Page 82 of Fortress of the Heart

“What is it then?”

“I just told you. I’m not ready.” I try to walk past him in my defensive stupor, but he stops me by grabbing my upper arm.

Sadly, I’d rather stay with a man who is my enemy than the devil himself; my own father.

“Marco, don’t.”

He downs the rest of his whisky and keeps his eyes firmly on me. “Don’t what? Five minutes ago, you couldn’t wait to get out of here. When I told you that you would be staying a few more days, I thought you were going to shoot bullets from your eyeballs. Now, you’re free to go, and you’re not ready?”

I roll my eyes. “Good to know your hearing is intact.”

He lets go of my arm but I can tell he’s confused by me.Good. Be as confused as you like, I don’t care. I’m not going back there.

I will never go back there.

“So we’re back to this, are we?”

“We’re not back to anything. I need to think …” I’ve had all week to think, we both know this. I’m stalling. But now the time has come to go, and I’m in panic mode.

My life flashesbefore my eyes and I don’t like it at all.

I just want to forget.

“What is it you’re afraid of that you’d rather be here with me than with your own family?”

“I’m not afraid of anything,” I say through gritted teeth. “And you know nothing about me.”

“Are you sure about that?”

I bite my lip, only, I can't look at him.

I continue walking away, back to my room.

I hope I can just shut the door and stay there forever and never come out to face any of these people. How did everything get so complicated?

“Katiya,” he calls after me. “Don’t walk away from me. We’re not done here.”

“We are done,” I call back over my shoulder. Little do I know he’s behind me, following me down the hall.

“I want to be alone.”

“You don’t want to hear what happened this afternoon?”

He stops in my doorway and leans there like the crazy sexy god he is.

I swallow hard at seeing his shirt slightly open at the neck where there’s a smattering of sexy chest hair and his tie hanging loosely around his collar.

Even though he’s standing away from me, his proximity is scorching.

I stand there momentarily stunned, because no, I don’t want to hear it. I want everyone to just leave me alone,except maybe him.

“You don’t get it to do you?” I say, trying my best to make him leave. Can’t he just get the hint that I’m not in the mood for talking? “I just want to be left alone.”

He takes another step toward me. “You don’t get the fact your uncle is coming for you tonight, so you had better be ready, Katiya. I’m not playing around.”

“So you’re throwing me out now.” I stand with my hands on my hips.

He looks confused. “I’m not throwing you out. I thought this was what you wanted?”

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