage you’ve done.”
It’s only because she’s listening intently that I’m able to keep my temper under control. “The damage I’ve done? Who sent a sniper to what was supposed to be a meeting yesterday?”
“Renato, you finish this. I can’t stand the sound of his voice any longer. But you listen here, boy,” Alvarez adds. “I find out you’ve done a damn thing to harm what’s mine, and any deal between our families is forgotten. Understood?” With that, he hangs up on his end, leaving only Grandfather and me.
“Listen,” I implore, but he cuts me off with a growl.
“You listen, you reckless son of a bitch. You have no idea the scrambling it’s taken to convince that man not to kill you outright. Thanks to me, it looks like we’ve come to an arrangement that will suit both of us just fine and cement the union between our families.”
It’s his choice of words that get my blood running cold again. “Tell me you aren’t thinking what it sounds like you are thinking, please.”
“It’s time for you to learn what happens when you go off half-cocked and fuck with everything I’ve worked for. You’re going to marry that girl, and you’re going to do it soon. Only that will undo the damage you’ve done by going behind my back and thinking you make the decisions in this family. I have never been this disappointed in you, Enzo.”
Maybe if I was a child, that last part would make any sort of difference. Maybe it would matter in the slightest that my grandfather feels disappointed.
However, I can’t get past what he announced before that. “You’re serious? You mean it?”
“I’m beginning to think Miami has softened your brain. Since when do I say anything I don’t mean? You treat that girl with kid gloves between now and the wedding, or else I’ll have no choice but to wash my hands of you. Don’t force me to make that move. I promise you, you will regret it.”
I can barely catch my breath before he hangs up, leaving me stunned and as close to helpless as I can remember ever feeling.
That bastard. This has to be what he was playing at all along. Taking the chance of leaving her with me, waiting to drop the bombshell on my grandfather’s head. His way of uniting our families and benefiting from the arrangement more so than he could ever have hoped before.
She hasn’t spoken a word, has hardly breathed. When I turn and fix a cold stare on her, she cringes.
“Congratulations,” I grunt. “You’re going to be married. To me.” I can’t even take pleasure in her horror.
15
ALICIA
I don’t know what happened. I don’t know how long I’ve been asleep—at some point, exhaustion finally caught up with me, and there was nothing to do but give in to it. Even if I wasn’t dead tired, my body would have probably shut down if only to let me escape fear for a little while. There’s only so much a human being can take. I’m starting to understand that in a way I never did before.
Now I’m awake, and everything comes rushing back. How could it not, with my arms still tied over my head? I’ve been this way for so long that they’re numb. And he left me this way. Like I don’t even matter.