He closed the door behind him, leaving me staring at the sundress with tears on my cheeks. With a last silent sob, I went to the bathroom to blow my nose.
It would take some creative makeup for them to cover up the redness around my nose, but I knew they would do it.
If I had to get married, I wouldn't do it looking like a charity case.
Even if it was true.
???
I got dressed, but not with the intention of going with Lino.
No matter what he threatened, I couldn't handle the thought of marrying another man who didn't love me. Of suffering through a lifetime in a marriage where I loved my husband more than he would ever love me.
I crept into the hallway as quietly as I could, making my way down the stairs to get to the living room. If I could get to my phone, I could call Yavin to come get me. He may not have been as powerful as Lino, but he would at least help me.
As soon as I made it to the bottom of the stairs, I hurried to the living room. My feet were still bare but for socks, more helpful in sneaking around the house. I let out a sigh of relief when I made it to the room undetected but whirled around in confusion when my phone wasn't sitting on the table like it should have been.
"Looking for this?" Lino asked and I whirled around to stare at him in the doorway to the hall. He'd already dressed in his suit and the dress was nowhere to be found, but my purple phone was in his hand for a moment before he tucked it into his pants pocket.
"That's the second time I've caught you with my phone," I accused. "If it wasn't password protected, I'd wonder if you'd been snooping through it."
The smirk that overtook his face lacked any of the warmth I was used to seeing on him, a sardonic look that held no amusement at my attempts to derail him from the idea of a wedding.
There wouldn't be a wedding.
"My birthday wasn't the most creative of pass codes, Little Dove." His face twitched in arrogance, and I fought back the flush of shame that heated my cheeks. "Do you know how I knew it would be yours?"
I shook my head, swallowing as he stepped toward me slowly.
"Because yours is mine." He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, some of his tense features softening the moment he touched me. "Go get your shoes."
"No. I'm not going anywhere with you." I swatted his hand away, and the way his eyes went molten again made me swallow with anxiety. Something changed in that moment, like the flip of a switch back to the side of him that I never had to deal with. With a growl, he leaned forward and hefted me up onto his shoulder. I shrieked, punching him in his overly toned ass. "Put me down you overgrown baboon!" I screamed as he turned and strode for the front door. "Lino!"
"Quiet, Samara. It didn't have to be this way, but you're too fucking stubborn to just listen to me. So we'll do it the hard way."
"You asshole!" Cold air hit my thighs, making my skin pebble with goosebumps the moment he flung the door open and stepped outside. I jostled on his shoulder as he hurried down the stairs to where the car waited at the top of the driveway. I lifted to glance over his shoulder at where we went, finding a familiar figure jumping out of the car. He grabbed the rear door handle, and for once Lino didn't seem to protest that someone else opened a door for me. "Georgio, don't you dare!"
"Sorry, Miss Mahoney," he murmured, his face flushing in the face of my fury.
Lino tossed me off his shoulder, catching me into his arms somehow and hauling me into the car before I could even find a way to dislodge from his grip. I immediately went for the other door, tugging at it furiously when it wouldn't open. They'd enabled the damn child locks.
"Lino, so help me God, let me out of this car right now!" I demanded as he climbed in next to me, taking a seat and straightening his tie while I raged at him. "This isn't funny."
"Do I look like I'm fucking joking?" he asked, and the car jolted into motion as Georgio pulled out of the driveway. It was a short distance to Matteo's house, and wouldn't leave me with much time to convince him just how bad an idea this was. But logic had evaded me, and I felt like nothing more than a cornered animal. I flinched away when he tried to reach for me, my body coiled tight to fight him off. "Dammit, Samara! This is for your own good."
"There are better ways. This isn't right," I argued, and he reached out and wrapped his hands around me. Tugging me into his lap, he held me close while I squirmed.
"Shh. There's nothing more right than this, Little Dove," he softened, and I collapsed into him with a whimper. "It's always been you and me. It will always be you and me, Samara. You have to let me take care of you."
It felt like all the fight disappeared with those words, like they struck something inside me. It had always been the two of us, which was why it hurt so much that he would risk what we had for something so unnecessary.
His jacket was wet from my tears by the time we got to Matteo's house.
He was nice enough to pretend he didn't notice.
???
When we finally pulled inside the front gates, Lino set me on the seat and stood from the car. I didn't flinch when he reached in to grab me. Everything in my body felt melancholic like it was totally separated from the racing thoughts in my head. Georgio followed behind us, grabbing the dress out of the passenger seat.