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I looked sideways at Cassandra and thankfully she read the situation like a pro. ‘I’ll leave you two to it. You must have lots to catch up on and I need to prep for our interview later. I’ll see you for lunch?’ she said to my father.
‘Yes. I’ll see you there, Cassie,’ he said warmly and I noticed the way their eyes locked for just a fraction longer than they should have.
It was as though I was suddenly seeing my father without the filter of being his adoring daughter. Maybe my mother’s constant illnesses were due to something more than her being a hypochondriac?
‘It was nice to see you, Alana,’ Cassandra said, snapping me from my thoughts.
‘Yes, you too,’ I nodded politely and watched her walk out of the door.
‘Is anyone else here?’ I asked.
‘Only Paulo. Why?’ he frowned at me.
Paulo was my father’s personal security detail and had worked for him for the past two years. I knew that my father trusted him implicitly and I doubted there was much that went on in my father’s world that Paulo wasn’t privy to. ‘I just have something delicate to discuss, that’s all.’
‘Well, Paulo won’t bother us,’ he said with a wave of his hand. ‘What is it, sweetheart?’
I sat down at the table and he did the same.
I looked at him. His hair was grayer than I remembered, and he didn’t seem as tall either. I used to find him formidable and intimidating, but now he just looked like an old man. Still, he was my father, and I loved him, and what I was about to ask him wasn’t easy.
‘I want to know the real reason why you asked me to marry Alejandro,’ I said, my voice trembling.
He frowned at me. ‘You know why. I would have gone to jail for the rest of my life, sweetheart. He threatened to expose me.’
I shook my head. ‘But with what, Dad? The information he has on you could damage his business beyond repair. Why would he ever expose it?’
His frown turned to a scowl. ‘For lots of reasons, Alana.’
‘Such as?’
He snorted and shook his head. ‘You wouldn’t understand. I’ve always protected you too much, and in doing that, I’ve failed you. I can see that now. You don’t have a clue how the real world works, sweetheart.’
I wondered if he actually believed any of that bull-crap. ‘But that’s just it, Dad. I do. And what you told me just doesn’t add up. Not to mention that two days before my wedding, your campaign received a three million dollar donation from The Montoya Corporation. So, I’ll ask you again. Why did you force me to marry Alejandro Montoya, because it sure as hell wasn’t to stop him from ratting you out to the Feds like you told me?’
He scowled at me. ‘He’s been filling your head full of lies about me. And like a stupid little girl, you believe him,’ he hissed.
‘I’ve seen the papers myself, Dad. And I am not a stupid little girl.’
‘I can’t believe you would believe that animal over your own father!’ he spat.
‘You think he’s an animal?’
‘I know he is!’
‘Then why the hell did you sell your only daughter to him?’ I snapped.
He jumped up from his chair. ‘How dare you come into this house and accuse me,’ he shouted, spittle flying from his mouth. ‘You ungrateful little bitch. I tried to give you a better life. And it was no easy feat either, convincing him to take you on.’
‘What?’ I looked up at him as my legs started to tremble.
‘Yes, that’s right. I had to do a real sales job on him. I convinced him you were some fun-loving Manhattan socialite who would be able to hold her own in his world, instead of a boring bookworm who would rather spend her Saturday nights working than going out with her friends. But of course, you don’t have any friends, do you, Alana? You never did have.’
I stood up until I was staring him in the face. ‘I never had friends because you insisted on making me work on your campaign every spare hour I had.’
He laughed in my face. ‘I did that to give you some purpose in your life, Alana. Without me, you would be nothing. I arrange your marriage to the King of fucking L.A and even that’s not good enough for you. And now that he’s seen you for who you really are, he’s tossed you aside. So, you’ve come crawling back to me trying to blame me for the fact that he doesn’t want you. I hope he realizes he doesn’t get a refund for returning you. You’re used goods now, sweetheart!’
I felt the sting of his words like a slap to my face. I choked down a sob. He would never see me cry.
