“You look like snow.”
I stared straight ahead before I had the courage to turn to him. “No, it didn’t go well…”
His eyes fell with disappointment.
“He said he wants to talk to you.”
He gave no reaction.
I kept staring at him.
“Right now?” he asked calmly.
I nodded. “I told him you were outside.”
He sighed quietly, his chest rising with the air that filled his lungs.
“I know this is unexpected. We can come back at a later time—”
“No. He challenged me—and I’m not going to decline.”
“I don’t think he’s challenging you—”
“He put me on the spot. That was intentional. Trust me, I know what he’s doing. It’s a test—to see how much of a coward I am.”
“You aren’t a coward…”
“Exactly.” He opened the door. “Which is why I’m going in there.”SeventeenHeathI was in jeans and a long-sleeved olive-green shirt. It was too casual to make a good impression, but it was all I had. I stepped inside, and Patricia immediately recognized me from the time Damien had marched me inside with my hands tied behind my back. She stilled on the spot, unsure if she should scream or run.
“Richard asked to see me.” I kept my distance, kept my voice low so she wouldn’t be scared.
She nodded to the large archway past the entryway. “He’s in there.” She probably wasn’t privy to family drama, but the help always knew the intimate details of the people they served. She probably already knew Catalina and I were together.
“Thanks.” I moved farther into the house, having been there before. But I’d been marched to the left, and now I was headed in a different direction. I passed through the archway and entered a large dining room, a table that could easily accommodate twenty people. Cathedral-style windows were on the wall, letting in the faint light from the overcast day.
Richard sat there, his hands together on the table, his eyes on me.
I moved farther into the room, holding his gaze with confidence and toning down my naturally intimidating persona. It didn’t feel right to try to shake his hand, to be polite when this wasn’t a normal meeting between two men on good terms. I dropped into the chair facing him, taking the spot my fiancée had previously occupied.
I hoped she was still my fiancée. I didn’t buy her that two-hundred-thousand euro diamond ring for nothing.
Patricia came into the room and cleared the plates, placing a cappuccino in front of me even though I didn’t take my coffee with sugar or cream.
Richard stared at me the entire time, not saying a word.
I held his gaze, listening to Patricia’s footsteps fade until she returned to the kitchen on the other side of the house.
I didn’t know what to say.
Catalina hadn’t shared details about their conversation, so I walked straight into the dark. I assumed he didn’t like me one bit, and somehow, I was supposed to change his opinion in a simple conversation. I had a tiny bit of hope, because he wouldn’t have asked me to otherwise.
When he spoke, he didn’t sound like an old man. He sounded confident, as if his youth had returned to his veins like muscle memory. “I don’t care that you attempted to have me executed. It was just business. I get it.”
That was the last thing I’d expected him to say.
“If Damien can drop his prejudice when he’s had to deal with you firsthand, then I don’t see why I can’t too.”
Maybe this wasn’t so bad after all.
“I believe men can change. I know I did.”
The coffee in front of me released steam that rose to the ceiling, smelling like fresh espresso beans.
“But I don’t like you for my daughter.”
It was a terrible blow. A bat was in his grip, and he smacked me hard with it, just as Damien did in the basement, spilling blood everywhere.
“I’m going to give you one chance to change that.”
Jesus, talk about pressure.
“Don’t blow it.”
“I don’t need more than one chance, sir.” I loved her and would do anything for her. That was all that mattered.
He didn’t react, but his silence showed that he approved of that response. “What kind of life can you give my daughter?”
“Whatever life she wants.” I sounded like a pussy, letting the woman tell me exactly what was about to happen, but that was how it was. I folded for her, took the knee for her, allowed her to take my power because she was the queen I wanted to serve.
“Be more specific.”
I didn’t see the necessity. “I’m not going to sugarcoat who I was. I was greedy, selfish, egotistical…nothing to be proud of. My life was filled with money, women, and booze. But then I met Catalina, and I think that very night I loved her. Everything changed. I changed. Now, I would do anything for her, make any sacrifice, if it made her smile.”