I reach out and take my father's hand into mine. “Papa, I promise I’m fine. I took care of myself the way you taught me to. You would have been proud of me.”
“I am proud of you, Mia,” he says, stroking my hand. “I’ve always been proud of you. I’m sorry, I’m not a more emotional father or more involved. I have a family to run. I don’t have time for things like that. But I do care for you, my child.”
I tear up and look away, wiping my eyes quickly. I pick up my wine and sip it. “Do you know what’s going to happen now?”
“They are busy discussing the best course of action,” my father says, sitting back with his wine. “I’ve made it clear that you are under no circumstance to be harmed at all, or there will be problems between our families. Alessandro took my meaning.”
Of course, my father would throw the weight of our family against the Sorvinos. I give him a small smile. “He can’t have liked that too much.”
“He has enough enemies without making another,” my father says thoughtfully. “He will make sure you’re safe. That’s all I want.”
I sigh and trace the rim of my glass with my index finger. “I feel like I’m a caged bird, Papa, and that I will never be free to fly.”
My father gives me a sad smile. “Mia, you are so beautiful and so special. I’m sorry that you were born into a family like ours, but it does nothing good to dream. It will just make you more miserable. The best thing you can do is accept your situation and make the best of it.”
“Is that all there will ever be?” I ask miserably.
“There’ll be moments of joy. You’ll see, you’ll find them, my darling. But you are going to make many sacrifices to get them, like I have,” my father explains, finishing his wine. He sets his glass down and watches me. “Maybe having children...”
“No children,” I say shortly. “I am not bringing children into our families, not so they can live a prison sentence like me. If it’s a boy, he joins the business; if it’s a girl, she’s married off as a bartering chip. How is that fair? How will that bring me joy?”
My father keeps quiet before he finally says, “There can be good things about the family, Mia, especially if you learn to love them.”
“You can’t learn to love things, Papa. You either love them, or you don’t,” I say with a note of finality.
“That’s not true,” my father says. “You’ve learned to love me with time and patience.”
I falter slightly, then quietly say, “You can’t love someone who breaks you, Papa.”
“How have you been broken, Mia? Speak to me.”
I don’t want him to know how Frankie hurt me before, but he continues, “Frankie made a foolish mistake letting you go once. It doesn’t look like he’s going to do that again. Maybe you can learn to trust him again.”
“He told you about us?” I ask.
“I always knew,” he says. “It wasn’t like you hid it very well.”
I look at my hands. “There is no redemption for Francesco.”
Chapter 18 - Frankie
Amelia hasn’t looked me in the eye since I confessed my love for her, but there isn’t time to wallow in self-pity. I can’t deal with her and Jose at the same time. As it is, I can’t leave the house to deal with the family business like I normally would, and it’s driving me insane that I have nothing to do to distract myself.
Joel walks over to where I’m standing in the garden, getting some fresh air. “Boss, Don Sorvino wants to see you. It’s a family meeting.”
I nod, adjusting my suit and running a hand through my hair. “Where?”
“The dining hall, right now,” Joel says. “He says it’s time to discuss the problem with everyone.”
“Thank you, Joel,” I say, walking away from him and back into the house. I walk into the expansive dining hall to find my brothers sitting at the table, as well as my father, some uncles, and Katya, Alessandro’s wife.
She’s a formidable character on her own. Next to my brother, they are king and queen.
I take my seat and look around. “Is there anyone else we’re waiting for?”
“Katya’s father will be here shortly,” Alessandro says, looking around.
As though on cue, he walks in. “Good afternoon, everyone,” he says with his thick Russian accent.