Virgin Princess's Marriage Debt

‘If you go now, you’ll never be welcome back here.’

Brian’s banishment of Alessandro had terr

ified her at the time.

‘Don’t mention him again.’

Brian had whirled on her when she’d fearfully asked where Alessandro had gone. She’d been too young to understand everything, but had known that in no way had it all been Alessandro’s fault. In any case, Alessandro’s ideas for his father’s company couldn’t have been that bad, given he’d gone on to build his own business with such success.

He’d always been determined and strong. But from the look in his eyes now he was also unforgiving.

Katie cleared her throat and forced herself to speak anyway. ‘I have a proposition for you.’

One jet-black eyebrow arched. ‘How intriguing.’

His tone couldn’t have sounded less intrigued or any more dismissive.

Irritation stiffened her. She was too desperate to cope with casual dismissal. ‘I work at White Oaks,’ she carried on. ‘I’ve developed some sauces made from our produce. They sell very well.’

She paused, because so far he was bored-looking. Her desperation swiftly blew up to all-out pain.

‘Cut to the chase, Katie,’ he drawled. ‘What do you want from me?’

She was so thrown by the reality of Alessandro in the flesh, so intimidated by that look in his eyes, that she forgot the little speech she’d carefully prepared to try to convince him. It just tumbled out with no further preamble.

‘I want you to marry me.’

His eyes widened, the black heart of his pupils all but swallowed the fiery brilliant blue. The rest of him didn’t move. He didn’t even seem to be breathing.

‘Not for real of course,’ she hastened to add awkwardly. ‘In name only. And not for long.’

‘You want me to marry you?’ he repeated slowly. ‘That was not what I expected you to say.’

Katie tensed, unable to read his expression, but then he threw back his unfairly handsome head and laughed. It seemed he’d not heard anything as entertaining in eons. And it was utterly insulting.

Scalding emotion curdled the raw acid in Katie’s stomach. All her life she’d strived to meet everyone else’s requests and demands as she’d desperately tried to fit in and stay safe. But in this instance she was sick of staying silent and being good. Because almost no one ever asked what she wanted.

Fury filled her, fuelled by total humiliation. ‘I’m so glad I could give you a joke for the day,’ she spat sarcastically. ‘Forget I ever said anything.’

‘I’m unlikely to ever forget that.’

He strolled around his desk with deceptively casual strides, swiftly moving to where she stood, only three feet into his office.

‘What are you doing?’ Her voice veered up in an embarrassing squawk as he stepped deep into her personal space.

He didn’t reply. Instead he surveyed her dispassionately, rather as if she was a curiosity in a natural history museum. Then he leaned closer still.

‘Are you sniffing me?’ Outraged, she flinched away from him.

‘Yes. Have you been drinking?’ He reached out and grasped her chin.

Katie stilled, attempting to fix him with a furious gaze.

Unconcerned, he turned her face to one side then the other, intently studying her features. ‘On drugs?’

‘What? No.’ She jerked free of his hold. ‘Look, I’m perfectly sane.’ The truth slipped out, and so did all the hurt and hopelessness. ‘I’m just in trouble, and you’re the only person I could think of who might be able to help me. Obviously you can’t, so I’ll leave now.’

She turned sharply as emotions whacked her with a one-two punch. She’d never been as embarrassed or as violently angry. She suddenly spun back, slamming her fury into his face.