Page 28 of Stolen Bride for the Don

Dominic’s eyes widen, “Now I know you’re lying.”

The rest of the dons sit up, staring at me with varying degrees of surprise. “The Beaufort princess? John Beaufort said his daughter wasn't for sale when I went to him.”

“I thought the Beaufort girl wouldn’t agree to an arranged marriage?”

“How did you even get the family to accept your proposal?”

“Gentlemen. Gentlemen.” I raise a hand as I speak. “One question at a time please. Yes, my fiancée is Andrea Beaufort, John Beaufort’s daughter. As to how I got the family to accept–well, she loves me. Simple as that.”

“If what you’re saying is really true, this could be a bridge into Brattleboro for us. That town has been tightly locked down for decades, but now that their daughter is going to be one of us...they’ll have no choice but to become more accommodating,” Bruno says with a pleased smile. “I approve.”

“Well, thank you,” I tell him, but the sarcasm seems to fly over his head.

“When is the engagement party? I haven’t seen John Beaufort in a long time, and I’ve yet to meet his son, who took over when he retired.”

My work done, I get to my feet, adjusting my cufflinks. “The date of the engagement party will be communicated to you all soon. Now, if you’ll all excuse me, I have a beautiful fiancée to return to. Have a good evening.” I give them a short nod and walk out with Crew.

“Why didn’t you tell them you were not invited to the meeting, H?” Crew asks as we get into my jeep.

“To strengthen my reputation as the most powerful don there and send a message to the Rossi’s. Just because I don’t react doesn’t mean I don’t know everything they’re up to.”

CHAPTER 18

ANDREA

Something shifts in the air, making my spine tingle and my eyes snap open. I shoot up on the bed, the sleep gone from my eyes. I see Hudson almost immediately, sitting in that armchair by the fireplace, watching me. Always watching me.

“Oh. It’s you again,” I say surly, even though my heart is still pounding both from the adrenaline and something else. Something I refuse to identify. “Why are you here?”

“You didn’t sign the contract last night,” he answers softly.

“And whose fault is that?” I scoff. He’s the one who abruptly left me at the dining table last night.

“Something urgent came up.”

“You always seem to have something urgent come up,” I observe, remembering Diane said something similar yesterday.

“An occupational hazard, I’m afraid.” He shrugs carelessly.

“Of course. Because having to go murder people is such urgent business,” I reply sarcastically.

“You do know I have a legitimate business, right? Just like your family.” He looks amused.

“Oh right. My bad for thinking of you as one dimensional. Of course, an esteemed crime boss like yourself must have one or two legitimate businesses to serve as a front for the flow of income. How else would you explain your copious amounts of money…or clean it?”

“I see you woke up cheerful this morning,” he remarks.

“Because I woke up to no prospects of caffeine. With my captor watching me while I slept, like a creep. You can’t expect me to welcome you with a joyful smile.”

“You’re going to have to do more than that when we’re in public.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know, and I’ll play my part well. But we’re not in public yet, are we? Now why are you in my room?”

His mouth tilts up in a half smile as he gets up. I almost expect him to correct me that this is our room, but he only demands, “Get dressed and meet me in the study. You need to sign the contract, and then we have our date.”

He points to the closet and says, “I expect you to wear something modest, yet intriguing. I’ve selected a couple options for you to choose from. And wear your hair up tonight.” He stares at me for another moment, shaking his head as he walks out.

A date? Oh right, the damned walk. I groan as I flop back on the pillows. It’s way too early for this. It takes me a while to drag myself out of bed and walk to the closet to see what I’m expected to wear. I roll my eyes…until I see the dresses he had selected. We clearly have a different idea of what modest means.

---