Chapter 118

[MIA]

“No!” The words burst from my mouth before I could stop them. I blinked, unsure if I’d even heard the insane man correctly. He’d marry me. “You’ll marry me?” I scoffed. “No!”

His eyes twitched. “The only way I cannot marry Hannah is if I’m already married to someone else.”

“So you want me to be your fake wife?!”

“No. What the hell is a fake wife?” He had the audacity to sound offended by my mention of a fake marriage. “I am going to marry you. For real.” As if I was the one who casually suggested it.

“And I get no say in it?!” I demanded.

“Of course you get a say.” His stance softened considerably. “Which designer should design your wedding dress? Elie Saab? Vera Wang?”

My lips opened and closed before I angrily hissed, “That’s all the opinion I get?”

“You can decide the color scheme of the flowers,” he offered—oh-so-generously. “And the witnesses.”

I stared at the insufferable man. “Alex, we’ve been on one date. One. I am not marrying you.”

“That is one thing you’re not going to have an opinion on.”

“Good luck forcing my corpse down the aisle, because there’s no way I’m going to walk down it alive.”

His eyes darkened. “We’ll see about that.”

“We will see about that,” I huffed. “I told you everything you wanted to know since the day I met you. Now, I’m going to walk through those doors and go home. If you want to stop me, shoot me.”

Alex rolled his eyes. He rolled his eyes.

“No need for dramatics.”

I glared at him, a fire burning in me that wouldn't be extinguished anytime soon. I took a step to leave, as promised, but before I could take a second step, his hand wrapped around my arm, pulling me back.

“Don’t make me take drastic measures, Mia,” he warned.

“Like? I don’t know? Suggesting you’ll marry me without my consent?”

“There is no suggestion. It is happening.”

“In your dreams.”

Chapter 118

“You are going to walk down that aisle and say those vows, and it’s going to happen sooner than you think. Whether you do it with a smile or screaming and crying is your choice.”

“Alex, you don’t understand!” I shouted, frustrated, tears welling up. “I never had a family. I didn’t have parents or anyone. I dreamt of this all my life—the perfect proposal, the perfect wedding, and a perfect marriage. A perfect family. I didn’t have that growing up, and you cannot take that away from me.” My voice broke. "I dreamt of having the perfect boyfriend, the perfect ring, and the perfect… everything."

“Who said I’m taking anything away from you?” He retorted, his gaze and tone softening again. “You can still have whatever you want. Dictate your dream wedding, and I’ll make it happen. Describe your dream ring, and I’ll search the world for it. Name what you want, and it will be yours.”

“A family,” I whispered, tears spilling out. “I want a family. Kids.”

He stared at me. A moment passed. Another. “If children are what you want, we will have them.”

My lips parted in surprise. “In this world?!” I ridiculed. “You want to bring children into your world? You were attacked in your own house, Alex! We couldn’t step out for a date without a hundred of your men armed with enough weaponry to wage a war. You want to bring children into this world?”

“I want whatever would make you happy. If it’s children, then yes.”

I inhaled and licked my lips before shaking my head. He just didn’t understand. “Your life is dangerous and exhausting. What would make me happy is not being a part of this world.”

“You not being a part of my life would make you happy?”

I stared at him, not knowing the correct answer. I’d known Alex for over a month, bordering on a month and a half, but he’d inscribed himself in the deepest parts of me, made me feel things no one ever had. Would I be happy removing myself from his life? Probably not. “It’s your world that I have an issue with,” I carefully worded.

“Then you’ll get over it,” he nonchalantly replied. My jaw dropped. “I will protect you until you’re comfortable with the life I lead.”

“And what about love, Alex?” I whispered.

“What about it?”

“Will you ever love me?”

He didn’t reply. A heartbeat passed. Then another. A part of me hoped he would agree, just as he had when I mentioned children. But no reply came; the silence was heavy.

I wanted to scoff, but I found myself captivated by his scrutinizing gaze.

“We’ll get married soon,” he replied instead.

“No!”

“Mia.”

“No!” I yelled. “Let me go, Alex. I want to go home! Let. Me. Go!”

“You are home.”

Chapter 118

“This cage isn’t my home!” I cried, trying to wiggle free. “I want to go! Let me go, Alex!”

He sighed; my efforts were futile against his strong grip. “What if I let you go, and you try to walk away?”

“I will walk away,” I hissed. “There’s no ‘try’ about it. Unless you can ask one of your guards to—”

Alex silenced me with his palm over my mouth, taking an exasperated breath. My muffled voice still escaped, and he looked like he wanted to roll his eyes again.

“Take her to her room, Lana,” Alex told my keeper—one I’d forgotten was listening. “Lock her inside, and you stay with her.”

My eyes widened. “You cannot do this!” I said the moment he released me and Lana grabbed me. “Alex! Alex!”

I kept shouting his name and cursing—profanities he ignored, rubbing his forehead and looking away as if carrying the weight of the world.

I tried to wriggle free of Lana’s hold, but she was surprisingly strong as she dragged me to my room and did exactly as her boss instructed. She locked me in.