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I knew he was being sincere. “True.”
“You want to get some coffee? Have lunch?”
“Father, you don’t need to check on me every time he’s gone.” I appreciated the concern, but I was a grown woman. Bones fell in love with me because I was tough and fearless. When he wasn’t around, I had to be that same person. I didn’t need a man before he came along. I shouldn’t need one when he was gone.
“Tesoro, you know I’ll always check on you. Even when you’re forty and I’m almost eighty, I’ll still be here…checking on you.”
I smiled. “When you’re almost eighty, I should be the one checking on you.”
He grinned back. “That’s what your mother is for.”
“I’m sure she has better things to do.”
He chuckled. “Yes, she does. So, are you going to stay here until Griffin returns? You know you’re welcome at our place.”
I’d stayed at that apartment when Bones was gone. It didn’t make sense for me to leave now. “I’m fine here. It’s a nice place. Quiet.”
My father didn’t try to convince me otherwise. “The offer always stands if you change your mind.”
“I know.”
“So, how about lunch?” he asked. “Since I’m here, we may as well spend some time together.”
“Sure.”
Father and I went to the café down the road, a place with great coffee and deli sandwiches. We both got the same thing along with two coffees. It was the same place Antonio liked to go to, but I didn’t care if I saw him. I was too upset about Bones’s absence to care about anything else.
Father scanned the café and the events occurring outside the window, always on alert for anything that might happen. It was a hot day in Florence, with scorching temperatures and insane humidity. When October arrived, it would start to cool off again. “I’ve been trying with Griffin, but it doesn’t seem to be getting better.” He looked out the window as he spoke, his sadness obvious in the tone of his voice.
“I know…he’s very stubborn.”
“Your mother told me he forgave her…because she reminds him of his mother.”
Griffin never told me that, and I couldn’t stop my eyes from softening. “That doesn’t surprise me. She’s a pretty great mom.”
“But with me, I’ll always be the man who came between you. I’ll always be the reason you almost ended up with that other young man.” He drank from his coffee, his black wedding ring contrasting against the whiteness of the cup. “I can’t change the past, so I’m not sure what I can do at this point. I guess we’ll just have to deal with it.” He kept his look indifferent even though the pain was deep inside him.
“There’s still hope. He’ll come around.”
“What makes you say that?” He lifted his gaze and looked at me again, his hand gripping the handle of the coffee cup.
“He’s a very stubborn man. He was even more stubborn when we met. But when love looked him in the face, he softened. He softened more and more…until there was no hatred left. He was committed to killing our family for his revenge, and nothing was going to deter him from that. But after enough time had passed, he dropped his pain and turned into a new man. The same thing is happening now. Each time you talk to him, you make a dent in his armor. It gets bigger and bigger every single time. Eventually, you’ll break through it. Trust me.”
He held my gaze without blinking, and after several seconds, he gave a nod. “Then I’ll keep trying.”
“I know you will. I told him you cared about him.”
“I hope he believed you…because I do. I used to hate him so much, but now I admire him. When I asked him to help with the Skull Kings, he immediately agreed. He’s committed to doing right by you, protecting the family he vowed to execute. His love for you has turned him into someone different, but not someone weaker. I wish I’d seen it sooner…things would be so much different if I had.”
I hated seeing my father in regret since it was something he rarely did. He stood by his decisions and didn’t think twice about them. But now he would give anything to erase the past, to accept the man I loved far sooner. “Our separation only solidified our love. It only brought us closer together. In time, he will forgive you. I know he will—and not just for me.”
“I hope you’re right, tesoro. It gives me hope that he’s forgiven your mother.”
“She’s the one who killed his father, so that speaks volumes. You’ll be next.”
“Hopefully.” He drank his coffee then looked out the window again. “Three days, huh?”
“Two and a half,” I said with a sigh. I’d been counting down the hours since he left. I spent most of my days down at the gallery, so we weren’t always together, but knowing he was in danger every single second until he returned is what killed me. It made every hour feel like a lifetime.
