Chapter 14
Maximo
My office door smacks against the wall with so much force that I reach for my gun.
Only to realize the threat stomping toward me is Elena.
Her pink cheeks and flaring gaze tells me that she’s discovered what I’ve done.
I expected some reaction from her, but not this.
She actually looks like she has every intention of murdering me, right here, right now.
She walks right up to my desk and plants her hands against the glass surface. “You did this, didn’t you?”
“Did what exactly?” I drawl, slipping my gun back into the top drawer.
As soon as I clipped her wings, my anger faded to a dull roar.
I’m usually in better control of myself, but Elena manages to push me over the edge more often than I care to admit.
I had three whole days once I caught up with her to simmer in it.
“I can’t admit to something unless I know what it is. ”
She seethes, leaning forward. Our relative positions give me a peek down the front of her shirt.
She’s wearing a simple white lace bra, her chest heaving.
My memory immediately recalls the way she looked as she orgasmed.
Flushed, delicious, and mine. If she thinks she’s getting away from me after that, she’s so very wrong.
She glares daggers at me. “I don’t know how you did it, but you froze my bank account. You took down the website where I sell my stories.”
I’m half tempted to deny her accusations, just to see what she’ll do. But if I want this relationship to work, then it needs a firm foundation, and that includes being truthful with each other no matter how much it may hurt.
My father’s a hard man, but he’s always been honest. He taught me that in the long run honesty really is the best policy. Maybe I should start taking his advice.
Leaning casually back in my chair, I say, “Yes. I did that.”
“Why—?” she wails.
“I warned you there’d be consequences if you acted out. These are those consequences.” I fold my hands on the desk. “Now you have a very important question to answer. Will you marry me, Elena?”
She stares at me, teeth clenched. A beat goes by before she responds. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”
She never curses, at least not aloud. She must be furious.
“I’m not. In fact, I’ve never been more serious.
” Outside I’m calm as a deep lake, but internally my emotions batter around in a storm.
This is not how I wanted to propose to Elena, but I told her she’d have to answer this question sooner rather than later, never mind her trip to California.
So… here we are. Right where we left off before she decided to run away.
Further narrowing her eyes, she says, “I’m going to make this clear enough that it might get through your thick skull. Maximo, I will never marry you. Never. You can take your proposal, and your ring, and go to hell.”
Hurt curls around my chest and squeezes tight. She doesn’t mean that, not really. I know she finds me attractive. She kissed me back. I’m her inspiration for the love interest in her story. She wants me, she just won’t admit it because she’s too goddamn stubborn.
Besides, Elena has to agree to marry me. How am I supposed to successfully lead this family if I can’t get this one woman to obey me? If the other dons saw me right now, they’d laugh. They’d think I’m weak. Is it really too much to ask to be wanted back by the woman I love?
It doesn’t matter. Those powerful men don’t let love rule their lives and neither should I. I love her with all my heart, she’s my obsession, but that doesn’t mean I’ve gone soft. I’ll do what has to be done—no matter what.
With that in mind, I slowly rise to my feet, towering over Elena. Rounding the desk, I stalk toward her. She straightens, her angry gaze cooled by uncertainty and a hint of fear. Her body rotates to face mine as I trap her between me and the desk.
“W-what are you doing?” Her pupils blow wide as I close the distance between us. Not a sliver of air exists between our bodies. I drink in her heady scent and the sight of the flush in her cheeks. She can deny it all she wants, but I turn her on. She can’t hide that.
“I wanted to give you at least the illusion of a choice—as a courtesy.” I angle my head down to speak against her ear.
“But the cold, hard truth is that choice is an illusion. We belong together. Our fates are aligned. You can’t run from that, at least not forever.
The sooner you give in to this—to us—the happier we will be. ”
Standing tall, I gaze into her eyes. I take her hand in mine and she lets me, though I note how her fingers tremble. From my pocket, I retrieve the pink diamond ring I had created especially for her, and slowly, with intention, slide it onto her ring finger.
“You’re mine, Elena Pontrelli. You’re my fiancée now, and soon you’ll be my wife.”
Her breath hitches. “But I don’t want this.”
I scowl as I mentally push away her rejection. If only she knew how long I’ve craved to be this close to her, to hold her in my arms, to be the man to give her the world.
Bringing her hand to my lips, I kiss her delicate flesh.
“I want you to know that while this is a good match for both of us, I’m not marrying you only for the sake of duty.
” My throat tightens as my words stick. I’ve never uttered them aloud before.
“I want you, Elena. I’ve wanted you for years.
You’re the love of my life and the only woman that I could ever—”
“Liar!” She tears her hand out of mine and sidesteps to get away.
“Don’t manipulate my feelings just to get what you want.
You don’t care about me at all. I’m just another pawn in your ruthless game.
We both know that’s the truth. Don’t insult my intelligence by pretending otherwise.
” Cheeks blazing red, fists shaking, she darts from my office.
“Elena—” I stand in the doorway, frowning as she disappears down the stairs. Her bedroom door slams shut.
Frustrated, I bang the side of my fist against the doorframe. Why can I never do anything right when it comes to her? If I’m cold and rational, giving her an order, she rebels against me. If I’m open and heartfelt she calls me a liar. Is there no winning with this woman?
I’m willing to give her anything she wants, anything at all. Except… The one thing she wants is the one thing I can’t give her: Her freedom from me.
Even if I could, I wouldn’t because she’s not safe out in the world on her own. She can’t escape the life she was born into. She’s a fool for trying. If she keeps this up, she’s going to get herself hurt. I need to protect her from herself, even if she doesn’t like it. Even if she hates me for it.
Elena, the shy, quiet young woman who never left Aunt Antonia’s house, intrigued me. The first time I met her, I thought she was pretty, but the world’s full of pretty girls. It was the vulnerability in her soft grey eyes that drew me in.
Then it was the story I heard about how she was kidnapped in Manhattan, held captive by an enemy to stop a wedding, then released, a changed woman.
One who was so terrified of the world, of other people, that her sister finally sent her here to recover from her trauma, while the sister and her husband hunted down those who did this to Elena.
At first, I couldn’t tell if she was strong or broken. Or a mix of both. All I knew was she never set foot outside that house. She refused to go to the market with Aunt Antonia. The days I came by, I always spotted her in the window of her room on the second floor, her nose in a book.
Then one day, about three months after she arrived, it rained.
I cursed as cold raindrops dripped down the back of my neck.
I was on my way to Aunt Antonia’s house to check for leaks in the roof.
Yes, I could have sent someone else to do it, but I was itching for another glimpse at the strange creature who lived there.
The only way to see her was to get inside the house, since she never came out.
The place could be on fire and she'd rather burn than venture into the street.
As I rounded the corner, spotting the house up ahead, a crouched figure caught my attention. Her long, dark auburn hair was unmistakable.
I stopped to watch. She sat on the threshold at the front door, dangerously close to actually leaving the house. What on earth was she doing? Then I saw it. In the middle of the street a tiny kitten mewed. The poor little thing was drenched.
Elena cooed at it, trying to call it to her, but it wouldn't budge.
I was about to step into the street and scoop up the small creature, when Elena stood up, hovering one foot out the door. So I sank into the shadows where she couldn't see me.
She glanced up and down the deserted road. Everyone else in the neighborhood remained indoors where they’re warm and dry. Then her bare foot touched the cobble stone. Even from here, I could see the way her body shook, her eyes round with fear.
She darted into the street, quick as lightning, and snatched up the crying kitten. Holding it close, she disappeared back into the house.
I waited in my hidden spot for several moments, taking in what I saw and the meaningfulness behind it. This girl who’s terrified of the world just rescued a drenched, lost kitten. For the briefest of moments, she overcame her fear to save that little creature. Why? It’s not even her cat.
As it turned out, it was the neighbor's kitten and had somehow gotten out that day. Elena reluctantly returned it to them.
But her bravery stuck with me, it struck a chord deep within my soul. From that day on, she became my growing obsession.