Chapter 3 - THE HOUSE HER MOTHER LEFT BEHIND
Clara woke in Matteo's private medical suite.
A doctor stood beside the bed.
Dante waited near the door.
And Matteo Bellini sat in a chair beside the window.
She tried to sit up.
“Mr. Bellini.”
“Don't.”
His voice was quiet.
“You're safe.”
Clara looked around.
“Where's my notebook?”
Matteo held it up.
“Here.”
She exhaled.
“Did you stop the payment?”
“Yes.”
Her eyes filled.
“Thank God.”
Matteo leaned forward.
“Clara, who hurt you?”
She looked away.
He waited.
Then she whispered:
“My fiancé.”
Matteo's expression changed.
“Marcus Sterling?”
Clara nodded.
“And my stepmother.”
Silence.
Then she added:
“They're trying to steal my mother's house.”
Matteo stared at her.
May you like
The woman who had spent twenty-two months keeping his business organized had been fighting to keep a roof over her head.
And he'd never known.
