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“And what do you do? What does this even entail?”
“I conduct business on behalf of my father.”
“Your father?”
“He is the Don of all operations on the east coast.”
“Am I supposed to know what a Don is?”
“It means he’s in charge of all our businesses this side of the country. At least, for now anyway.”
“For now?”
“He’s reaching the end of his life. It is time for him to hand over control to one of his sons.”
“One of his sons? How many of you are there?”
“My brother is my only rival.” He sounds icy cold as he says it, not a hint of emotion to his voice.
“He not a nice guy, your brother?”
“A degenerate gambler with anger issues.”
“So not a nice guy then.”
“Unfortunately my father insists on the old rule, ceding control to a married man so he ensures the lineage of the family continues after his death.”
“I see. I think. I’m guessing your brother’s married, then.”
“Michael is engaged to be wed but a date has yet to be set for the ceremony.”
“And when he gets married, he gets the empire, right?”
“Correct.”
I nod my head. “I see where this is going.”
“You do?”
“I’ve read enough romances in my time to know what you want from me. You want to marry me, right? Outmaneuver him, yeah?”
“How did you guess that?”
“Because I’m not an idiot. That’s why you’ve been so nice to me. That’s why you’re taking me for this little drive. That’s why you gave me five thousand bucks when we first met. You’ve been planning this all along, haven’t you?”
“The idea occurred to me some time ago, yes.”
“I knew it. You marry me and you get to take control over this empire of whatever the hell it is. Then when the ink’s all dry on the paperwork, we get a quiet divorce and you pay me off, that about right?”
“You are an astute woman. I’m impressed.”
“You know what happens in the books though, don’t you?”
“This isn’t a book, Ophelia. This is real life.”
“We fall for each other.”
“Excuse me?” The car swerves and he almost hits a truck in the lane next to ours.
