Chapter 4 - THE MAN WHO CAME TO CLAIM ME
Connor arrived at the estate on a Thursday afternoon.
I was sitting in the greenhouse with Rosa when one of the guards entered.
“Miss Madison?”
I looked up.
“Yes?”
“There's a man at the gate asking for you.”
My stomach tightened.
“Who?”
“Connor Blake.”
The teacup slipped in my hand.
Rosa caught it before it fell.
“Do you want to see him?” she asked.
I shook my head.
“No.”
She nodded.
“Then you don't have to.”
Alessandro was informed.
He came to the greenhouse ten minutes later.
“Madison.”
I looked up.
“I'm sorry.”
He frowned.
“For what?”
“For bringing trouble to your house.”
He crouched beside my chair.
“You didn't bring him here.”
I swallowed.
“He's angry.”
“Then he can be angry somewhere else.”
Connor refused to leave immediately.
He shouted at the gate.
Claimed I was being held against my will.
Demanded to speak to Alessandro.
The guards remained calm.
They told him I had declined contact.
Eventually, local law enforcement was contacted to help resolve the disturbance.
Connor left before officers arrived.
But not before sending another message.
You think that rich guy is going to raise my kid? You're making a mistake.
I stared at the words.
My hands shook.
That evening, Alessandro found me in the library.
I was sitting beside the fireplace.
He stopped in the doorway.
“May I come in?”
I nodded.
He sat across from me.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then he said:
“Do you want to tell me what happened?”
I took a breath.
And told him everything.
The message from Jess.
The breakfast.
Connor's accusation.
The apartment.
The storm.
The crash.
When I finished, Alessandro was staring at the fire.
His jaw was tight.
I waited for him to say Connor was a monster.
Instead, he asked:
“What do you want now?”
The question startled me.
I looked down.
“I don't know.”
He nodded.
“Then you don't have to decide tonight.”
I stared.
He continued.
“You can take time to recover. Find work. Make a plan.”
Tears filled my eyes.
“You make it sound simple.”
He smiled faintly.
“It won't be.”
May you like
Then he added:
“But it can be yours.”
