Chapter 4

Shawna quickly turned her head away from his hard gaze. She wiped away the lone tear. Once she was able to gain her composure, she looked at him. It was as if Giancarlo could tell she was visibly uncomfortable with his gaze. He turned and looked at the fire, staring into the flames. 

They both sat in silence for some time when Giancarlo spoke. "I would apologize-"

"But you know I know it would be a bullsh*t apology?" Shawna finished for him.

"I wouldn't be apologizing for what you think I should be apologizing for," he told her, piquing her curiosity.

"And what would you be apologizing for?" She asked him.

Shawna knew in her gut she was right in assuming the worst about Giancarlo, but he surprised her with his next words.

"I would apologize for taking so long." Giancarlo turned his head and looked into her eyes once more. He continued, his gaze never wavering from hers, "Had I moved faster, you and I would be the ones having a big wedding. Hell, you would already be pregnant with our second child."

Shawna's eyes bulged at his fantasy. "Two children! Who said I wanted kids?" She asked, indulging in the fantasy only for a second.

"You did. I remember talking about me needing an heir, and you said you would under the right circumstances."

"I don't think this is the right circumstance, do you? Nevermind! Don't answer that." She finally broke their gaze and looked into the fire. The Sun was gone completely. It was pitch black. Shawna was surprised at the quick transition of weather. The desert had been hot and dry when the Sun had been high in the sky. Now, the desert wind was cool, and the sand felt slightly damp underneath her legs. 

"You are getting what you want now. Aren't you? What is that business motto of yours? By any means necessary." She reminded him. 

"Damn right. Tomorrow, we will be husband and wife." He informed her as if he were discussing the weather.

"Tomorrow!" Shawna felt her heart beating through her chest. Her hands instantly became sweaty, and her mouth went dry. She had absolutely no say in this. She could still protest. "I am not marrying you!"

"Yes, you are. Accept it. You will marry me. If you don't, I will call my Lawyer and publicist and have them release a joint statement for both of us stating..."

"You wouldn't..." She trailed off, shocked at the lengths he was going to marry her. Shawna had no doubt he would do just as he said. "You are a monster," She whispered.

"I am your monster," He corrected her. "Any woman would be happy to have me. I chose you, Shawna. There was once a time when you chose me too." His gaze was growing more intense by the second.

"I-I was dumb." She stated bluntly. Turned his gaze and stared down at the desert sand, then back to the fire. "I had no idea who you were. We met under strange circumstances, and you vanished from my life in much the same way." She confessed. She hated looking back on their relationship. It made her feel guilty. 

"You were never dumb. I liked you the way you were. You've drastically changed since the last time we were together." He said. 

Shawna was once more shocked and annoyed at his astute yet biased observation.

"That is life. You grow. You change. You don't stay the same. That's how cavemen became extinct." 

Giancarlo looked at Shawna. Shawna still looked upset with him. 

He rebuttled. "This is true. Growth is a part of life, but depending on the growth, it can be harmful. You changed your hair color. You changed the way you talk. Hell, you even changed the type of man you date. The Shawna I knew had long, beautiful hair. She wasn't shy. She only spoke when spoken to. She enjoyed my company. The Shawna I knew wouldn't be wearing an astronomically expensive wedding dress. You have become more aware of what people say about you and how you are perceived on social l media and the news rags." 

Shawna felt personally attacked by his words. All the work she had done on herself, internally and externally. He was telling her it was all for nothing. How dare he! Was he goading her? Or did he really feel that way?

Either way, she couldn't be bothered to care. He was an ass for saying it, she thought to herself. 

"You don't know me, Giancarlo. You never did." Shawna had had enough of his pompous attitude for the day and decided to turn in for the night. She didn't know what time it was. She didn't care.

They were in a desert in the middle of nowhere. Shawna could not stand to look at him for another second. His stubborn nature mingled with her calm one was mixing like oil and vinegar. She stood up, walked over to the tent, unzipped the opening, kneeled, and crawled inside.She zipped the entrance back up.

She saw the lantern was already on and began taking off her shoes. She looked at the white satin and rhinestone pumps. They were no longer white. The rhinestones were gone. The satin was stained and ripped as well.

Her mother had gotten these shoes made for her. She felt the dam of emotions she had built crumbling. Today was the worst day of her life. She couldn't hold it in anymore. She cried. She knew he was only a few feet from the tent, but she didn't care.

She dusted her feet off and climbed into one of the sleeping bags. Once she was inside, she continued to cry. Her heart was breaking. Her friends and family members were probably so upset and scared. He had threatened to have his Lawyer and Publicist make a public announcement of them running away together. 

When the words left his mouth, she knew the irreparable damage they would cause, not just to Harper but also to her friends and family members. If they kept this quiet, she could at least try to get out of this without a scandal. She had a small interior design business that was becoming very successful. This scandal could ruin it for her. He had ruined her with one flick of his wrist.

She was stuck with this man. She cried harder at the thought... 

Giancarlo 

Hearing Shawna break down in tears inside the tent would have broken a weaker man down, but not Giancarlo. He couldn't imagine the emotions Shawna was feeling at the moment, for him or this crazy situation he had put her in. Her actions and words had told him that she was extremely pissed off by his sheer audacity. In all honesty, Giancarlo had thought this kidnapping would go a lot smoother than it had, and it would be more romantic. He thought Shawna would have thought this was a grand romantic gesture, and she would fall into his arms once she saw that he wanted her, but that hadn't happened.

When she saw it was him who had kidnapped her she looked annoyed and almost disgusted. Women never looked at him like that. They had always looked at him with desire. Seeing her tears and rage against being taken against her will opened his eyes to her resilience. She was strong. She didn't need him.

He had convinced himself that every woman wanted money. If they were with him, they usually wanted his money, not Shawna. She told him flat out she didn't want to marry him, which stung to hear. She called herself dumb for loving him. Those words surprised him the most. He had never thought Shawna was dumb.

It was Giancarlo who had been the idiot. He had been tricked out of his happy ending with her by that Goddamned Harper. He knew Shawna had no idea just how dangerous Harper was. He looked like the handsome clean-cut businessman, but he was actually worse than Giancarlo. He hid it better. Someday Shawna would thank him for saving her from that asshole.

He decided to sleep under the stars and keep the desert fire going. She needed space. He had been harsh to her today. He knew that. He felt like he had no choice either.

Shawna was a stubborn and persistent woman. That was two things about her that hadn't changed. The old Shawna was in there, and he would give his last dime to meet that wonderful person again. She had been correct when she said they had met under different circumstances. They had met a gentleman's club.

It was his best friend's bachelor party. It was his best man's duty to throw a hell of a party. Shawna had been a waitress there. She had helped him plan the event. After the party, he had asked her out. She had said yes, and he ended up ruining a good connection because of his ego.