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Ch. 45 – Protection Order

Author: Pauline Maxwell
last update Huling Na-update: 2025-12-18 05:21:31

The order came the next morning.

Not shouted.

Not debated.

Simply declared.

Mia learned this the way she learned most things lately—by walking into a room already arranged without her.

She paused at the edge of the breakfast hall, the soft murmur of voices immediately alerting her. Don Romano sat at the head of the table, cane resting against his knee. Luca stood beside him, tablet in hand. Two guards she didn’t recognize lingered near the doors.

And Isabella sat to Mark’s right.

Close enough that their shoulders almost brushed.

Mia stopped walking.

Don Romano spoke first. “Good. You’re here.”

She forced herself to move again, every step feeling heavier than the last. She took the chair across from them, deliberately not looking at Mark.

Don Romano gestured with his cane. “I’ve made a decision regarding Isabella’s security.”

Mia folded her hands tightly in her lap.

“She will remain in the mansion,” he continued, “but with reinforced protection. Two guards at all times. No unsupervised
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