Page 47 of Irresistibly Wild

“She probably grabbed that thing from her collection or something,” she said. “None of her boyfriends have ever been worthy of marriage. Trust me.”

“Not even her current one?” I pressed.

“Especially him, since he doesn’t exist.” She laughed. “Oh, great. Ten more of your fangirls are here, so I’ll have to call you later. Want me to tell them you said hello?”

“Please do,” I said. “Bye, Crown.”

She ended the call, and I leaned back in my chair. Before I could contemplate why Tatiana lied to me, a loud “Attempted exit! Attempted exit!” alarm reverberated through my condo.

What the hell?

I stepped out of the room and walked down the hallway, stopping when I saw Madeline tugging on the door handle. I watched as she pushed and pulled to no avail, clearly not understanding what I meant when I said she wasn’t allowed to leave.

“Going somewhere, Miss Dawson?” I asked.

“No, I’m just hungry. I need to grab something to eat.”

“I have a personal chef on call.” I crossed my arms. “I told you that two hours ago.”

“I don’t want to bother him.” She looked nervous. “Besides, I’m not sure if it’s fair to ask someone to make sushi on such short notice.”

“He makes that every week for me.” I stepped closer. “You can let go of the handle now.”

She gripped it tighter. “How long do you plan to keep me here?”

“Until you come up with a solution for the problem you’ve caused.”

“Oh, right. Well, I havetonsof solutions!”

“Good to know.” I crossed my arms. “Let’s hear them.”

“I think I’d be able to present them better after taking a long shower at home and changing into something more comfortable.”

“Stop fucking with me.” I pulled my cell phone from my pocket and called my housekeeper.

“Yes, Mr. Carter?” she answered.

“Can you make sure there are fresh towels and sheets in the east wing? My new publicist may need to stay a few days.”

“Right away, sir.”

“Thank you.” I ended the call and dialed my contact at Dolce & Gabbana next, requesting her to stop by and size Madeline for a week’s worth of clothes.

“What else do you need?” I asked her. “I assure you, it can all be handled here.”

“Some stuff can’t be, though.” She tugged on the door again as if it would magically give way.

“I’m waiting,” I said.

“I am, too.” Ralph appeared. “I mean, I’m fine staying in the north wing as a guest forever, but we need a concrete plan to work with ASAP.”

“Fine.” Madeline finally let go. “We have three options. One, we can…” she mumbled the rest of her words.

“I didn’t catch any of that,” Ralph said. “Can you repeat it?”

“Two—” She ignored him, then she mumbled once more. “And three, we can um…”

“Can you speak English, please?”

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