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She wrapped her arms around my torso and rested her face against my chest. She hugged me tightly, her cheek cold against my warm chest. She held me in the middle of the kitchen, ignoring all the burned food she’d prepared for me.
My hand moved through her hair as I rested my chin on her head. “I love you.” I kissed her hairline, smelling her shampoo and perfume. I had a beautiful woman in my arms, a woman who was strong and stubborn, but I’d managed to break her down until she loved me so deeply. She turned weak for me, just the way I turned weak for her.
“I love you too.” She lifted her gaze to look at me. “Let me make you a sandwich or something before you go since breakfast didn’t work out.”
“Where am I going?” I’d just traveled to the other side of the world. I had no interest in going down to the winery and moving crates all day, especially if I made the mistake of crossing paths with Carmen to initiate Cane’s wrath. I loved spending my time with this petite woman in the privacy of my home. I didn’t want to do anything else at the moment but be with her.
“To the winery.”
I shook my head slightly. “No. I’m staying here with you. They can get someone else for labor.”
Normally, Vanessa would be thrilled if I wanted to stay home with her and blow off everything else. But now she wore a timid expression. “I think you should go down there anyway.”
I knew something was off because she would never try to talk me out of something. I was a stubborn man, and she couldn’t change my mind unless it was for good reason. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“My father wants to talk to you. That’s all I’m going to say.”
I grabbed her chin and directed her gaze on me, forcing her to lock her eyes on me. “Why?”
“Just go down there and find out.”
“Why won’t you just tell me? I’m about to walk into the snake pit, and you aren’t giving me any warnings.”
“He asked me not to say anything.”
This continued to get stranger. “Vanessa.”
She tried to look down.
I gripped her chin tighter. “Baby, tell me.”
“I can’t. But I will say this…it’s a good thing.”
My fingers loosened on her face, my eyes narrowed.
“Please go talk to him.”
My heart started to beat hard in my chest, just the way it did before I killed someone. It was full of adrenaline, but it was also full of something similar to excitement, to hope. My blood pounded in my ears, and my breath came out quicker. I’d been working hard for this reward, but I wasn’t sure if I would ever reap the benefits of my commitment.
Maybe it finally paid off.
I dropped my hand from her chin and turned away, focused on getting out of that house as quickly as possible so I could face her father.
And finally get his approval.
I parked my truck and then stepped inside the main building. Crow was probably in his office because that was where he spent most of his time. I checked in with his assistant, a woman his age, and then was escorted inside.
Crow didn’t rise from his chair, and he had the same irritated expression on his face that he always wore. His beard was gone because he’d shaved that morning, but his dark mysteriousness continued without it. Dark eyes accompanied by a clenched jaw, he stared at me like he hated me as much as he always had.
He rose out of the chair and grabbed a bottle of scotch and two glasses before he carried them to the coffee table. He set them down and took a seat.
I sat on the other side of the table, my arms resting on my knees and my fingertips together.
Crow poured two glasses and pushed one toward me.
It was only noon, but I knew Crow started drinking the second he finished his coffee. For a man who knew how to make the best wine in Italy, he still preferred the amber liquid of the finest scotch in Europe.
I took a drink while I kept my eyes on him, waiting for him to give a speech. Anytime he spoke to me, it felt like a threatening lecture. There were times when he wanted to kill me, but he somehow found the restraint. Based on what Vanessa said, this conversation seemed to be taking a new direction.
I did my best to stop my hands from shaking.
I’d never wanted something so much in my life. If I got to keep Vanessa, I would be happy for the rest of my days. I would leave the past behind me and become a new man. I would be a husband, and maybe I would be a father too.
