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“What Gia wants is irrelevant.”
“Sir—”
“She is not my daughter. You are.”
I freeze, my eyes briefly dropping to the bottle of wine I’d been drinking. Did someone slip me something? Am I dreaming right now?
I stand up and move to put some much-needed space between us. “I’m not sure what’s happening, but maybe you should call mydad.”
He slams his fist on the table.
“I am your fucking father,” he roars.
My fingers twitch with the urge to grab my gun from the sofa cushion where I left it, though shooting the don is not recommended.
“I’m sorry. I thought I’d have more time.” He pulls the pocket square from the breast pocket of his jacket and dabs his forehead. “Sit. Let me explain.”
Reluctantly, I do, choosing the space on the sofa farthest from him.
“The fighting between us and the Irish was coming to a head. I knew this before you were even born, but that’s the nature of this life. We live in turbulent waters. If we don’t learn to swim, we drown. We try to keep our women and children out of it, but unfortunately, not everyone agrees with that stance.
“When it became obvious to the Irish that the tides were turning in our favor, they sought to weaken me. They thought if they took what I held most dear, I’d either become reckless or I’d give up. But the fuckers always did underestimate me.”
He places his glass on the coffee table and clasps his hands together. I wish I could somehow get a call to my dad and warn him that the don was unraveling. He’d be able to tell me what the fuck to do.
“They planned well. I’ll give them that. They simultaneously bombed a chunk of our legitimate business before hitting the docks and our warehouses. While we were scrambling to put out figurative and literal fires, they used the distraction they caused to hunt down my family.” His eyes slip closed for a moment before he continues.
“They killed my boy first. He was gunned down with his guards on his way home from school.”
I can’t help the pang of sympathy I feel for the man when I see the devastation in his eyes.
“My wife was next. She was dead when I found her. There was only one person left that I gave a fuck about. You.”
Now it’s my turn to swallow, because instead of seeing madness in his eyes, I see nothing but truth. For the first time since he arrived, I feel something other than anxiety over having the don here. I feel fear. Every single instinct in me is telling me to run, that hearing what he says is going to irrevocably change my life. And yet, like a car crash playing out in slow motion, I’m helpless to look away.
“You were at the playground with your nanny. When I got there, the nanny was dead, and I couldn’t find you. I thought…” His voice trails off as he looks at me. After a few moments, he shakes his head, pulling himself from his memories. “You were hiding, your arms wrapped around Gia. That medallion was hanging from your neck—your Nanny Viola’s last offering of protection—and I knew… I knew if I did nothing, I would lose you too.”
“I’m not trying to be disrespectful, sir, but I’m not sure I get what you’re saying.” Or at least that’s what I’m telling myself. Somehow, the words I thought were crazy before feel like a truth I don’t want to hear. “You’re saying you’re my father and Gia’s my sister?”
“Fuck no.”
I relax a little until he speaks again.
“I ordered Alessio to take you and train you, and in return, I’d take his daughter and give her everything she could ever wish for.”
I feel vomit rush up my throat, but I swallow it down as ice floods my veins. “What did you just say?”
When he opens his mouth to repeat himself, I jump up and back away, needing to put space between me and this... this fucking man. I don’t even know this person. He is not my father, and right now, I’m not sure he is even my don.
“You swapped us, like some bad movie?” My voice comes out choked as I try to wrap my head around what he’s saying. I mean, how can this be real?
“You had a target on your back. I had to keep you safe.”
“By putting another little girl in the firing line?” I whisper, appalled.
His jaw tenses. “I did what I had to do.”
“You’re the reason my father can barely stand to look at me. Or I guess I should call him Alessio. You took his child from him and made her a target.”
