Page 31 of Bound By Sin
“And we will get to that, but you will not disrespect me or your father. Do you understand?”
“My father,” she scoffed, rolling her eyes. “You mean this man I’ve never seen before he showed up to my game?”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. Valentino squeezed my hand, and I released a breath, trying to calm my anger.
“I know you’re confused,” Valentino chimed in, “but I’m with your mother on this one. Drop the attitude so we can explain.”
“You want to show up out of nowhere and start acting like a father, trying to tell me what I need to do.” She rolled her eyes. “Where have you been all this time?”
“Nia, Valentino did not know about you.”
Her eyes widened. “You said you had a fling at fashion week, but I thought, at least, he knew about me.”
“Me and Valentino were in a loving relationship for three years, Nia. And I know what I told you about your biological father, but it was a lie.”
Nia’s face fell. We had a very close relationship, and the look on her face crushed me. I didn’t believe the lie I’d told her would have come back to bite me in the ass, but I did what I thought was best at the time.
How do you explain to a seventeen-year-old why her father had no idea about her? Both Valentino and I had fault in this, but I could have gotten word to him through Brian. I chose not to.
“Because of who he is?” she asked before I could explain.
“And who am I?” Valentino asked like he was having a casual conversation about the weather, instead of a life-altering chat with his only child about him being the head of a criminal organization. His voice remained calm, but I was freaking out on the inside. How much had she found out about him? I was sure he had killed people. How did she feel about everything she’d learned?
“You’re like ‘The Godfather’ or something.”
Valentino quietly chuckled, sat back in his chair, and threw his arm behind me on the couch. “And what does that mean?” he asked.
I prepared dinner for the three of us instead of going out like Valentino had suggested; I’d decided it would be better to have this conversation with Nia in private, away from prying eyes. Even though the paparazzi were still camped outside our gated community, Valentino assured me there was no way they knew it was him who’d dropped by tonight. A little bit of the stress of this entire situation disappeared.
“You’re a gangster.”
He didn’t flinch or wince at her response. He knew exactly who he was and the world in which he was a major player. He didn’t try to hide it from her. He’d always been a dangerous man, but I hadn’t been around him in years. Now, he seemed much more dangerous. Ruthless. Unapologetic about the person he’d become.
Maybe it was the person he’d always been.
“Among many other things, like, CEO of a major corporation,” he said. “However, the truth is, I left your mother. I cut off all contact with her when my father, your grandfather, died to keep her safe from my enemies. What I didn’t know was that she was pregnant with you, and, at the time, I don’t think she knew, either.”
My heart seized in my chest, and the pain of that time assaulted me. It was the worse heartache I’d ever felt in my life. He squeezed my hand.
“But I loved your mother with all my heart, and that has never changed.”
“How could you leave her if you loved her so much!” Nia shouted. “How could you leave me!”
“Sweetie,” I called out to her, tears pooling in my eyes at her anger because of her heartache. “While what Valentino said is true, there were ways I could have gotten in touch with him, but I chose not to. Your safety became my priority when I found out he took over his father’s position.”
She rolled her eyes. “Come on, Mom! Tell the truth. You kept me from him because he hurt you. To punish him.”
I shook my head. “That’s not true, Nia. I was angry; I can’t lie about that, and I was scared of doing everything alone. But I love Valentino with all my heart. I wouldn’t intentionally do that to him.”
“And I love your mother too,” Valentino said, squeezing my hand. “In all this time, that has never changed.”
“While I thought my world ended when he left, when I found out about you, I knew I had something to live for. Back then, after I found out that you were coming, I didn’t know how we could have a life together when he was involved in that dangerous life.”
Her eyes widened, and this was what I’d been trying to protect her from.
“So, we’re in danger? Somebody’s going to want to kill me to get to him?”
I looked from Nia to Valentino. This would be something for him to explain because I knew we’d be in danger. Once the world found out, there wasn’t much I could do to protect her, but with the power and men he had, he could.
