“Of course, boss. But that means I’m going to need to go clear up this little misunderstanding.”
“Do you think this will be better or worse than cheating?”
“I’m about to find out.”
Chapter Ten
Mia
“Ithought Dom would still be here,” Dante said as he walked back into the house and saw me sitting alone on the sofa. “What are you watching?”
Seeing Dom again had reduced me to a puddle of tears. He was, understandably, angry at my disappearing act. He had filled me in on Luc and his change in temperament. Whereas Dante had tried to cover Luc’s back, Dom had no trouble in telling me the truth. The repercussions of my actions made it difficult to breathe, but this was something I would need to live with. No one could alleviate me of the guilt.
“He left twenty minutes ago. Luc called.” Luc’s yelling had been loud enough to hear down the phone, and my heart had momentarily stopped in my chest at the muted sound of his voice. It made me numb with nerves to think that Luc was in the area, a few streets away, with no idea that I was back in town.
“90 Day Fiancé,” I answered Dante’s other question, seeing his eyes glued curiously to the screen where a couple were in the midst of an argument. Reading had been a bust. My mind couldn’t focus and so I’d resorted to trash TV, but even that struggled to divert my thoughts. “How were things with Tori?”
Dante had been gone for the past few hours but a quick assessment of him confirmed that he’d come home without a scratch. “Little rocky. We’ll be fine,” he said with a shrug. I couldn’t help but feel guilty. Carmen and Emilio had ended up in an argument over me and now Dante and Tori had also had a fight. I just hoped that all this would be worth the hassle. “She’s looking forward to seeing you when you’re officially back out in the open.”
“Really?”
Dante hung up his jacket and sat down on the arm of the couch, leg swinging slightly. He never could sit still. “I know it’s probably difficult to believe, but not everyone wants you dead, Mia. Tori was angry you left but she worried about you as well. You two were friends and we couldn’t figure out why you’d left without a word. Obviously, now it makes a lot more sense to me.”
“What did she say about it all?” I asked. “What did you tell her?”
“The truth. Well, some of the truth. Told her the grief was too much for you to cope with and then the pregnancy. She softened a bit knowing you didn’t just abandon us.” The same half-truths that I’d told Dom.
“D, why don’t you want anyone to know the truth?” I switched off the TV and shifted in my seat so that I was facing him. Earlier today, when Gabe had brought up Xavier trying to find me, I had been ready to snap about how twisted his father was, but Dante’s subtle gesture had stopped me and he’d left before I’d had a chance to ask why. “They’re going to find out eventually, right?”
“Wrong,” Dante corrected me, becoming serious again. Every time his childish wonder trickled away to be replaced by the hardened criminal it made my hairs stand on end. “No one else can find out the truth.”
“Why not?”
“It’s complicated.” I thought Dante might end the conversation there. I’d grown used to only getting snippets of information rather than the whole story. He ran a hand over his face, and I couldn’t help but notice just how tired he looked. The last few days must have drained him with all the sneaking around. “Family dictates a lot here,” Dante continued, picking at a stray thread of fabric on the sofa. “Bastard kids aren’t given the same respect as the rest of us. It doesn’t matter what they do, without being legitimate it ruins their chances before they’re even born.”
“That’s ridiculous. It’s not their fault. They didn’t get to choose their parents or ask to be born.”
“No, it’s not, but that’s the way it is here. If anyone else finds out about Luc and Xavier, then he’s going to become a target for everyone.”
“They wouldn’t. They love Luc.” It was hard to forget the level of affection and respect Luc had received when we turned up to the New Year’s ball. Everyone had been happy to see him participating in family events again.
“They love him because he’s Charlie’s boy,” Dante explained. “Not sure if you noticed, but we’re a fickle and volatile bunch. If anyone else finds out, then they’re likely to use it against him and things could change pretty drastically.” There was no trace of humor in his words. Dante was being completely serious. He’d always been Luc’s right hand, always protected him when he needed it, whether Luc was aware of it or not. “The last thing we need is for Luc to lose his standing in this family,” Dante said, looking at me again. “This doesn’t go any further. The safest bet is to keep it between us and Luc once we tell him.”
“You’ll be there when I tell him?”
“I’m not going to just lock you both in a room and see what the outcome is at the end of the day.”
“Not without opening the books.”
“There she is!” Dante laughed, clapping his hands together. “To think I missed that smart mouth of yours. Also, between you and me, I’m always going to put my money on you.” That had to be a joke, because when it came down to it Luc was more skilled than I was, but I appreciated the vote of confidence all the same.
“When do you think we should do it? See him, I mean.”
“The sooner the better,” Dante answered. “Gabe, Tori and Dom know that you’re back. That’s already more people than I planned at this point.”
“Soon, like tonight?” Given half the chance, I think we both would have drawn it out for longer but that was a dangerous game when we couldn’t guarantee everyone’s silence.
“I’m sorry. Did you have something else planned? I know your social calendar is packed, but do you think you could try to pencil this in? Kind of important,” Dante responded.
