“Sit down, son,” he says and it’s not a request.
I know what he means but it doesn’t make me any less pissed off. I'm the eldest son, sure, but I'm also the one who made it abundantly clear years ago that I would never…never…chain myself to one woman.
"Find someone else." I sit down and grab my glass again, draining it in one burning swallow. "I'm not interested."
"Your interest is irrelevant and you know it."
"You can’t be serious?" My voice comes out rougher than I intended. "You wan’t me to tie myself to some stranger who'll probably fuck the gardener the second I turn my back?”
Something flickers in my father’s eyes. Understanding, maybe. Or pity. I'm not sure which one I hate more.
"I said marry her. Have a few children. I didn’t say you had to be tied down. I’m sure you guys can work out some sort of understanding. Either way, this is happening. She will arrive next month. You will meet her and you will court her appropriately.” He sighs and looks around the club. “I’m sure you can go a few months without this."
"And if I refuse?"
"You won't." He stands, buttoning his jacket with those same precise movements. "What you do after the wedding is your business. Treat her as a wife, treat her as a stranger…I don't care. But you will marry her. The arrangement is already made."
He's halfway to the stairs before I find my voice again.
"I won't love her."
He pauses and glances back over his shoulder with a smirk on his face.
“Don’t speak so soon, son. She’s quite beautiful.”
Then he's gone, swallowed by the crowd, leaving me alone in the VIP section with nothing but an empty glass and a mess in my head.
I signal for another drink, then change my mind and wave the server away. The brunette and redhead are hovering at the edge of the ropes, clearly hoping for a callback. Any other night, I'd crook my finger and let them distract me from whatever dark thoughts tried to surface. Right now, though, I’m too pent up so I sit in the darkness of my own club and make a vow to myself. This girl, this Italian princess, she can have my name. She can have the ceremony and the ring and whatever fairy-tale bullshit she's been promised but she will never have my heart. I don’t care how beautiful she is. She'll get a husband in name only. A cold bed and an even colder shoulder, and if she doesn't like it? She can leave. They always do anyway once they get what they want.
I flag down the server after all, order himto bring me the entire bottle, and flick my fingers at the two women practically panting for me behind the rope. They sway over to me and resume their previous positions and I lean back to enjoy what’s to come.
‘Might as well take advantage of my freedom while I have it.’
Chapter One
Liana
The plane rumbles as it gains speed and I can feel it lifting from the ground as I grip the armrests tightly with both hands. My knuckles are white and I can barely feel my fingers at this point but I don’t even care. Let’s be real. I’m scared out of my ever-loving mind right now. I’ve never been on a plane before. I’ve never even been out of the country. Hell, I’ve barely been allowed to leave my cousin’s estate and now I’m suddenly being shipped off to the United States…to Arizona.
I’m not excited. My uncle is sending me to the desert. It’s ugly and brown and I’ll probably end up with dirt in all the wrong places. It’s nothing like Italy. Italy is beautiful and the estate may have felt like a prison sometimes, but at least I had Andre.
My cousin Andre, who has always been more like a brother to me, probably doesn’t even realize I’m gone yet. Uncle Alessio sent me away without even letting me say goodbye. I already miss him. I miss Sasha too. She was a breath offresh air and I just know her and my cousin will end up together eventually. If Uncle Alessio allows it that is.
I rub my sore neck as I remember how tightly Uncle grabbed me. He’s never been that harsh with me before.
“You. Will. Marry. This will create an alliance between both families, but most importantly, this will keep your cousin in line. As far as I’m concerned, he has spent far too much time trying to protect you from the real world. His love for you is his downfall.”
My uncle’s words repeat in my head, causing a tear to slip down my cheek. I quickly wipe it with the back of my hand and look out the plane window at the clouds and open sky. I don’t want to be Andre’s downfall but I also don’t want to marry some disgusting old cowboy from the desert who probably has wrinkly old balls and smells like chewing tobacco.
‘Gross.’
Maybe I’ve read too many romance novels but I don’t know of any that start out with a hot guy in Arizona. Why couldn’t it have been California or Florida? Or even New York? I’ve seen plenty of my cousin’s friends in New York and they are at least handsome.
The plane jerks suddenly to the side causing me to shriek out loud like a child. I look over to one of my uncle’s men with wide eyes and watch him roll his eyes at me.
“It’s turbulence, not the end of the world. Calm the fuck down, little girl.”
I can tell by his tone that he is clearly annoyed with me but he doesn’t have to act like a jerk. He’s been treating me like crap from the moment he brought me to my uncle’s estate.
