"I was protecting her. Protecting us both."
"From what? From a father who loves her? Who wanted to give her everything?" The pleasantness is cracking now. "I held her when she was born. I watched her take her first steps. She's mine as much as she's yours. And you had no right to take her from me."
He's right about that, at least. Elena is his daughter. I can't deny that. But what he doesn't understand, what he's never understood, is that biology doesn't give him the right to hurt us.
"You were going to hurt her," I say. "Just like you hurt me."
"I never touched Elena. Not once."
"Not yet. But it was only a matter of time." My voice breaks. "I saw the way you looked at her when she cried. The way your hands would curl into fists. You were losing control, Draco. And I couldn't let you hurt her like you hurt me."
"You stole my daughter." His voice is cold now. All pretense of pleasantness gone. "You took my daughter and you ran. And you've kept her from me for eighteen months. Eighteen months of her life that I've missed. Birthdays. Holidays. You stole that from me, Isabella. And you're going to pay for it."
"I'm not discussing this through a door. Leave, Draco. I'll call the police."
He laughs. Actually laughs. "No, you won't. Because then you'd have to explain why you're hiding. Why you've kept my daughter from her father. Why you fled in the middle of the night without so much as a custody agreement. I have lawyers. Very goodlawyers. And judges who owe me favors." He pauses. "You call the police, and I'll have Elena in my custody by the end of the week. Is that what you want? You’ll never see her again."
He's right. Damn him, I know he's right.
"I'm going to count to three," he says. "And then I'm coming in. And you don't want me to come in the hard way, do you? Think of Elena. Think of how scared she'll be if she wakes up to shouting. To violence."
The threat is clear. He'll break down the door. He'll make a scene. He'll terrify my daughter.
And Lupo won't be home for hours.
I have no choice. With shaking hands, I unlock the door and open it. Draco smiles. It doesn't reach his eyes.
"There's my girl," he says, and steps inside.
I back away instinctively, and his smile widens. He likes that. Likes seeing me afraid. It turns him on to sense my fear, my pain.
"Where is she?" he asks, looking around. "Where's Elena?"
"Sleeping. Don't wake her."
"I'm not a monster, Isabella." He closes the door behind him and locks it. "I'm not going to traumatize my own child."
"Then leave. Come back another time. We can talk then. Give me time to prepare her for your visit."
"We'll talk now." He moves into the kitchen, making himself comfortable. Leaning against the counter like he owns the place. "Nice place you've got here. Rustic. Not what I would have chosen for you and Elena, but I suppose beggars can't be choosers."
"What do you want, Draco?"
"What do I want?" He tilts his head, studying me. "I want what's mine. I want my woman. I want my daughter. I want the life you stole from me."
"I'm not yours anymore."
"We'll see about that." He pushes off the counter, moving closer. I back up until I hit the table. "But first, I want to know who the fuck he is."
My heart stops. "Who?"
"The man." His eyes are cold. "The one who's been staying here. The one whose work boots are by the door." He leans in close. "Did you think I wouldn't notice? That I'd show up without watching first? I've been surveilling this place for two days, Isabella. I know everything."
Two days. He's been watching us for two days.
"He's no one," I say quickly. "Just someone passing through. He needed work, and I needed a few repairs done."
"Is that why you let him into your bed?" Draco's voice drops to a dangerous whisper. "You let him around my daughter? You let some stranger play house with my family?" His hand shoots out, gripping my arm. Not hard enough to bruise yet. But the threat is there. "Where is he now? This nobody?"
