Dante's Marriage Pact by Day Leclaire Page B

preferred to keep private. But Draco deserved that much. She focused on him, her emotions seeping free of her self-control.
    â€œYou’ve met my grandmother, so you can probably imagine how long and hard I’ve had to fight just to maintain my own identity, to keep from turning into her image of who Shayla Charleston should be.”
    â€œIt must have been difficult for you.”
    She could see the bitter comments piling up behind that single, curt observation and appreciated his restraint. “Almost impossible,” she confirmed. “I couldn’t give an inch or she’d take the proverbial mile.”
    â€œSounds like Leticia.”
    â€œYes, well…” She twisted her hands together. “I lived at home while attending college. It wasn’t ideal since my grandmother knew my schedule and expected me to adhere to it.”
    To her relief, he read between the lines. It wouldn’t have been difficult considering she’d been a virgin when he took her to his bed. “I imagine that had a serious impact on your social life.”
    â€œI had no social life,” she admitted. “Living at home—or rather, with my grandmother—prevented me from enjoying the full college experience.”
    â€œThen why do it that way?”
    Shayla shrugged. “Because it was cheaper,” she said simply. “As a result, I formulated a series of goals for my future that helped get me through college. I couldn’t implement them right away, but at least I had them. They were like shinyChristmas presents waiting for the right time and place to be unwrapped.”
    He regarded her curiously. “Why couldn’t you unwrap them right away?”
    Shayla sighed. “Grandmother spent the last of her money on sending me to college. She had dreams of her own. Dreams for rebuilding Charlestons and our chain of jewelry stores. I don’t know how she planned to finance it, since she hadn’t discovered the fire diamonds at that point. But I was supposed to run the business.”
    â€œI gather that didn’t appeal to you?”
    She shook her head. “That wasn’t the real issue. After everything she’d done for me, I’d have stepped up. I took the courses she requested so I’d know enough to tell a good stone from a bad and recognize a fake. Accounting and business courses, as well. But, I don’t have the temperament for either, let alone management. And I have zero artistic flare. In other words, I’d be utterly useless helping to rebuild Charlestons. We’d have only ended up bankrupt again. It took a long time before my grandmother came to terms with that fact. To be honest, I’m not fully convinced she has even now.”
    â€œWhat did you want to do instead?”
    â€œI have a natural facility for languages, along with a desire to see other countries and experience their cultures. So, I made a trade with Grandmother. For every course she wanted me to take, I enrolled in one I wanted. My ultimate dream has always been to get a job overseas as a translator.”
    â€œThat would have taken you out from under Leticia’s thumb.” Draco pinpointed the problem with typical perceptiveness. “I assume she didn’t react well to the idea?”
    â€œShe exploded when I told her.” Shayla shrugged. “I can understand. After all, there’s only the two of us left. Considering everything she’s been through, it made it allthe more imperative that I find a way to support us. She just objected to how I chose to go about it.”
    His eyes narrowed. “Knowing your grandmother, she must have found a way to bring pressure to bear. Trowel on the guilt, good and thick.” He tilted his head to one side, analyzing, then smiled grimly. “She paid for your education. Used every last dime to her name. She’d lose the mansion if you didn’t succeed as a translator. How am I doing so far?