Page 93 of Revere: A Legacy Novel

“No,” Catherine interrupted her father. “You cannot.”

“Catty.”

“I’m eating, Daddy.” Catherine waved at their family. “We’re all eating.”

Dante’s expression hardened instantly. “Catherine.”

Without looking up from her plate, Catherine simply said, “I already told you that you don’t have to like it, Daddy. As far as I understand it, you’ve made it quite clear to Cross just how much you don’t like it, actually. I wonder, what happens if the next time someone approaches him, I’m there, too? Might that be … dangerous for me?”

“We’re not discussing that at this table, Catherine.”

She looked up at her father. “We won’t discuss it at all. Yes, I’m dating Cross again … or, we’re attempting something of the sort. No, you don’t get a choice. Stop trying to intimidate him to stay away from me. It won’t work, and it might actually get one of us hurt. Then what, Daddy?”

Dante’s gaze blazed.

Catherine only shrugged, and looked down the table to the rest of her family. “So, that’s that. What else is new? Anyone?”

No one said a thing. Catherine felt awkward as hell, but it had needed to be done.

Michel cleared his throat beside her. “Gabbie and I are expecting.”

Catherine didn’t miss how Gabbie’s head snapped to the side so that she could stare at her husband with wide eyes. Clearly, she had not been expecting him to announce their little secret like that.

Instantly, congratulations lit up the table. Attention was gone from Catherine. Her brother passed her a sly smile like he knew exactly what he had done.

“Thanks,” she mouthed.

Michel nodded.

Sometimes, her brother was a shit.

Right then, he was her savior.

What was family for?

“Catherine, please let me—”

Catherine shrugged out of her father’s hold. She stepped aside as her aunts and uncles came down the hall, and disappeared into the sitting room. Her mother was probably still helping to clean in the kitchen.

“What, Daddy?”

Dante frowned. “I’m sorry, Catty.”

She held her ground, refusing to let his apology soften her. She didn’t entirely know what he was apologizing for, after all. She wasn’t going to just assume.

“For?”

“Making this more difficult than it needs to be,” her father said quietly.

“What is this exactly?”

Dante shook his head. “Catherine.”

“I’m serious. A lot has happened or been said. You couldn’t even let me tell my grandmother that I was seeing Cross without making it obvious that you have a problem.”

“Because I do have problems with it!”

Catherine nodded, and turned away. “Okay, I’m done. I have some studying to—”