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“Ava?” My heart beats faster as I say her name.
She leans her head back. “Yeah?”
I’m so glad I married you,is what I want to say.
“I… this is nice. Being here together.”
Fucking coward.
She pauses, as though allowing me the chance to say more.
“Yeah,” she whispers finally, putting her hand on my wrist and squeezing it. “This is nice.”
I hold her as tightly as I can, and it’s like I’mbeggingthe universe not to take her away from me. The protective walls I’ve built around myself are crumbling, leaving me more exposed than I’ve ever been.
It would be so easy to let her in. To follow that siren’s call that always leads to pain.
Maybe she’s worth the pain.
Chapter Forty-Two
Ava
Three days later
I feel a grim sort of satisfaction as the guard leads me to the clear pane of bulletproof glass separating me from my father. I sit down, unable to read the expression on his face. With a deep breath, I pick up the phone receiver and put it to my ear.
“Hey, dad.”
He stares at me like he doesn’t know what to say, then nods several times. “Ava. My only daughter. Congratulations on your marriage. Sorry I couldn’t come to the wedding.” There’s bitterness in his voice. “I would have loved to give you away.”
“Yeah, I’ll bet you would have.”
A lengthy, awkward pause. I’m waiting for his retort. My father shakes his head. “Happy?”
I gulp. “Yeah. I am happy.”
“I understand why you did it, you know. In a way, I respect it. You beat me. You’re more ruthless than I thought.”
I think back to huddling in the closet of our “vacation” home and making the fateful decision to reveal our location to Alessandro. How much has changed since then. “I wasn’t trying to be ruthless. I was trying to take control of my life. Did you think I was just going to follow your orders forever?”
“Hey, take some credit. You deserve it. Setting up your father for a prison sentence is pretty ruthless. You’ll go far with that mindset.”
It takes a moment for it to hit me that we aren’t talking about the same thing. “Wait. Do you think I set you up? I was talking about…” I try to choose my words carefully, knowing we’re being recorded. “I was talking about marrying Alessandro.”
“Oh, I’m sure he helped. Are you denying it?”
“Yes, I am denying it. Do you think I would do that to my own father?”
He raises his eyebrows. “I already know the way you betrayed me that you can’t deny. Don’t pretend it’s a stretch.”
“Well, I didn’t.”
He pauses, somewhat thoughtfully, and I honestly can’t tell whether he believes me or not. “I suppose it doesn’t matter now.”
“And what exactly does that mean?”
“It means that whatever happens next, my grandchildren will inherit what I’ve built. Whether I give it to them, or you do.”
