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Alejandro did it for me.

“While I am required to respect your position, Don Lupini, you will never talk about my fiancée again like that. Do you understand me? She is mine now. Period.”

I hadn’t heard Alejandro say more than a few words and certainly never as aggressively. To say my father was shocked was lame in comparison to the myriad expressions on his face. For once, I felt vindicated, but that was short lived.

If Alejandro truly believed he could control me in any way, he was dead wrong. I shook my head. “Fuck both of you.” With that, I turned and stormed from the room.

With my head held high.

Fuck all of them. I’d go far enough away my father couldn’t reach me. Then I’d find a way to live my life as I wanted.

Tears filled my eyes and I did my best to avoid anyone else. I had to get away. There were too many people, too many eyes. I fled to the back door, fumbling to unlock it. Drago was right behind me, continuing to be my father’s fucking lapdog. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll leave me alone.”

Drago said nothing. Rarely did he ever open his mouth. However, I had no doubt he’d report my whereabouts back to his master.

Once outside, I took a deep breath and rushed toward the garden. It had been my favorite place when I’d been forced from my childhood home. The only place I’d felt comfortable and could think on my own.

I’d done all my dreaming there, enjoying the thought of finding the perfect prince to remove me from the tyranny of my father’s household. That had never happened, but that was also when I’d decided to become a doctor.

The night was chilly, but I could barely feel the outside temperature, the anger so intense I fanned my face as I rushed through the iron gates. As soon as I was inside, I headed for the fountain, holding back the tears until I sat down.

Then they flowed. I’d promised myself I wouldn’t cry, but I’d failed. I couldn’t do this. I wasn’t a puppet. I had no desire to be anyone’s trophy wife. How could I get through this night?

The sobs overtook me until I felt a presence.

There was an intense crackling of energy pouring through me, sensations that were extremely unusual. I jerked into a standing position, refusing to be any more vulnerable than I already felt.

Floodlights had been activated by movement, the twinkling fairy lights adorning every tree creating a luminous if not eerie glow along the pathway. A portion of the man remained in the shadows, the figure unwilling to breach my private space.

Yet there was no doubt who was standing only feet in front of me.

“Alejandro,” I whispered, the coarse sound of my voice a clear indication of my fury.

He took two steps closer until I was able to see his face more clearly. Enough that I was able to enjoy his chiseled features, a strong jawline carrying high cheekbones and a nose that would have been considered aristocratic had it not been broken at least once. The slight flaw added to his masculine physique instead of taking away from it, as I’d seen with so many of my father’s brutal men.

Although in my mind they were more like savages. He bore no outward scars or glaring tattoos, another rarity in a world where men were branded at an early age. He would appear more like a movie star instead of a hired gun if I didn’t know any better.

“Esprimi un desiderio su una stella,” he said in a deep voice, the husky sound resonating in my system.

Make a wish on a star.

I laughed, the sound as bitter as the way I felt. “I fear that wish would create unpleasant actions. Too many men would find my desires… reprehensible.”

“Then they are men undeserving of your wisdom and beauty.” He moved even closer.

“While I appreciate what you said to my father as well as the flirtatious words, you seem to underestimate both my anger and unwillingness to play the game of bullshit. Been there, done that. I can’t say I would have ever worn the t-shirt, but you get the point.”

He smiled, an unexpected reaction, and for the first time, his entire face was lit up, his expression softening. The man wasn’t just handsome. He was gorgeous, sinfully so. I was floored with the fact my pulse had increased. Few men had any effect on me. Derek and his nasty, cheating actions had darkened the horizon for anyone else.

“I must admit I would very much like to see you in that t-shirt. Even once.”

His comment allowed me to laugh. “Yes, well, come to my house. All you’ll see when I’m relaxing at home is a woman longing for comfort. You know. Sweatpants. Jeans.”

“There is nothing more beautiful than a woman in flannel.”

I looked away, the draw to him too intense. “I don’t mean to burst your bubble, Alejandro, but I’m rarely impressed with anyone attempting to snow me. And I have no intention of marrying you.” I even lifted my mostly empty glass of wine in a silent toast that he’d been let off the hook.

What I could do to avoid my father’s wrath I’d yet to determine, but I was a smart girl. I’d figure it out.

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