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“Excuse me, please,” I plead, as though he might let me by if I’m polite.
The hulk doesn’t utter a word or spare me even a small glance, and he doesn’t budge. But I’m desperate to leave before the man at the window notices me, and I attempt to muscle my way through.
It’s a waste of energy. He’s an unmovable force.
When I pivot to find an alternate exit, Antonio Huntsman is there, eyes flaring, almost daring me to run, again.
2
Daniela
Ifreeze in my tracks, a cornered animal with little hope for survival.
He’s still too, intensely focused, like a predator who could be easily triggered.
It’s been years since I’ve seen him in person, but the younger version of this man still haunts my dreams—more often than I care to admit.
The last time we were this close, he stole a kiss. That’s what I tell myself, because it’s easier than admitting I gave it to him—that I wanted that kiss.
Twenty minutes after the reckless kiss, his car was forced off the road, into the river. When I left Porto, he was in critical condition, and it was unclear whether he would survive.
But it’s hard to kill the devil.
He doesn’t look any worse for wear. In many ways, he looks the same. Maybe more confident. The intensity still vibrates off him in a way that signals danger.Beautiful danger.Irresistible danger.The kind that beckons, not with a word but with a smoldering gaze.
Standing here, with his hand buried in his trouser pocket, he’s a photographer’s dream.
Venomous snakes always hide under pretty skins.
I continue to hold myself as still as possible, only swallowing to clear my airway.
“Our fate—yours and mine—is entwined for eternity. For now, you’re safe, Princesa. But when I come back, it’ll be for more than a kiss.”Those were his last words to me.
The door clicks shut behind me, cutting off more of my air supply.
“Where’s Moniz?” I gasp, my voice barely audible.
“I gave him the morning off.” Antonio gestures toward one of the chairs near the desk. “Have a seat, Daniela.”
His commanding tenor raises gooseflesh on my arms.
He knows you’re here to sell the property. He wants it.
Sit and hear him out, or stand and fight. Those are my choices.
My soul shrivels at the thought of a Huntsman owning my mother’s vineyards.
You’re not in a position to be sentimental. Especially now. Don’t waste time pretending you won’t sell to him. You’ll do what you need to do so you can get back to Isabel and Valentina.
Maybe I can negotiate something, because between him and the guard stationed outside the door, I don’t think fighting is going to get me far.
I lower myself to the edge of the seat, using the chair’s sturdy arm for support. “I assume this is about the vineyards.”
He shakes his head, unbuttoning his suit jacket before propping himself on the corner of the desk, where he can lord over me like a king.
“I have a plane to catch and no time for games. What is this about?”
He doesn’t reply, but he looks me up and down, suggestively, his eyes lingering here and there without a tinge of shame. It’s much the way he leered when he visited after my father died. It’s still appalling, but this time, I don’t blink.
