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“Dad—”
He raised his hand, still balling the knife in his fist. “Hear me out.”
I nodded. “Okay, I’m listening.”
“You might be able to secure a good merger to a good New Orleans family, but you’re young. There’s no reason to limit what you could do by setting up a marriage.”
I knew my eyes bulged. I couldn’t help it. “Really?”
“The Corbans played too many games. Your better than them anyway.” He finished off his champagne.
“What? What does this have to do with the Corbans?” Specifically, I wanted to know about Knight. The restaurant seemed to darken. I could no longer here the sax player.
“I want the power in this town. I’m going to have it,” he stated. “My choices are take everything from Raphael Corban, or join forces with the bastard. I offered him a family merger.”
My hands began to shake. “You made a formal offer? For me?”
“I did. But his son refused it.” He seemed happy. Gleeful.
“When?” I gritted my teeth.
“He had up until the auction to make a decision.”
I shook my head. “No. When did you make the offer?” I pressed for details. I had to force myself to accept what my father was telling me.
His stare was blank. “The day he stopped by the house. Our first meeting. We had drinks in the study, and I wrote the letter to Raphael.”
Oh God. That was the day. The day the light faded in Knight’s eyes. The day he made me feel like the most beautiful enthralling woman before he yanked it away.
I pushed back from the table, reaching for my clutch. “Kennedy, what are you doing?” my father asked.
“I have something I need to do.”
“Not the Corbans.” He glared at me. “Don’t go near them. Not now.”
“Dad, Knight was important to me. Until you did this. I have to talk to him.” I didn’t feel like explaining where I was going or the million things going through my head right now.
“He made his decision. He doesn’t want to marry you.” The words hurt, but not the way he thought. I didn’t want to get married right now either.
I stopped along the side of the table. “These family rules are archaic.”
“They have always been a part of our history. Our legacy. Your mother and I made a good match. Sit down. This is our celebration dinner. People are staring at you. At me,” he hissed.
“I can’t. I have to talk to Knight. You don’t have any idea what you’ve done.”
He scowled. “Sit down, now.” I saw how his jaw flexed and his eyes flickered with anger.
“But—”
“Sit.”
I found myself taking small steps backward until I was in my seat once again. A wave of embarrassment heated my cheeks. I hated being scolded. Controlled.
“Stay away from him. Stay away from the Corbans. It’s time you start your official training. My daughter isn’t going to follow some playboy around town making puppy eyes at him.”
I had to bite my tongue at every insult.
I made it through dinner. I wasn’t sure how I stomached the food. Everything tasted bland now that I knew what Knight had wrestled with for weeks. The champagne didn’t help much either.
