Page 46 of His to Bedevil

Whoa. That’s a biiiig motherfucker.

As he grins down at me, I almost retreat a few steps backward out of formidable intimidation. The man standing before me is humongous. He’s, like, a foot and a half taller than me and must be a million pounds of solid muscle. Staring at his face, I see familiar features and quickly realize this must be Alejo’s brother, Lucas. He has the same golden eyes and thick black hair. His skin is just as bronzed as his brother’s, but that’s kind of where their similarities end. Starting with the apparel. Most of the time, Alejo wears a suit, and Lucas here is wearing combat gear. He doesn’t have any facial hair, and his jaw is a bit wider. In fact, everything is wider. Alejo is built like a quarterback, whereas Lucas is like a linebacker. Still, he’s very handsome. Just as handsome as his brother, although I prefer Alejo.Wait, no.I don’t prefer either.

“Buenos días, Irma.” His voice is deep, and it’s like it booms across the room, bouncing off the walls. “I’m Lucas. Your future brother-in-law.” He grins again, and for such a daunting man, his grin is cheeky.

He holds a hand out, and I take a gulp before I place my much smaller one in his. He keeps the handshake light, which surprises me that he has the ability to. “Nice to meet you, Lucas.”

He sticks an elbow out. “Shall we?” His eyebrows lift in waiting.

I give him a tight smile and decline his offer of chivalry. “I don’t need an actual escort, thank you,” I murmur, and step out of the room.

He doesn’t say anything as we both walk down the hall side by side. I notice after just a few steps that the warm smile he gave me is gone and in its place is a menacing glower. I almost want to turn around and run back to my room with my tail tucked between my legs. I thought Alejo was aggressively intimidating when he was in mob boss form, but Lucas is straight-up scary.

“So, you’re younger than Alejo, yes?” I try to make my voice sound unshakable.

He glances down at me and nods. I already know this, I just needed to break the silence. “I’m five years younger,” he confirms in his unemotional deep voice.

We walk through the house, and I can’t stop gawking at everything. I haven’t been through all of the house yet, and it was dark when we first got here. The house, or the mansion, I should say, is immaculate. There’s so much detail and beauty. If I were to imagine my dream home, this would be it. The Spanish style is just breathtaking. From the archways to the art to the tiled floors, I love it all. It isn’t at all ostentatious or garish in an attempt to throw their wealth in your face. It’s beautiful, as if every single thing was handpicked by someone not from this time.

Lucas leads me outside, and I cannot believe this is all real. It’s like a private resort where only the rich and famous can go. We step out onto a large patio area that leads down some steps to the padded area surrounding the pool. On either side are gardens and fountains and gardeners tending to everything. The pool is Olympic size with waterfalls and flowing water. If I wasn’t here against my will, I would probably thoroughly enjoy this. It’s like a vacation I would actually pay for.

“Mijo.” Benita approaches us, and Lucas bows his head to properly greet his mother. He instantly softens for a moment, but as soon as he steps away, his face hardens again.

“You two ladies enjoy your time. Pretend that I’m not even here.” He gives me a stern look, and whatever he’s silently telling me, I will happily obey. He’s not someone I want to mess with. He walks away and sits down in a chair in a shady area several yards away.

“Come sit,mija.” Benita gestures to a lounger, thankfully in the shade. I can’t help but ogle her in her modest but very fashionable one-piece. I know that she can’t be younger than fifty or so, but the woman looks way too good to have a son that is in his thirties.

I take off my shirt and shorts and sit back on the lounger. “It’s beautiful out here. I’m just trying to take everything in,” I admit as I continue to catalog everything. I’m not even trying to look for ways to escape, to be honest. I’m simply enjoying the view.

“So, I hear we have a wedding to plan,mija.” My head snaps in her direction, and she’s giving me a beamish grin. I wonder if she would be as excited if she knew I was pretty much forced into this engagement. I smile and nod to be polite. “I can help you with everything. Alejo is always so busy, he won’t be much help. And it’s best for us women to do all the planning anyway.”

“I would love the help. I don’t even know the first thing about planning a wedding, and with it being in less than seven days, I’m afraid there won’t even be enough time to plan it.”

She frowns a little. “Yes, it isn’t much time.”

A glimmer of hope sparks inside of me. “Maybe if Alejo understood that a wedding takes more time to plan, we could push it back a few weeks or so.”

Benita shakes her head, dismissing my dilatory strategy. “Once my son sets his mind on something, there is no changing it. If he says he wants to marry you this weekend, then that’s when it will happen. It’s okay though,mija. Don’t you worry about a thing. You just tell me what you want, and I will make it happen. First thing, though, we need to get you a dress. Would you be up for it this evening or the next? I can have someone bring by some dresses.”

Nodding my head, I suppress the fractiousness brewing inside of me. I won’t be getting out of this wedding unless I find a way to escape with Matches before then. And I don’t even know where they’re holding him. I just need to be able to see him once. Without that, I am clueless and inevitably helpless.

“Perfecto!” She claps her hands once, grinning. “We really do need to start planning immediately.Mijo!” she calls out to Lucas. “Call Juanita down here for me!” He nods and pulls out his phone to make the call. “We’ll get some drinks in us as well. We’re a bit short-staffed right now, but not for long.”

I wait for a pang of guilt to hit me, but it still never comes. I’m such a heartless bitch sometimes.Aw, well. Benita begins questioning me about the kind of flowers I like and what kind of setting I envision. I tell her I haven’t even thought about any of it, so she says that we can get some wedding magazines to look at together. I never thought I would ever get married, so it’s never even been on my mind. I definitely wasn’t the kind of girl to ever picture myself in a wedding dress someday with Prince Charming. And I absolutely never pictured myself on the arm of a Cuban god.

Juanita comes out, and Benita tells her the news. Juanita begins babbling zealously in Spanish, and she throws her arms around me. I grunt when she squeezes me hard, but when she pulls away to kiss my cheeks a million times each, I begin giggling and laughing. “Gracias, señora,” I say in between giggles and kisses from her.See, I’m only a heartless bitchsometimes.

She slaps her hands together enthusiastically and continues to babble as she turns and scampers away. Chuckling, Benita shakes her head. “Excuse her enthusiasm,mija. She is like a grandmother to those boys.”

I glance over at Lucas and catch him smirking and shaking his head before his face turns back to stone. “It’s perfectly fine. I’m happy to see everyone so excited about this wedding.” They can all be excited for me.

Juanita brings us some cocktails and fresh fruit and tells Benita that the magazines she requested will be here shortly. When the magazines arrive, they’re all Benita wants to talk about. I continue to tamp down the panic that wants to rise as I robotically play along. I let her completely take the reins and only tell her when Idon’tlike something.Hey, itwillbe the only wedding I ever get.

I ask her about the wedding traditions here, and she tells me that the only real one is that the dress must be the centerpiece of the entire event. All I can think now isGreat, I was hoping for a simple white dress, but apparently I need to wear an extravagant one.Like a damn princess.

After lunch, I tell Benita that I need to go lie down for a while. I hear the heating pad and pain meds calling my name.. Lucas staidly escorts me back up to my room.

“Can I get you anything?” he asks as he opens the bedroom door for me.

---