Page 17 of Stolen Bride for the Don

He backs away with another short woof, lowering his front half to the floor. He raises his butt in the air and wiggles it playfully. Ohhh. “I misunderstood you, huh?” I murmur, lowering to my knees.

I’m still a little scared, but I figure if he is going to bite me, he will have done it already.

He gives a short bark as if in answer to my question. Now that I’m closer to the ground, he gets on his paws and pushes his cold nose into my face. “No, wait, hold on.” I giggle when he starts licking it sloppily. I lift my arms up to shove him back a bit. “Alright, alright.”

“Sit,” I command, and he obliges again. Curious as to the other commands he knows, I hold out my hand to him. “I’m Andrea. Shake.” He slaps his big paw into my hand, and I smile as I close my fingers around his furry mitt and give it two shakes. When I let go of his paw, he lowers his head to press it into my hand.

Understanding what he wants, I pat the top of his head gently, then rub the smooth fur. Somehow, this dog that’s taller than me while I’m kneeling on the ground, goes from monstrously terrifying to stinking cute in the span of two minutes.

“Wow,” someone whispers. I turn my head to see we’ve got an audience. Diane. The shaggy haired guy. Eli, the guy whose knife I stole, another tall guy… and Hudson.

“Maximus!” The sharp command from Hudson makes the dog whine softly. He pushes his head into mine one last time then lumbers to his master. Hudson pats his head and whispers a command that bids the dog to leave the room.

“You.” He points a long, thick finger at me and orders, “Follow me.”

CHAPTER 12

HUDSON

It’s ridiculous how she has turned my cane corso into a whining mess. Not that Maximus is particularly vicious. I’m convinced that he’s the best damn dog ever born, and he’d never hurt anyone who didn’t deserve it. But he’s trained to protect me and mine, so he’s known to be unfriendly toward strangers.

It usually takes him time to warm up to people. On one hand, I’m glad he’s taken to her since after Andrea and I will be married they’ll be seeing a lot of each other, but now I can’t even use him to threaten her.

“Why didn’t you tell me Maximus was just a soft little marshmallow? You wanted me to believe he was dangerous to make me cower, didn’t you?" She accuses me as I lead her to the first floor study, so we can have some privacy while we talk.

“When would I have had the chance to bring my dog up?” I ask, giving her a pointed look. “What exactly are you doing out of our bedroom? Who unlocked the door for you?” I open the study door, giving her a small frown.

Her eyes go wide; she immediately spins to face me as she enters the room. “It wasn’t her fault. I pushed her back as soon as she opened the door and took a run for it.”

So it was Diane. My lips purse.

“No, seriously, Hudson. It wasn’t her fault, I swear. Don’t blame her,” she continues earnestly. I watch in fascinated amusement as she sidles closer to me. She hesitates briefly and runs her hand up my chest. My heart jumps at the contact, but I don’t let it show that her touch affects me. Is she going to use her wiles on me now?

“You have to believe me, okay? Say you won’t punish her.” She bites her bottom lip, blinking coyly as she beseeches me. I’m aware of what she’s doing, but fuck if it’s not working anyway.

I shift away from her touch and clear my throat. Dangerous female. “I know how hard-headed you can be,” I tell her as I walk to my desk. “If I’m going to punish anyone, it will be you.”

My back is turned to her but I can still hear her relieved breath. “Are you still mad at me?” she asks quietly.

I sit behind my desk and study her. I was never angry at her. Okay I was when I saw the state of my closet, but I’m long over that. But that’s not what she’s asking, anyway; she thinks I’m mad because of the slap. In truth, I was mad at myself for letting my guard down. Did I really think she’d jump happily into my arms after I had kidnapped her? No…but after our obvious chemistry in her bar, I thought she might be a little more…intrigued. And for some reason, I thought she was starting to get complacent. I won’t make that mistake again.

“No,” I answer curtly. “Were you trying to escape?”

She rolls her eyes. “As if I would be able to get around all fifty–five men you have stationed here. I’m not fool enough to believe I could actually leave without your permission. I needed to get out of that room, though, and fuck I was irritable because of a lack of caffeine. I’m still irritable.”

Her expression seems sincere. “That’s right. You have a little caffeine addiction. I’m trying to get rid of that inconvenient habit for you.”

She gapes at me and jumps to her feet. “Who the hell do you think you are?” I watch in fascination as she speaks in rapid French, cursing me colorfully as she paces up and down the study. When she faces me again, she’s successfully worked herself into a frenzy.

She pants as she glares at me. “I want you to take that notion out of your head right now, or I swear I’m going to be as uncooperative as possible.”

“I see,” I say simply.

“You see? You see?!” she screeches and takes a threatening step toward me. I raise a hand in surrender.

“I meant that I didn’t understand you felt that strongly about coffee. Hold on.” I text Walker to bring a coffee for her. “Two sugars, no milk right?” I confirm as I drop my phone.

“I’m not even surprised that you know how I take my coffee. At this point, it feels like you know everything about me,” she complains as she takes the seat across from me.

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