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PROLOGUE

ANOTHER DISASTROUS DATE

Lady Annabelle DiSalvo’s back teeth ground together asover her It was tough enough finding a decent guy who liked her for herself and not for her position as the daughter of the Duke of Halencia, but then to expect him to put up with her overzealous security teaether

And so when her date had tried to slip aith her for a stroll beneath the stars, her bodyguard had stopped them Heat rushed to Annabelle’s face as she recalled how the evening had ended in a heated confrontation between her, hiuard It had been awful Needless to say, there’d be no second date

The backs of Annabelle’s eyes stung with tears of frustration She couldn’t stand to live like this any longer Her friends were all starting to getas 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 s, 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 bottouard, Berto, waited for her There was actually a whole tea turns to protect Annabelle

Ever since her , Annabelle had been watched, night and day And since her ht, Annabelle had understood her father’s concerns at the tined to her felt claustrophobic and unnecessary

She’d thought by s would change, but with the king of Mirraccino being her uncle, she was still under are all of that And she was just about to put that plan in motion

“Berto, I’o”

The man with short, dark hair and ot to his feet He was the quiet sort and could intimidate people with just a look

Annabelle was the exception

She’d known hiiant unless provoked She thought of hi brother They et back to Mirraccino for a pivotal business —

“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 theso soon” He arched a brow “Any reason for your quick departure?”

“Soaze 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 eht’s date flashed in her mind

“Annabelle, I don’t understand where this hostility is co 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 re happy Mo time There is no threat All of that died with her”