Page 55 of Out of the Shadow

His brows pull together. “’Cause my baby girl endured more pain in her first twenty years than most experience in their lifetimes. And I need to be sure you’re not one of those flighty LA people.”

Well, damn. He’s certainly not mincing words. I swallow. “I haven’t known Angie that long, but she’s unlike anyone I’ve ever met,” I answer truthfully. “I admire how hard she works”—he nods—“and her tenacity. She has a lot of, ah, sass.”

“That she does.” He clasps his hands. “You know about Dante, I presume?”

“Yeah.” My ears prick up. Am I about to get more intel on Angie’s first husband?

“That’s good. I’m happy to hear she’s finally opening up to someone again.” He nods. “You’re the first man she’s brought to a family dinner since him.”

I can’t suppress my shocked reaction. “I am?”

Alfredo’s brows come together again. “Yes.”

I shift on the cushion. “I just assumed, given how outgoing Angie is, that I wasn’t the first guy she’s invited here.”

“No.” He leans back.

I lower my head, my eyes scanning the gleaming hardwood floor. “We’re not, ah, dating.” I slump back in the chair.

Ignoring my response, he barrels onward, “I expect you to treat her right.”

“Papa!” Angie’s voice booms through the room, ending my increasingly uncomfortable conversation with her father. In a more reasonable tone, she directs her question to me. “What are you two talking about?”

I figure I might as well be honest, see how she reacts. “You.”

Her hands land on her hips and she switches her attention to her father. “Papa, King and I aren’t dating.”

“So he told me.”

She throws her hands up in the air. “He’s not looking for anyone and neither am I.”

Next to me, her father shrugs. “I hear you.”

I let the two of them bicker while my head sorts through the fact that she hasn’t brought anyone to meet her family since Dante. Well, it’s not like I’veeverbrought anyone to meet my family, but I don’t have a real family to meet. My thoughts scatter when Juliana’s son and Francesco’s little girls tumble into the room and jump onto their grandfather’s lap. Angie takes a seat on the sofa next to me. But not too close.

When everyone moves in the room, the same dynamics from dinner resurface. Some people watch the game and cheer. Others talk in smaller groups. Angie’s now engaged with Leo, who took the seat to her right. Stopping in front of me, Francesco tips his head. “King.”

“Francesco.” Not liking my submissive position, especially given the way he’s looking at me, I stand. Forcing a smile, I say, “Your daughters are adorable.”

He looks at his children on their grandfather’s lap, but his expression remains…intense. “My family means everything to me.” He heads toward a corner of the room, and I follow. “I’d do anything for them.Allof them.” His words have an underlying sense of warning.

Message received. I swallow. “I, ah, really admire your sister. It’s hard to establish a new real estate agency, especially anywhere in the Hamptons, but Angie’s tough. She’s making it work.”

He props his arm on the wall next to my head and leans in. “She moved out there two years ago. Chasing the dream she and Dante had.”

Dante.I bet he didn’t interrogate him like this. When he doesn’t continue, I jump into the breach. “She certainly picked a great town. Aroostook is really growing on me.”

He nods. “Since you like it and all, are you thinking of staying out here once the show wraps? Or are you going back to your previous lifestyle?”

I expected overprotectiveness from her father and brothers, butwow. And he obviously did his research. I shift my weight from foot to foot under his scrutiny. “Truthfully, had you asked me this question a month ago, I would’ve told you I’m going to leave as soon as shooting ends. But now, after taking the real estate exam and seeing how the business works, plus being around your sister, I’m changing my mind.”

His eyes narrow at my mention of Angie, and he takes a step closer to me, invading my personal space. I square my shoulders. I’m not letting a NYPD profiler get into my head, no matter if he is Angie’s brother.

“Guys,” Leo whacks me on the back, sending me forward. I nearly collide with Francesco but engage my core to stop the forward momentum. He gives his older brother a hard stare. “What are you two talking about?”

Francesco shrugs. “Just getting acquainted.”

“We were discussing your sister’s real estate agency,” I supply.

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