Free Her Latin Lover (Contemporary Romance) by Katheryn Lane

horse and how he had reduced the magnificent stallion to nothing better than dog meat. Paulo had just finished reading it the night before when Mary had walked into his study. However, the messages then got much worse, as they described in sickening detail exactly what El Leon planned to do to Mary once he got hold of her. No wonder she looked upset when Paulo saw her just now, sitting in front of his computer reading them. He should have deleted the emails, especially the final message which showed a series of extremely violent, pornographic pictures with images of Mary’s face crudely superimposed on them. They had turned Paulo’s stomach when he saw them the previous evening and he had been running around ever since trying to work out what he was going to do. He knew that El Leon did not make idle threats, nor was he someone that could be reasoned with and although Mary was certainly much safer in his house than in the town, Paulo could not keep her under lock and key.
    However, if El Leon and his men came, Paulo knew that he, Javier and Carlos on their own would not be able to fight them off. Therefore, the previous night and the whole of that morning he had been out speaking to some of his strongest farmers to ask them if they were willing to come and stay at the house until Mary left. The timing was terrible, as there was coffee that needed harvesting and many of the men that Paulo spoke to said that they wouldn’t be able to come until after the harvest. Other men said that they weren’t able to help as they, or a member of their family, were sick even though they all looked in good health. Paulo knew that they were making excuses because they were scared of El Leon and his men, but he didn’t blame them. However, in the end he finally managed to muster up ten men who were now standing guard around the house.
    Paulo pulled a small pistol out of a drawer in his desk, checked that it was loaded and put it carefully inside his jacket.
     
     
     

 
     
     
     
    Chapter 7
     
    Mary walked past the creepy picture of the woman that looked like her and went upstairs to her room. The relief of getting rid of Nick had made her almost light-headed, so she lay down on her bed and let the breeze that came in from the balcony windows blow over her. She might not be having the most exciting time of her life in Paulo’s house, and he certainly wasn’t the best company, but at least the weather was cooler and less humid up here in the hills, the food was fabulous and the bed sheets were crisp linen and smelt of the sun. However, it didn’t look as though she would ever be sharing them with Don Paulo. He had seemed really angry with her when she said that she had split up with Nick and what did he mean when he said, “You have no idea what he can do”? Nick was hardly Mr Tough Guy and certainly no match for a man like Paulo. Compared to Paulo with his heavy jaw and broad shoulders, Nick looked like a pathetic teenager.
    Mary had been stupid to waste two years of her life with Nick and let herself be taken in by his boyish charm. What she needed now was a real man, someone who was strong not just physically, but mentally and emotionally as well; someone who wouldn’t run off every time something scary or more exciting cropped up. She needed someone who wasn’t constantly looking for the next big thrill or event. In fact, she didn’t need anyone at all. She could look after herself perfectly well.
    “Bang!” Mary heard a loud gun shot ring out from the front of the house. She jumped off the bed and went to her balcony widow to see what it was. Below her there were almost a dozen heavily armed men roaming around. On the ground lay a mangy, wild dog. A pool of blood was forming around its body. Paulo came running out from the front door and started talking to the men who all began talking at once and pointing at the dog. After a few minutes of commotion, a couple of men picked up the dead animal and carried it round to the