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Pain scored his father’s weathered face. “Your mother, she was my one true love and I miss her more with each passing day. Ihave nothing left to offer another woman. And if I had tried all those years ago, Iwould have ended up suffering through a marriage like yours to Carina. You have not found your soul mate, that one special woman. You must do so.”
Brand sank onto the bench. “Don’t you understand?” he objected. “I found her right here six years ago.”
Dom stared at his son in astonishment. “Why did you not marry her?”
A humorless smile tugged at his lips and he shrugged, atense, sharp jerk of his shoulders. “I did. It was Carina I met that night.
“Then you have not yet met your soul mate.”
Brand shook his head. “But you think I’ll find her at the Cinderella Ball like Matteo found Hanna? I’m telling you,Papà,she won’t be there.”
Dom offered a fatalistic shrug. “You never know what fate has in store for you.”
Brand swiveled to face his father. “Don’t.Don’t force this. I’ll get help for Toni. I’ll spend more time with her. Stop dating. Anything. Just don’t make marriage a condition. Ican’t go through that hell again.”
Dom’s face sagged, deep lines cutting furrows in this brow and at the edges of his mouth. “I am sorry,figlio mio.My mind is made up. Ido not wish to take such extreme measures, but I must. For Antonia.” His mouth firmed and he turned fierce golden eyes on Brand. “As of today, you are on leave from Salvatores. Spend your free time with your daughter. Maybe you will see what I have and know the Cinderella Ball is your best chance to bring your daughter back from this fantasy world she has created.”
Brand surged to his feet. “You’re making a mistake.”
Dom inclined his head. “It is possible, but I am convinced this is the right move. Go to the Cinderella Ball. Meet as many women as possible. Listen to your heart while you do so. The right one will be there.”
“No.”
“I have a ticket to the ball when you are ready to accept your fate.”
Disbelief warred with fury. “I will not attend the Cinderella Ball. Nor will I remarry. And nothing you say will change my mind.”
“Così sia. So be it.”
Brand turned his back on his father. No way. No way in hell would he attend the Cinderella Ball. Or marry again. Nothing anyone did or said would change hismind.
And that was final.
“Have I doneright?” Dom whispered to the statue. “Or have I made the worst possible mistake with our baby boy?”
A gentle breeze blew across his face and he bowed his head. “My guiding star. May you guide Brando to his destiny. Help him find the woman he is meant to marry. The one who will be the perfect mother for our granddaughter and the perfect mother for the children the two will share.”
She never answered. But then, he didn’t expect an answer. Despite that, the warmth of her presence washed over him, soothing and reassuring. It told him he’d chosen the right path. With a deep sigh, he knelt at his angel’s feet and continued putting the starflowers to bed for their winternap.
The Beaumont’s Cinderella Ball—Forever, Nevada
Mia stoodoutside the Beaumont’s cupcake mansion, perched in the middle of the desert like a stunning oasis, and stared at the entryway. She hovered on the verge of bolting, her heart racing, breath catching in her throat. She wasn’t someone who jumped in with both feet or took risks or could easily take center stage.
She’d had three excruciating weeks to anticipate and prepare for this gathering. Those weeks were not nearly enough, especially when she’d lost her job and her apartment. She needed to consider where to live and how to support herself. To decide how to move forward when everything and everyone around her left her behind. Mia fought to regain control, but each time her ghost wrestled itaway.
Anna, the meddling phantasma, was thrilled.
Mia was appalled.
Waves of people flowed along the flagstone path and disappeared inside. She should follow, she really should. At least it would check the first item from Anna’s list of three requirements. Mia took a deep breath, torn between retreat and advancing. Retreat offered safety. Comfort. Advancing brought too many risks. However, the thought of never having another full night of sleep, athreat that had been voiced several times, forced her to reconsider. Mia didn’t think she’d survive many more nights withAnna.
The least she could do was take a picture.
She lifted her cell phone and snapped a quick photo of the sinking sun setting the whipped cream fluff of a mansion into a blaze of reds and purples. Anna’s first request had been to go to the Cinderella Ball. Unsure of the rules of haunting, Mia assumed photographic evidence wouldhelp.
She’d take a second photo once she entered the ball—assuming she entered. It was the second request. Mia had a sneaking suspicion Anna knew she posed a flight risk. It seemed a bit too on the nose to make Mia promise, no less than three times, that she would actually, physically, go into theball.
And a third picture would only be taken if she were foolish enough to marry. The last of Anna’s requests.
