Page 50 of All Your Lies

“I thought I wouldn’t make it out of his house alive. He knocked me out from behind right after I rang the doorbell. I woke up in his basement, chained to a fucking wall. He waterboarded me within an inch of my life. I probably still have water in my lungs.”

“Don’t be so dramatic.” I smirk.

I knew Mr. Rossi wouldn’t take it easy on him, and the awareness that he didn’t gives me sick satisfaction. Alexa’s dad is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. He can be fucking unhinged for those he loves. Let’s just hope he doesn’t do the same to me because of tonight’s fuckup.

“He’s ready to speak with you. Good luck,” Marco says with a laugh as he leaves.

I sit across from Mr. Rossi in his home office. Floor-to-ceiling shelves with thousands of books and artifacts litter the area. It reminds me of something a history professor would have in college on a movie or television show.

He also has the temperament of an educator if you’re fortunate enough to stay on his good side. I’ve always respected him for the father he is, almost as much as I respect the boss he is.

His office doesn’t intimidate me or cause me anxiety, as my father’s office once did, but I’m still on edge.

There’s a tightness in my chest that’s hard to ignore. I loosen my tie and take a sip from my glass of red wine, hoping to ease some of it.

The solid oak doors creak open, and I gaze into the eyes of the reason for the tightening in my chest.

I haven’t spoken to Alexa since Halloween, six nights ago. Though I’ve tried multiple times.

Alexa stops dead in her tracks. Her eyes are wide, and her face pales slightly.

“Princess, come. Take a seat,” her father says as he waves to the unoccupied wingback chair next to mine.

She walks as if she’s going to her execution. Her eyes stay solely focused on her father, without even a passing glance in my direction. It fucking hurts, but it gives me the opportunity to stare at her. The black long-sleeved sheath dress hits mid-calf and hugs her curves in all the right places. It’s the most modest I’ve ever seen her, and I’d be lying if it didn’t make me a little hard imagining what she has on underneath.

As she goes to sit, she deliberately moves the chair farther away from mine, causing a sharp pang in my chest.

“Why did you want me here?” Alexa asks her father.

“Gage came to propose an alliance between the two families.”

“What type of alliance?” she asks with wide eyes.

“An arranged marriage.”

Dead fucking silence fills the room. Her father glances over at me before looking back at her.

“I realize this must come as a shock to you. Seeing Gage for the first time after so long.”

She nods. “You could say that.”

“What do you think?” he asks her.

“About what?”

Ouch.

“The arranged marriage.”

“Do you think it would be best?” Alexa asks him in a small voice.

“I think it would benefit you both,” he says with a nod.

My breath hitches in my throat and a knot forms in my stomach as I wait for what feels like an eternity for her reply.

“Very well. If you believe it will be best. I’ll do it,” she says before rising and walking out without another word or glance my way.

eighteen