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My throat was suddenly scratchy.

“What can I get you for a wedding present?” she asked, a doleful look appearing in her eyes.

“You can say a prayer for me that no one dies in the process.”

Her laugh sounded as hollow as I was certain mine had. But I wasn’t kidding.

I’d left town the day after the engagement party, keeping my head down and ignoring my father’s ten phone calls. But I had forced myself to listen to a few of his messages.

They’d all been warnings, telling me to keep my doors locked and not to go out and about more often than I needed. That was tough since Gabriel adored his preschool, often more eager to head to the small building than to leave it.

I’d yet to break it to him that he’d be leaving his class for an extended timeframe. Then I had work and the grocery store. Gabriel could eat us out of house and home. I didn’t know where the kid put all the food he consumed, but I had a feeling he was going to be a huge man.

Just like his father.

His biological father.

Yet the kid continued to ask about my fi-nan-ce. I never corrected him as he seemed so proud of himself.

What had I managed to tell him about Alejandro? That he was a big man in my future father-in-law’s organization. I’d done so in such a way I’d almost made the mystery man sound like a hero. Which was ridiculous. He was a killer, just like I’d accused him of being.

I’d looked him up on the internet, finding absolutely nothing. Not a thing. Where had he come from? With him being so high up in the Santorelli organization, I certainly didn’t expect the guy to be a party hopper, but there should be some social media presence. I didn’t know what to think, but I had a list of questions I planned on grilling him on.

“What’s his name?” she asked almost slyly, that mischievous smile returning to her face.

“It’s best you don’t know that either.”

“You are no fair. How handsome is he? Like on a scale of one to ten?”

Sighing, I closed my eyes and an image of him in his tuxedo immediately popped into my mind. “Nine and a half.”

“Well, there’s that. Maybe he’ll end up being Prince Charming.”

“Ha. Not a chance.” More like Napoleon on growth hormones.

“When am I going to see you again?”

“I don’t know. I really don’t.”

She squeezed my arm for a second time. “Make certain you call me. I don’t know what this is or why you believe you need to go through with an unwanted marriage, but remember this is America. You aren’t forced into anything you don’t want to do.”

If only I could explain how different our two worlds were. I’d been naïve enough to believe I’d fallen so far out of favor with my father I wouldn’t need to worry about him or that life.

Now I was paying the price for my naivety.

CHAPTER9

Alejandro

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Just hearing the incessant beeping noises was enough to remind me why I loathed hospitals once again. How many days and nights had I spent sleeping in a chair? Sleeping? I hadn’t gotten more than a few minutes of sleep at a time. Anxiety had been a mainstay, a constant and very ugly reminder of how fragile life could be.

One might think I would have learned to be conscientious with my decisions regarding human life, but there was a tremendous difference in hating God for taking a precious being who’d never done a goddamn wrong thing in her life versus the thugs I’d worked with for over two years.

Good versus true evil.

I stood just inside the room, waiting as a nurse adjusted a monitor. Suddenly, the beeping stopped.

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