"I wasn't eavesdropping. You were loud enough that I couldn't help but hear."
"What do you want me to say?" This man, the one staring at me now, isn't the same one as the man who just read bedtime stories to a five-year-old.
"I want you to tell me the truth. How bad is it?"
He runs a hand through his hair.
"It's bad. Gerard is pushing harder every day. He's attacking my shipments and turning my suppliers against me. If I don't eliminate him soon, everything falls apart."
"And what happens to us when everything falls apart?"
"That's not going to happen," he says firmly, and as much as I want to believe him, I don't.
I've learned not to trust a man who keeps secrets.
"You can't promise that."
"Yes, I can," he growls, and I swallow back the anger rising in my chest.
I shake my head.
"You need to back off from Sofia. You need to stop getting so attached to her."
His expression hardens. "She's my daughter."
"And she's my daughter too. I've been raising her for almost six years on my own. I know what's best for her."
"You're just scared that you're going to lose control."
"I'm scared she's going to get hurt when we have to leave and that she's going to ask about you and wonder why her father isn't there. I'm scared that this attachment you're building is going to destroy her."
Dante strides over to me, and I try backing away, but he grabs my arms and pulls me closer, then cups both of my cheeks and stares into my eyes.
At this distance, it's hard not to admire how handsome he is, but the fear still coursing through me at the idea that this war will blow up and my daughter will be hurt ruins it.
"Angelica, I am going to handle this, and I'm going to make sure you're safe. You don't have to fear."
"Stop," I tell him, pushing at his chest.
Tears are welling up and I don't know if I can stop them.
"No, I'm giving you my word as a man, one who cares about you, that I won't let anyone touch a hair on your heads."
He's so insistent, I might just cave in and break down right here in front of him.
"Dante, please stop!" I say louder this time, but he won't let go even though I push with all my strength.
"Why?" he asks vehemently, and I can't stop the words from bubbling out.
"Because I can't afford to need you…"
He finally lets me go, and I turn and rush out, slipping back into the room with Sofia and shutting the door quietly.
I stand there and lean on the door weeping, wondering how I could let my guard come down so easily around him.
It's true that darkness cannot exist without light's absence, and that light would never be seen or recognized without the presence of dark, but this isn't what they meant.
Dear God, please tell me this isn't what they meant.
