Chapter 3 - Shadows in the Hallway
“Dismissed,” Luca said to the empty room, though no one else was there.
He sat in silence for a moment, staring at the signed contract. Then, with a grunt of intense physical effort, he reached down to adjust the heavy wool blanket over his legs, his fingers struggling with the stiff fabric.
Mara watched him for three seconds before she stepped forward.
“Let me,” she said, kneeling beside the wheelchair before he could protest.
Luca froze, his hand hovering over the blanket. “I didn't ask for your help.”
“I know,” Mara replied calmly, her fingers deftly straightening the wool and smoothing it neatly over his knees. “And I’m not offering it out of pity. I’m offering it because if we’re going to play this game for the next twelve months, I refuse to watch you struggle just to prove a point to an empty room.”
She stood up, looking down at him.
Luca stared up at her, his jaw tight. A slow, faint smirk touched the corner of his lips—a rare, genuine expression that transformed his rugged face.
“You have a dangerous mouth, Mara,” Luca murmured.
“You haven't heard anything yet,” she retorted. “Where is my room?”
“Down the East Wing. Third door on the left,” Luca said, wheeling himself toward the massive stone fireplace at the far end of the library. “My housekeeper, Mrs. Gable, will show you where your things are. They were transferred from your apartment an hour ago.”
“You packed my things before I even signed?” Mara raised an eyebrow.
May you like
“I don’t leave logistics to chance,” Luca replied smoothly. He pressed a button on the armrest of his chair, activating the motorized drive as he turned toward the private elevator hidden behind the mahogany bookshelves. “Dinner is at eight. Don’t be late.”
The elevator doors slid open, swallowing him into the dark shaft, leaving Mara standing alone in the grand library.
