Total pages in book: 13
Estimated words: 12395 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 62(@200wpm)___ 50(@250wpm)___ 41(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 12395 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 62(@200wpm)___ 50(@250wpm)___ 41(@300wpm)
As if reading my mind, he tells me, “I know you rode horses at home. We also have stables here, along with a pool and home gym you’re of course free to use anytime you want, angel.”
“Thank you.”
“Over the coming weeks you’ll explore the house,” he goes on. “I hope you like everything you find. And if there’s anything I can do for you, never hesitate to tell me. You know I love to spoil you.”
“I do,” I smile shyly. “You have more presents for me, I’m sure.”
“Plenty,” he laughs. “But eat first, then you’ll open them and I’ll show you around the Casa.”
I nod. So many questions race through my mind as I eat. Did my mother ever live here? Did she like the place? Why did she not get along with Xavier?
The food is so distractingly good I forget all about my questions. I eat my fill of the delicacies laid out for me and moan at the amazing taste of it all.
“I’m glad you like it so much,” Xavier tells me. “I don’t like picky women.”
“No one could be picky around here,” I reply. “Everything tastes amazing.”
I notice Xavier doesn’t eat as much, his eyes quietly following me around as I load up my plate again. Once I’m finally full, he signals for the servants to clear up the table.
“Let’s go take a tour of the house,” he suggests, and I nod eagerly, hooking my arm through his as he leads me through the dining room’s double doors into the backyard.
Backyard is an insult to the beautiful grounds behind the house, though.
There’s an infinity pool that overlooks the cliffs and the sand beach beneath the house. The stables are in the far off distance but there’s also a beautiful flower garden on the property.
“The pool is a recent addition,” Xavier tells me. “Everything else has been in the family for a long time.”
“How long have you lived here?”
“Since I was seven.”
“You were adopted, right?”
“Yes, Fernando Gunn adopted me when Heath’s father was eight years old.”
“Did you get along with him?”
“I did. He never treated me any differently than Heath’s father.”
“What about my grandfather? What was he like?”
“Pedro... he was nothing like me. But somehow we got along, anyway. We were close. I cared about him very much.”
“I’m sad I never got to meet him and my grandmother,” I mutter. “And nobody on Mom’s side either.”
“That’s the cartel world,” Xavier shrugs. “It’s a dangerous world.”
“You say that like you don’t care about anybody,” I say.
“You learn not to harbor deep emotions in this lifestyle,” Xavier goes on. “It only bites you in the ass when you lose people.”
“What about me?”
He grins at me, picking a rose from a nearby bush and tucking it into my hair. “What about you, angel?”
“You felt nothing for me either?”
The question sits heavily between us, and I can tell Xavier is avoiding answering it. But I’m so desperate for his attention I can’t even wait for him to answer in his own time. Instead, I throw myself around him to make sense of everything I found out today. Maybe if I kiss him, I will understand. And maybe, if he kisses me back, there’s still some hope for us.
My arms encircle Xavier’s neck, and I press my lips to his urgently. I kiss him with every ounce of desperation I’ve hidden from him all these years, urging him to give me back his love. My hands find his face and I hold him close, standing on my tiptoes so I can reach him.
But Xavier doesn’t respond.
Instead, he grabs me by the waist and gently pushes me back.
“You can’t do that, angel,” he mutters, his gaze burning with silent fire as he glares at me from just a few feet away.
“Why not?” I demand. “Aren’t we going to be married in a year, anyway?”
“Tallulah, you’re seventeen.”
“You don’t need to remind me.”
“I will not touch you until you’re eighteen.”
“You don’t have to touch me, just kiss me,” I plead.
“No, Tallulah. Not until your next birthday.”
“But it’s my birthday today! I want this.”
“I can’t help you.”
I purse my lips at him, saying, “I will not wait a full year before I get to kiss you again.”
“You’ll have to.”
“No!” I stomp my foot against the ground, my gaze finding his and demanding his attention. “I don’t agree. I’ll be miserable. We have to make a deal.”
He groans, rubbing his temples. “What is it with your family and these deals? Fine, Tallulah. What kind of deal would you like?”
“Every week, we spend one day together like we’re a couple. And you’ll let me kiss you.”
“No fucking way,” he laughs at me.
“Please,” I whine. “One day every month? That’s only twelve until my birthday.”
I can tell he’s hesitating now. He wants this, wants me. But he’s not giving in just yet.