LITMIR.BIZ

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longer. Her friends were all starting to get married, but she was single with no hope of that changing as long as her every move was monitored. She just wanted a normal life—like her life had been before her mother’s murder.

      If only her mother were here, she could talk some sense into Annabelle’s overprotective father. She missed her mother so much. And the fact that her father rarely spoke of her mother only made the hole in Annabelle’s heart ache more.

      She clutched her mother’s journal close to her chest. Maybe she shouldn’t have been snooping through her mother’s things, but her father had left her no other choice. How else would she ever really get to know her mother?

      Annabelle slipped the journal into her oversized purse and rushed down the sweeping staircase of her father’s vast estate in Halencia. At the bottom of the steps her ever-vigilant bodyguard, Berto, waited for her. There was actually a whole team of them, all taking turns to protect Annabelle.

      Ever since her mother had died during a mugging, Annabelle had been watched, night and day. And since her mother’s murderer had never been caught, Annabelle had understood her father’s concerns at the time. But now, eleven years later, the protective detail assigned to her felt claustrophobic and unnecessary.

      She’d thought by moving to Mirraccino, her mother’s home country, that things would change, but with the king of Mirraccino being her uncle, she was still under armed guard. But Annabelle had a plan to change all of that. And she was just about to put that plan in motion.

      “Berto, I’m ready to go.”

      The man with short, dark hair and muscles that were obvious even with his suit jacket on, got to his feet. He was the quiet sort and could intimidate people with just a look. Annabelle was the exception.

      She’d known him since she was a teenager. He was a gentle giant unless provoked. She thought of him as an overprotective big brother. They moved to the door. Annabelle was anxious to get back to Mirraccino for a pivotal business meeting—

      “Not so fast,” the rumble of her father’s voice put a pause in her steps. The Duke of Halencia strode into the spacious foyer. His black dress shoes sounded as they struck the marble floor. “I didn’t know you were leaving so soon.” He arched a brow. “Any reason for your quick departure?”

      “Something came up.” Her unwavering gaze met her father’s.

      He tugged on the sleeves of his suit, adjusting them. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

      “It means I have responsibilities in Mirraccino. Not that you would understand.” Her voice rose with emotion as memories of last night’s date flashed in her mind.

      “Annabelle, I don’t understand where this hostility is coming from. It’s not like you.”

      “Maybe it’s because I’m twenty-four years old and you will not let me live a normal life.”

      “Of course I do—”

      “Then why do you refuse to remove my bodyguards? They’re ruining my chances of ever being happy. Momma’s been gone a long time. There is no threat. All of that died with her.”

      “You don’t know that.” Her father’s dark bushy brows drew together and his face aged almost instantly.

      Her patience was quickly reaching the breaking point. “You’re right, I don’t. But that’s nothing new. I’ve been asking you repeatedly over the years to tell me—to tell both myself and Luca why you’re worried about us—but you refuse.”

      Her father sighed. “I’ve told you, the police said it was a mugging gone wrong.”

      “Why would a mugger come after us?”

      “He wouldn’t.”

      “But?” He couldn’t just stop there.

      “But something never felt right.”

      At last some pieces of the puzzle were falling into place. “Because her jewelry and wallet were taken, the police wrote it off as a mugging, but you know something different, don’t you?”

      Her father’s lips pressed together as his dark brows gathered. “I don’t know any more than the police.”

      “But you suspect something. Don’t you?” When he didn’t respond, she refused to give up. This was too important. “Poppa, you owe me an explanation.”

      He sighed. “I found it strange that your mother phoned me from the palace to say something was not as it seemed, but she wouldn’t go into details on the phone. And two days later, she...she’s killed in a mugging.”

      “What wasn’t as it seemed?”

      “That’s it. I don’t know. It might have been nothing. That’s what the police said when I told them. All of the evidence said it was a mugging.”

      “But you never believed it?”

      He shook his head. “When the king didn’t know what your mother had been referring to, I hired a private investigator. He combed through your mother’s items and talked with the palace staff. He didn’t come up with anything that would have gotten her killed.”

      “Maybe the police were right.”

      Her father shook his head. “I don’t believe it.”

      “Even though you don’t have any evidence?”

      “It’s a feeling.” His face seemed to age right before her. “And I’m not taking any chances with you and your brother. You two are all I have left.”

      “I know you’re worried but you can’t continue to have us followed around and spied upon like we’re criminals. It’s so bad Luca never comes home anymore. And—” She thought of admitting that was why she still lived in Mirraccino, but the pain reflected in her father’s eyes stopped her.

      “And what? You just want to go about as though nothing happened? There’s a murderer still on the loose.”

      Annabelle had placated him most of her life because she felt sorry for him as he continued to grieve for her mother. However, living in Mirraccino for these past couple of years had given her a different perspective. If she didn’t stand up for herself, she would never gain her freedom. She would never be able to experience a lot of her dreams. She would forever live under her father’s thumb and that was not truly living.

      Many people were put off by her security detail. She ended up refraining from doing things just because it was easier than following security protocol and having people send her strange looks, not to mention the whispered comments. Most guys she might have a chance with quietly backed off after meeting Berto. The ones that persisted, she’d learned the hard way, were trouble, one way or the other. And so her dating life was sporadic at best.

      “I’m not backing down, Poppa. I’m twenty-four now. I deserve to have my own life—”

      “You have a life.”

      “No, I don’t. My every move is analyzed before I do it. And then it is reported back to you. That is not a life.”

      Her father sighed. “I’m sorry you feel that way, but I’m just doing what I must to protect you and your brother. I don’t hear him complaining.”

      “That’s because Luca doesn’t care what you or anyone says. He does exactly what he wants.”

      Her father ran a hand over his clean-shaven jaw. “I know. I know.”

      “Is that what you want me to do?”

      “No!” Her father’s raised voice reverberated off the walls.

      “Then maybe you need to back off. I’m not wild like Luca, but if that’s what you want—”

      “Don’t you dare. I have enough problems with your brother, but that’s going to come to an end. If he wants to inherit my title, he has

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