Page 100 of Forever Mine

My dad sighs and scratches his chin. It brings back a multitude of memories of childhood. He would scratch his chin as he debated how much to tell us. How much honesty to give us. While I wouldn’t consider my dad an emotive and compassionate father, he certainly didn’t sugarcoat things for us, either. He was realistic. Told us how things went, especially in our family’s line of work.

“I visited her twice. Once in the summer and then again on the day she died, Monica,” he confides. I gasp. I know the answer before I ask it.

“You killed her, didn’t you? She asked you to kill her.” His eyes don’t leave mine, and he doesn’t answer. I don’t need him to say the words. I already know. “Did she call you and ask you to visit because I was in Colorado?”

He sighs again before nodding. I’m struggling to keep the sobs at bay. She pushed me to visit Emily and then asked her mafia son to put her out of her misery. I could have had more time with her.

“I didn’t get to say goodbye to her, Dad.”

“She wanted to go on her own terms, Monica. She specifically stated she didn’t want you there when she passed on.”

“You stole my goodbye from me. You’ve stolen so much from me. I can’t believe you watched me struggle and didn’t do anything to help me.” I snarl.

“I gave you life. Life away from the mob. Away from Texas. I knew you’d never accept my help, even when you needed it the most. So I did the only thing I could do, which is protect you. I’ve protected you even though you haven’t deserved it.” He holds his chin high, defiantly waiting for me to argue.

“I didn’t ask for your protection. All I’ve ever asked you to do is love me, Dad. That’s it. You couldn’t even do that,” I whisper brokenly.

“You thought I didn’t love you, Monica Rose?” my dad asks quietly, his expression full of anguish. I don’t answer. His eyes close as he lets his head drop until his chin hits his sternum.

The server takes that moment to arrive with all our food. Gabriel motions for the server to approach him and whispers in her ear. I know without hearing a word that he’s asking for her to box our meals up quickly. It’s time to end this meeting and move on with my life.

Standing, I take a deep breath and peer down at my brothers. Gio gives me a sad smile. Alex refuses to make eye contact. Marco and Dante stare at me with apprehension. My father fights to keep his emotions at bay.

“I don’t think we’ll agree on what has happened in the past, and I don’t want to dwell on life back then. I’m the happiest I’ve ever been, and I have no desire to go back to Texas ever. All I ask is that you finish whatever you need to do to keep the Angelinos away from me. I want to stay here with Gabriel and live my life.”

“Do you want to have a relationship with us again,piccola?” my father asks quietly. Little one. My father hasn’t called me that since I was a child. I feel the corners of my mouth curve up in a slight smile at the term of endearment.

“I don’t know, Dad. I know you told everyone not to reach out to me, but how quickly I was disowned and cast away still hurt.”

“You have nieces and nephews, you know. So many you’ve never met. They’d love to meet their aunt. Theirzia.” Marco looks at me with expectant eyes. He thinks he knows the way to my heart. Frankly, I’ve never been that interested in kids and didn’t even play with Lucia’s kids when I was a teenager.

“Read the room, Marco. Kids aren’t for me. I highly doubt they care that they don’t know me,” I remark dryly.

“They do, actually. You’re like an urban legend. The oldest think you’re completely made up. They think you’re like Santa Claus. Just something we made up to tell stories about, and they never meet you,” Gio explains.

“You tell stories about me?” I ask quietly.

“We had to. You weren’t alone in the garden when dad shot Angelino. The rumors got out of hand, and we had to explain what had happened. People to this day think dad shot you and Nana as well as Angelino, and when the bodies didn’t show up, the rumors went nuts,” Alex says.

I’m silent for a moment as the server returns with our food in to-go boxes. I turn to Gabriel, and he gives me a reassuring smile. His unwavering support is blowing my mind. He’s sitting across from a mafia don and four captains, all of whom have killed men, and Gabriel isn’t batting an eyelash.

“I’ll think about continuing communication on one condition,” I finally say.

“Anything,piccola,” my dad says somewhat stiffly. I can see the warmth returning to his eyes as he regards me.

“I will not be returning to Texas. Maybe ever. Any visits must be in different states.”

“Of course.”

“And when Gabriel and I marry, we will be doing a quiet ceremony that will not have any mob connections. You’ll get an announcement and picture in the mail, and you will not gaslight me about not attending.”

“We’re getting married?” Gabriel whispers with a smile.

“Eventually. I just assumed, I mean, well, if you don’t want to, that’s fine …” I trail off when Gabriel puts his index finger against my lips.

“I’d marry you tomorrow if you’d let me,anjinho. But let me propose first,” Gabriel chuckles. He looks at my dad. “I know we just met, and while you haven’t had a relationship with your daughter in years, I’m still going to ask for her hand in marriage. I’m a fairly traditional guy, and I want to know I have your family’s support.”

“I’d be honored to have you marry into the family, Gabriel. I can already tell you’re an excellent match for Monica, and I couldn’t have picked a better man for her,” my dad says before standing and reaching out to shake Gabriel’s hand. They then hug.

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