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I lunge at him like a savage with nothing to lose. But he captures my wrists before I can claw out his eyes.
“Save your scratching and biting for the honeymoon,Princesa. And your energy. You’ll need it.”
“Let go of me, you bastard.” The words emerge with great contempt, but it’s only a small slice of the hate in my heart.
He yanks me closer, securing my hands behind my back and caging my legs between his. “Listen carefully,” he murmurs, right above my temple. “Because I’m not going to say it again. No one—no oneattacks me without paying a hefty price. That includes you. You’ve been warned.”
After I’ve digested his warning, he lets me go.
I step back and sink into the chair.
I don’t care what he claims. He killed Jorge—or had him killed. And Leo, who painstakingly put together all the travel documents for us.Why?Did their deaths have something to do with the property? With me?Are they dead because of me?
I glance at him while he scrolls through his phone.How can someone so beautiful on the outside be so ugly inside?
Maybe they’re not dead. Maybe he’s manipulating me.
“You’re right about one thing, Daniela. There are laws. But here, I make the laws. Don’t make the mistake of thinking otherwise.”
A shiver runs through me. I won’t make that mistake. I can’t afford to die. My heart twists.I don’t want to die.
Somehow, I need to get out of Porto and back to the US—to Isabel and Valentina. And more important, I need to warn them, because they might not be safe either.
“I’ll sign whatever you need. You don’t want to marry me. You said so yourself. I have obligations to attend to in the US.”
“Obligations? Like cleaning bathrooms? Theprincesascrubbing piss from toilet rims. How charming.”
I shove down the lump in my throat. Until now, I’ve never been embarrassed about cleaning other people’s messes. After all, for years someone cleaned mine. But as much as I hate to admit it, his taunting stings.
“It’s not glamorous, but it’s honest work. Unlike what you do.”
“I do what your father did, and what your grandfather before him did.” Antonio glowers at me. “It’s what allowed you to wear the pretty dresses and jewels, and keep show horses. Spare me the sanctimony.”
The image of my father signing me away is imprinted on my brain. He proved himself as ruthless as any of them, taking his parting shot from the grave.Like a fucking coward.
Did he secretly blame me for my mother’s death, and this is his revenge? His beloved Rosa was murdered while I was spared. I didn’t fight hard enough.I didn’t fight at all.
You can fight now. You’re not twelve anymore.
“Don’t you have more questions for me?” He tips his head to the side. “Perhaps about Quinta Rosa do Vale. You have my attention. Now would be a good time to ask.”
I do.But more than anything, right now, I want to get out of this room. The rest will have to wait. The longer I’m here, the less likely I’ll be allowed to leave.
I pick up my tote and hook it over my shoulder as I stand. “I don’t care what kind of proof you have. Video can be manipulated easily. I’m not buying any of it.”
His jaw clenches. I’m five feet five, but he towers above me, a vein in his neck pulsing.
“Your father gave me the vineyards in exchange for the promise that I would marry you and ensure your safety. I intend to honor that promise.”
Ensure my safety. He gave me to the beast, to save me from the ogres.
Maybe my father’s intentions were nothing more than misguided,maybe, but it doesn’t matter. In the end, they’re all monsters.
“Manuel D’Sousa is dead. I’m his daughter. His blood. I’m releasing you from your promise. You can have the vineyards, but you don’t need to be saddled with me.”
I’m inches from the door when he grabs me from behind and shoves me against the wall roughly, using his hips to pin me there. Before I can react, his lips are on mine.
I use my fists to ward him off before his mouth makes me feel things I don’t want to feel.
