Chapter 3
2167 Words
ANDI
I'm fuming mad, but I can't let it show. In my entire life of existence, this is the first time that someone looks down on me for being a woman. Even my superior treats me with respect. I won't let any man belittle me, even if he's the Grand Duke of this f*cking land.
No matter how I hate the man in front of me, I help myself but admire his gorgeous physique. My eyes were fixed on him as he slowly walks towards the middle of the great hall. He quickly removed his royal blue blazer with the House of Costa De Lucca's royal emblem on its chest. His plain white button-up shirt hugs his muscular body perfectly. He folded his sleeve up to his elbows as he unbuttons his shirt all the way to his chest.
I also removed my black leather jacket so that I can move freely. I was wearing a black tank top underneath. I suddenly felt cold eyes piercing into my soul. He was glaring at me the moment I removed my jacket.
"Shall we start, Your Grace?" I asked while raising my eyebrow.
Just when I thought we were going to start the fight, I frowned when the woman who welcomed and assisted me a while ago came to the Grand Duke's side while holding a golden tray.
"Not yet, My lady. If you want to claim your rightful place, we need to do it the Costa De Lucca's way," he said before picking up a red ribbon from the tray.
He slowly walked towards me. I gasped the moment his manly scent invaded my nose. I don't know why I am suddenly acting this way just because of his mere presence. When he came closer to me, I swallowed hard that I can almost feel his minty breath against my skin.
I was about to take a step back to put a space between us when he quickly grabbed my right arm and started to tie the red ribbon there.
"W-What are you doing?" I asked, frowning. I was trying my best to mask the foreign emotions that started to crawl into my being.
"This is your life, My lady. You have to protect this ribbon to the best of your ability. The moment your opponent took that away from you that will be the end of you," he explained, almost whispering against my ear. "The game is simple," he said, finally moving away from me, "The person who can get the opponent's ribbon from their arm will be the winner. There's only one rule. There are no rules. Are you sure you want to do this, My lady? I don't have plans of going easy on you," he warned.
"I was not expecting you to, Your Grace. In fact, I have all the intentions of returning the favor," I said before raising my arms in front of me, readying myself to his attack.
"Well then," he responded before he walked back from where he was standing a while ago.
The middle-aged woman immediately tied the ribbon in his arms before stepping back to give way for the fight.
The ambiance in the great hall becomes eerie. There are no sounds other than our footsteps as we were both slowly walking circles around each other. No one dared to make a move. I know he said that he would show no mercy, but I don't know how he would do that if he's not going to attack.
A few more minutes, and I still don't see any sign that he's going to attack anytime soon. "You forgot how to fight, Your Grace?" I said mockingly.
As if I hit the right spot, I saw his face completely change from serious to deadly in a snap.
Tsk! Men and their ego, I told myself.
I was startled by his sudden move when he quickly paved the way through me before drawing a swift punch. Fortunately, I was quick to dodge his punch. I immediately took a step back to draw some distance from him to plan my next attack. When I was about to do that, he didn't give me any chance to complete my plan. He showered me with different fighting combinations that were almost impossible for me to avoid.
I saw a kick coming from my ride side that was about to hit my waist. I didn't get any chance to dodge it. I just shut my eyes while waiting for his kick to hit me. The next thing I knew, I found myself lying on the floor with a writhing pain on my side. I flinched when I tried to move because of the pain.
"Is that all you've got? You see, this is the reason why I don't think you're capable of doing this job," he exclaimed in annoyance.
I was quite puzzled by his reactions. Instead of rejoicing, he seems more annoyed.
"The game hasn't ended yet, Your Grace," I said as I tried to stand up and recovered from the kick. "The rule says you have to get my ribbon to win."
He shut his eyes in annoyance before blowing a loud breath. "You're clearly in no condition to fight me. I didn't hold back from that kick. I know you're in pain."
For a minute there, I almost thought that he's worried about me. But everything changes when he opened his mouth again.
"You are not made for this, My Lady."
"As I said, the game isn't over yet, Your Grace," I said firmly. I immediately prepared myself for another fight. This time I won't make any mistakes as I did.
"You are testing my patience, woman!" he exclaimed while gritting his teeth.
But in the end, he doesn't have any choice but to fight me since I don't really have any plans of backing down. He keeps on shaking his head as he tried to compose himself. He then proceeds to place himself in his fighting position.
Unlike the first fight, I didn't wait for him to make a move. I quickly run towards him and throw a couple of punches. He ducks, dodge, and took a step back from every attack I threw at him. As I throw another punch, he moved sideways to avoid my fist before grabbing my hand and twisted it behind my back.
"I already told you, My lady. You are no match for me," he whispered behind my back.
I was stunned when I felt his nose slightly touching my neck all the way to my ear. I felt a sudden heat crawling into my vein. I can feel his hard chest pressing against my arm. I can almost feel the tingling sensation circling my belly.
Snap out of it, Andrea! I scold myself. I noticed that he hadn't done anything to get the ribbon from my arms. He seems preoccupied. I took that chance and used my elbow to hit his face.
"F*ck!" he curses before releasing my hand.
He's clearly way bigger than me, so it's nearly impossible for me to take him down. I used the opportunity that he partially blinded because of my attack. I spurt towards him, lean forward before firmly grabbed both of his legs. I use all my strength to move my body sideways so he would lose his balance which leads him to fell on the ground.
The moment he's down, I didn't hesitate to grab his arms and quickly wrapped my legs around his neck, leaving one of his arms away from the other. It prevents him from any counterattack.
I clearly underestimated the Grand Duke's ability to fight. He's good, I admit. I'm just lucky that he's lost his focus for a minute. I didn't waste any moment. I immediately took the ribbon from his arm.
"I told you, Your Grace. The game isn't over yet," I said proudly as I was holding the ribbon while sitting on top of him.
He squinted his eyes, "I don't like women on top of me unless we're on a bed," he said, not minding the ribbon in my hand. He grabbed my waist before he rolled over. This time, he's the one who's on top. "And for the record, you didn't pass the test," he said before pushing himself up.
"What? That's not what we agreed on!" I exclaimed as I got up from the floor.
But the Grand Duke acts as if he hears nothing. He walks toward the grand staircase.
"Your Grace!" I shouted, but he didn't even spare me a glance. "I won the fight fair and square! Whether you like it or not, I'm not going anywhere!" I shouted once again.
I can't believe that brute!
"Sh*t!" I winced in pain when the adrenalin wears off, and I started to feel all the attacks that I endure from the fight. He's no amateur when it comes to combat. I understand why he thinks that he doesn't need my help. But I can't let Hunter down. He trusted me to this job, and I'm determined to fulfill that no matter what.
"The Royal Clinic is right around the corner. Would you like me to bring you there, My lady?" said the middle-aged woman who was with the Grand Duke a while ago.
"I'm fine. It's just bruised. I can manage," I answered.
"Please excuse His Grace's attitude. He means no harm when he says that a woman doesn't fit for a job like this. It's just that he grew up surrounded by men who think like that," the woman explained.
"No offense meant, Miss..." my words hung as I don't know how to address her.
"Oh! Where are my manners. Adelina," she introduced herself.
"Andrea Sabrina Lopez, you can call me Andi," I answered in return. "As I was saying, I don't care about what he thinks about women. I'm here to do my job, and I'm fully intended to do that regardless of the Grand Duke's belief," I continued.
She chuckled, "I'm looking forward to that," she said before smiling widely. "Are you sure you don't want to go to the pharmacy?" she insisted.
"No need—f*ck!" I cursed when I felt the sudden jolt of pain from my waist. I think the bastard broke my ribs.
"I insist that you take a detour to the Royal Clinic to have your bruises checked, My lady," Adelina said.
"I think I might do that," I answered in defeat.
"This way, My lady," she said, leading the way.
"Andi, please. Call me Andi," I told her.
"That is duly noted, My lad—I mean Andi."
Adelina leads the way to the Royal Clinic inside the House of Costa De Lucca. I can't help but gaped as I look around the hallway through the clinic. The castle is old but elegant. It was no different from the royal fairytales that Maddie used to watch. Maddie is Hunter's daughter.
"We're here," she announced.
I immediately shifted my gaze towards the room that she was referring to. I raised my eyebrows when I noticed that the clinic was way far from the usual clinic that I was expecting. It was more like an expensive room from a five-star hotel in Dubai. I haven't stayed in one, but I had a lot of clients who used to stay there.
"This is the clinic?" I asked.
"Yes. Forgive me if it didn't reach your expectations," she apologizes.
"Didn't reach my expectations? More like it way beyond what I expected. This is a f*cking hotel, not a clinic!" I exclaimed in amusement.
"I'm glad you liked it, Signorina," she said with a wide smile.
"Bene, che cosa abbiamo qui?" Well, what do we have here? said the man who just came out from the other room.
"Signor Giuseppe, this is Signorina Andi—"
"Andi, just Andi," I corrected.
"I'm sorry," she quickly answered. "This is Andi, the Grand Duke's new bodyguard. Andi, this is Signor Giuseppe, our resident doctor here in the House of Costa De Lucca."
Adelina said as he introduces the man in front of us. He's tall and masculine. He seems young to be a doctor. I must say, I'm impressed. He doesn't look bad, but I can see that he's a total Cassanova.
"Piacere di conoscerla, Signorina Andi," Pleasure to meet you, Miss Andi, he said before reaching for my hand and placing a soft kiss on top of it.
I smiled awkwardly. I don't want to offend anyone, so I decided to accept though I felt uncomfortable.
"What can I do for you, Signorina?"
"I just need some ointment for my—"
"Nonsense! Come here. We need to check on that," he insisted before pulling my tank top to check how bad my bruise is.
But when he was about to pull my shirt up, a loud voice echoed all over the room.
"What the hell are you doing?!"
*******************
- Writer
