Chapter 2 - THE MAN BEHIND THE GATES
By morning, I had learned three things about Alessandro Mancini.
He owned several transportation and agricultural companies across Montana.
He had inherited a fortune from a family with roots in Sicily.
And people lowered their voices whenever they said his name.
The last part concerned me most.
A woman named Rosa brought breakfast to my room.
She was in her sixties, with silver hair and the brisk manner of someone who had spent decades refusing to be intimidated.
“Eat,” she ordered.
I looked at the tray.
Toast.
Scrambled eggs.
Fruit.
Tea.
“I don't have much appetite.”
“You're pregnant, injured, and stubborn. None of those are reasons to skip breakfast.”
Despite myself, I smiled.
She pulled back the curtains.
Snow glittered beneath a pale winter sun.
“Road crews are working on the highway,” she said. “The doctor expects you can be transported today.”
I exhaled.
“Thank God.”
Rosa studied me.
“Someone waiting for you in Billings?”
The question hurt more than it should have.
“No.”
She nodded as if she understood.
“Then we'll make sure you have somewhere safe to go after the hospital.”
I looked up.
“We?”
She smiled.
“Mr. Mancini doesn't leave people stranded.”
Two hours later, I sat in the back of a black SUV while Alessandro spoke quietly into his phone.
A driver guided us along the freshly cleared road.
The mountains rose beyond the trees.
I watched the landscape pass.
“Does everyone call you Mr. Mancini?” I asked.
He ended the call.
“Most people.”
“What do your friends call you?”
He looked at me.
“I don't have many friends.”
I smiled faintly.
“That sounds lonely.”
Something moved across his face.
Then disappeared.
“Sometimes.”
At the hospital, I underwent a full evaluation.
The medical team monitored my concussion, examined my injuries, and assessed the pregnancy.
The ultrasound showed a tiny heartbeat.
I stared at the screen.
The sound filled the room.
Fast.
Steady.
Alive.
Tears slid down my cheeks.
Alessandro stood near the doorway.
He looked away, giving me privacy.
But when I glanced toward him, I saw something unexpected.
His eyes were wet.
After the examination, the doctor explained that the pregnancy appeared viable, although no early assessment could guarantee what would happen later.
I would need follow-up care.
Rest.
And someone to check on me while I recovered.
I nodded.
But my mind had gone blank.
I had nowhere to live.
No family nearby.
And a boyfriend who had thrown me out.
Outside the hospital, Alessandro stopped beside the SUV.
“Where would you like to go?”
I stared at the pavement.
“I don't know.”
He waited.
I swallowed.
“My boyfriend told me to leave.”
His expression hardened.
“While you were pregnant?”
I nodded.
“Eight weeks.”
He looked away.
For a moment, I thought he might say something cruel about Connor.
Instead, he asked:
“Do you have friends or family you can stay with?”
“My mother died when I was nineteen. My father lives in Arizona, but we haven't spoken in years.”
He nodded.
“Would you like help finding a hotel?”
I hesitated.
“I don't have much money.”
Alessandro looked at me.
Then said something I didn't expect.
“You can stay at the estate while you recover. No obligation. No conditions.”
I stared.
“Why?”
May you like
He opened the car door.
“Because nobody should have to choose between sleeping in a car and going back to someone who hurt them.”
