Chapter 4 - THE OFFER HE WAS NEVER SUPPOSED TO MAKE
Lucas DeLuca had been raised to view marriage as a transaction.
His grandfather married the daughter of a shipping magnate.
His father married into a family that owned half the commercial docks along Chicago's waterfront.
His cousins married women whose surnames opened doors to banks, construction permits, and political influence.
Nobody called those unions purchases.
They called them alliances.
Lucas called them what they were.
Deals.
And he had refused every one proposed to him.
At thirty-nine, he remained unmarried.
The tabloids called him emotionally unavailable.
His mother called him stubborn.
His uncle Victor called him irresponsible.
Lucas preferred the word independent.
But after meeting Grace Mercer, he realized independence could take many forms.
Some people refused marriage openly.
Others invented emotionally unstable cats.
At the restaurant, Grace stared at him.
“My father offered you my hand?”
Lucas nodded.
“Yes.”
“And you didn't tell me?”
“I had never met you.”
She considered that.
“Fair.”
He almost smiled.
Then she leaned forward.
“What exactly did he say?”
Lucas looked down.
“He suggested that an alliance between the Mercer and DeLuca families would strengthen both groups' hospitality investments.”
“Meaning?”
“He wanted my capital and my influence.”
“And my role?”
Lucas hesitated.
Grace's expression hardened.
“Tell me.”
“He said you were agreeable. Uninterested in business. Easily guided.”
Her face changed.
For a moment, Lucas wished he hadn't repeated it.
Then she laughed.
A short, bitter sound.
“Easily guided.”
He watched her.
She shook her head.
“I have spent three years making myself look ridiculous because men keep trying to arrange my future without asking.”
Lucas said nothing.
Grace continued.
“And my father apparently decided that made me suitable collateral.”
She looked toward the window.
For a moment, he saw the hurt beneath her anger.
It bothered him more than he'd expected.
“Grace.”
She looked back.
“Your father doesn't speak for you.”
Her expression softened.
Then she narrowed her eyes.
“Don't say things like that.”
Lucas blinked.
“Like what?”
“Things that make you sound reasonable. It complicates my opinion of you.”
He laughed.
“Noted.”
She folded her arms.
“So why did you refuse?”
He considered the question.
“Because I already had concerns about the finances. And because I wasn't interested in marrying someone who hadn't agreed to meet me.”
Grace studied him.
Then smiled faintly.
“Very modern for a mafia boss.”
“I'm occasionally surprising.”
“Don't get used to it.”
He laughed again.
Across the restaurant, a waiter approached with the check.
Lucas reached for it.
Grace picked it up first.
His eyebrows rose.
She examined the total and placed her credit card inside.
“Grace.”
“Yes?”
“I invited you.”
“And I agreed to a business meeting.”
He smiled.
“Point taken.”
She stood.
“Send any relevant public records to Natalie Brooks, my attorney. She'll determine what we can examine.”
Lucas rose.
“Of course.”
They walked toward the exit.
Before leaving, Grace turned.
“One more question.”
“Go ahead.”
“Did you tell my father you wouldn't marry me?”
“Yes.”
“What did he say?”
Lucas's expression darkened.
“He said you wouldn't object if he explained it properly.”
Grace closed her eyes.
Of course.
Her father still believed she was a child waiting to be instructed.
She opened her eyes.
“Thank you for telling me.”
Lucas nodded.
Then said something unexpected.
“Grace, I think Victor is using your father's desperation.”
She looked at him.
“What makes you say that?”
“Because Victor has been trying to gain control of our hotel division for two years.”
“And?”
“And the Blackwater Grand would give him leverage over properties I refuse to sell.”
Grace stared.
“You think this is about your family too.”
“Yes.”
She took a breath.
“Then we have a problem.”
Lucas smiled faintly.
“We do.”
She looked him up and down.
“Don't mistake that for an alliance.”
He laughed.
“Wouldn't dream of it.”
Grace turned to leave.
Then stopped.
“And Lucas?”
“Yes?”
“If you tell anyone about Kevin, I'll deny everything.”
His smile widened.
“Kevin's secrets are safe with me.”
She walked away.
Lucas watched her disappear through the hotel doors.
For the first time in years, he found himself looking forward to a conversation that wasn't about power.
May you like
And for the first time in his life, a woman had managed to make him laugh while refusing every advantage his name could offer.
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