Page 23 of Nico

“You are not stupid, Bianca,” I drawled. “Being a daughter to Benito’s mistress makes you a target and you are wide open now. Vulnerable without any means to protect yourself.”

Resentment flashed on her beautiful face and those dark eyes.

“Right, you are going to protect my family,” she grunted, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “And if I don’t obey you during the marriage, you’ll destroy my family. Kind of a weird protection. I think I’m okay without it.”

Fuck, her defiance made me hard for her. To break her defiance and make her submit. I couldn’t wait to bury myself into this woman.

“You will have to be okay with it,” I told her, my voice portraying none of my thoughts. I had to be careful; otherwise, I might lose my control and drag her into the bedroom now. I had never wanted a woman as strongly as I did this one. “My men can kill you and dump your body where it will never be found.” Her eyes widened at my threat. “Or I can force you. Trust me, there are priests that will marry us whether you are dragged down the aisle or walk down it willingly.”

“You are insane,” she hissed, pressing her left hand against her chest as if she was worried her heart would give out. Her right hand still held on to the knife.

“Maybe,” I told her with a nod. “But those are my terms. Marriage or-”

I left the unspoken meaning lingering in the air. She already thought I was here to kill her, so I’d let her come to her own conclusions.

“Is that the only way?” she retorted dryly. “I preferred the escort option better. Is that still on the table?”

There was a hint of panic in her eyes, but she worked hard to hide it.

“No.” I’d give it to Bianca Carter. She had guts, speaking to me like we were equals. Maybe it was her strength that captured me, not her vulnerability. She was a mixture of both, and I couldn’t help but admire her.

I watched her earlier as she kissed her daughters and in-laws before they departed, her tenderness and love evident. The fact that she had daughters meant she needed my protection even more. Clearly, she didn’t see it my way.

“Why would you want to get married?” she questioned me, sincerity in her voice. “And why me?”

“I’m in my forties; it is time for me to get married and ensure an heir.”

A crimson blush crept up her neck and into her cheeks, and I had to admit she looked beautiful. “Try adoption,” she retorted dryly.

I didn’t bother answering.

“Don’t you have any other candidates?”

“I’m afraid you are the only woman that owes me three million dollars,” I purred. She’d settle into her new reality as my wife, eventually. If I had it my way, we’d go to the Justice of the Peace now and get married, but I wanted to do it properly. Leonardo would ensure it was all prepared quietly so there were no interruptions by her mother’s plus one.

She gulped. “But surely, there are other willing women that would be more than happy to marry you and give you… umm, heirs.”

“Maybe, but I have my mind set on you.” The expression in her eyes was that of desperation. It would be comical if it was anyone else’s situation but mine. “What is it going to be?”

I watched her throat move as she swallowed, her chest raising and falling with her heavy breathing.

“So, you either kill me or I marry you,” she retorted. “Really, both options are horrible. Marriage would just be a slower death. And heirs… there is no way I am having your kids.”

I chuckled at her statement. “Would you rather have a quicker death?” Her eyes widened, watching me as if trying to figure out whether I was joking or not. “Think of it as a contract,” I told her. She needed some coercing. “A marriage contract. We’ll set the terms, and when the terms are met, you are free to go. We can delay the heirs.”For now. Maybe.

She eyed me suspiciously. “Just like that? You leave me to go and no heirs.”

“Yes, just like that,” I assured her.I never said no heirs, I thought to myself.

“My kids and me?” She was suspicious, not that I could blame her. “We can just leave.”

“Yes.” I’d never let her leave.

“How long would we have to be married for?” she rasped. It took her long enough. She was considering my offer, weighing her options. She didn’t have many. Actually, she had none. Whether she liked it or not, she would marry me.

“At least two years.” Her eyes bulged out of her head. “And an heir.”

“That long? I thought you said we can delay an heir,” she whispered. I nodded. The devil is in the details. I’d have to teach my soon-to-be wife that. “Can we make it a year?”