Chapter 4

THE COUNTDOWN TO ENGAGEMENT

Twice a day. Just two meager days till my presence formally runs down the toilet. Like a gloomy cloud hovering over me, the engagement party loomed large and I couldn't get rid of the sense of approaching disaster. Who, at seventeen, has an engagement party? For loud screaming out, this was not the 1800s.

Sitting on my bed, I watched the pale pink frock hanging on my closet door. Mom had picked it out naturally. Heaven forbid I show up for my own engagement party sporting something I truly like. I moaned and flopped back onto my cushions. Perhaps if I desired really hard, this would all simply vanish.

"kylie! Kylie! Join me at my pity party." The sound of small feet stomping down the hall burst through. My door opened to show my younger brother, Kael, his dark hair standing in every direction and his eyes glittering with mischief.

"I want to play!" he declared, throwing himself into my bed with the elegance of a young elephant.

I started to grin and ruffle his hair. "I'm sorry, squirt. Mom wants the party perfect. Not sure we should mess it up?"

Kael's face wrinkled in a pout that fit any puppy and would be embarrassing. But that's dull, he groaned. "Why must you have a stupid party anyway?"

I tried to keep my speech light but swallowed hard. "Kael, it's just something grownups do occasionally. Not much of a deal here."

He turned his head to watch me with that shockingly insightful look that young children seem to possess. "Are you crying again?" he said suddenly. "Rosy has said it since Lysander bought you."

I thought of myself as having been gut-pounded. Let the housekeepers share stories close to a six-year-old's hearing range. "No, Kael." I forced a smile and responded. "He did not buy me. That is not the way it works."

"Might as well have," Ava said in a dry voice from the doorway. Father essentially turned you over.

I gave her a warning glance. "Ava, keep it down," I hissed. "What if Father heard?"

Rolling her eyes, she entered the room, closing the door behind her. "Please. He's too busy kissing up to the Vincenzos to give any thought to what we're saying."

I sighed and dragged Kael across my lap. "Ava, it's not quite that straightforward. You are aware of."

She caught herself, staring at Kael, "Yeah, yeah, family alliances and all that bull, all that nonsense still does not make it right."

"Right or not, it's happening," I muttered, the weight of those words falling over me like a lead blanket. "In two days, I'll be engaged to Lysander Vincenzo and that's that."

Kael wriggled in my lap, obviously bored with the grown-up lecture. Looking up at me with those great brown eyes, he requested, "Can we play hide and seek?"

I stopped, staring at the mountain of party preparation still ahead. Ava grinned and scooped Kael up, sensing my delay.

She said, already halfway out the door, "The last one in the garden is a rotten egg!"

"Hello, no fair!" I laughed and scrambled after them.

We ran across the house, avoiding maids and turning away the disgusted eyes of the party organizers. For a little while, liberated from the weight of planned marriages and family expectations, I felt like a young child again.

My heart jumped into my throat as we tore into the garden, and I skidded to a halt. Standing next to the rosebushes, there was a man I had only seen in photos. Tall, black, and just frightening as heck.

Lysander Vincento!

"Ava," I said quickly, reaching for her arm. "That's Lysander Vincenzo!"

Her eyes grew wide. She corrected, looking at Kael, "Holy sh — shiitake mushrooms. What's he doing here?"

Kael broke free from Ava's hold and marched straight up to Lysander before I could reply. Oh, god, no.

"You can't take Kylie!" He yelled, his small face set in intense will. She's not yours!

I sensed all the blood leaving my face. Frozen in place, Father is in great trouble if he finds us running around.

Lysander surprised me by kneeling at Kael's level, his face blank. His voice deep and silky, he asked, "Is that so?"

Kael nodded forcefully. "She's my sister. She is not something you can gain."

A shadow of a smile flashed over Lysander's face. "I notice. And you must be Kael, right?"

Kael's eyes became wide with amazement. "How do you know?"

Lysander remarked, rising, "I make it my business to know things." His eyes fixed on mine, and I shivered along my spine. "Kylie here. At last, meeting you personally is great."

I tried to keep my voice steady by hard-swallowing. "Mr. Vincenzó. We didn't expect you until the celebration."

He wrinkled his eyebrows. "Exactly, and please refer to me as Lysander. After all, we will be married."

His laid-back approach, as if he were commenting on the temperature, made my gut turn over. I started to answer when another voice interrupted.

"Quite the introduction," greeted a man I hadn't seen before, beaming broadly. Though he shared the same dark hair, his approachability surpassed Lysander's. He appeared younger. "This seems to be fascinating."

Lysander's face remained the same, yet something in his eyes hardened just slightly. "Kylie, this is my brother Dorian."

Dorian reached out, extending his hand, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Kylie. Not mind the lovely demeanor of my brother. He was born without any sense of humor."

I shook his hand, a little disoriented. "Nice to meet you too."

The gathering fell silent in embarrassing fashion. Apparently bored with the adult conversation once more, Kael pulled on my hand. "Kylie, could we maybe play now?"

"I... I should go check on Kael," I muttered, grabbing at the getaway from guilt. "It was good seeing you both."

Lysander's voice stopped me as I turned to get out, "Your family is protective!"