“Care to inform me where this attitude is coming from, then?”
I narrowed my eyes. “A hitman attacked Bonnie in the grocery store.”
“Oh, my word.” His eyes rounded, but he didn’t look sincere. “That sounds horrible. But does it really shock you?”
“I recognized him as one of the men who’d broken into my home and tried to kill Bonnie and me while we were in bed a few weeks back. He was the guy who dragged Bonnie out of bed and down the hallway.”
“That sounds terrible. But again, does it really shock you?”
I took a step toward him. “I only caught two of the intruders that night. The third one got away. And while the two I interrogated admitted that they worked for Pava Moretti, I never did find the third one.”
“Sounds like you’re slipping, Israel.”
“Dad, did you hire that third hitman that night? The one who came after us in the grocery store?”
He blinked. “Is this a serious question, or…”
“It’s as serious as it gets, Dad.”
He sighed. “Why in the world can’t you just let that woman go? Can’t you see she’s causing you more heartache than she’s worth?”
“Answering a question with another question isn’t good, Dad.”
“And neither is accusing your father of trying to murder some woman and the heir to his throne! But you’re here doing it.”
“Just answer the question.”
“Let me ask you this, son. Why are you so stuck on this woman? She provides nothing for you. We didn’t get an alliance of any sort out of the deal. We didn’t get money or protection. We got a war out of her, Israel. Why can’t you see that?”
I hovered above him. “I could still have Pava’s empire through her.”
He chuckled. “Is that really what you think?”
My eyes danced between his. “I think it takes some serious balls to try and kill your own damn son.”
He snickered. “I’ve never done anything of the sort.”
“And yet, here I am. Inclined to trust Bonnie more than my own father.”
“You’ve been inclined to trust her from the beginning. She was raised by Pava, and we know how strong his psychological game is.”
“What reason other than that do you have for not trusting her?”
He held his chin high. “I see what a mangled mess she’s made of your mind. Of your confidence. That’s why I don’t trust her. And through it all, I’m wondering what this has done to you. I’m wondering whether or not you’re really fit to run this empire.”
There it was. “Did Giovanni hire that hitman?”
“What?”
“Answer me, old man. Did Giovanni—”
He pointed up at me. “Don’t you dare come into my home and use that kind of language around me. I gave you everything, Israel!”
“And now my own family’s trying to kill me off because of the woman I chose to have at my side!”
My father’s face reddened with anger. “What did you just say?”
As I stood there, arguing with my father, it clicked. All of it clicked. The choices I’d made up until this point had all been manipulated and pre-established by my father. I’d never been the leader in this situation. Not since he’d approached me about marrying the Moretti girl in the first place. I’d been nothing but my father’s pawn.
And as fury filled my gut, I made myself a solemn vow.
I will become my own man with my own empire.
“Israel? Is that you?”
I blinked and turned to the woman who’d broken my heart so many years before. “Alice?”
Dad smiled. “I’m glad you dropped by, though. Alice and I were having a wonderful talk. Why don’t you come in and have a drink with us?”
“I’ll deal with you later.” I turned away from him to face Alice. “What are you doing here?”
She smiled sheepishly. “Your father seems to be under the impression that we could have a second chance together. And I’m inclined to agree, you know. After the anniversary party?”
I shook my head. “I’m sorry, Alice. But whatever conclusions you drew from—”
Dad interjected. “What he means to say is—”
I put my hand in my father’s face. “What I mean to say is there’s no second chance for us. I’m sorry for whatever my father’s dragged you into, but—”
He smacked my hand away. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll listen to what she has to say.”
Alice walked toward me. “We could make every other family jealous whenever we go out. They see you on my arm, see me on yours. We’d be two unstoppable families, and no one would mess with us. Ever.”
How many times could I be played? “So, you only want me for the power my family could give to yours.”
She furrowed her brow. “What?”
“Because with what you’re saying—after everything we’ve been through—it only sounds like you want this team-up for your own benefit and not mine.”
Dad piped up. “You’d get something out of it, too. Just like you were supposed to get from that Moretti girl.”
Alice frowned through a smile. “And I could love you, Israel.”
Could? “What?”
“I could love you. We could both love one another again if we simply gave it time.”
I couldn’t believe I was standing here listening to this. “You’d be shunned by your family. You’d lose everything if you hitched yourself to my wagon. There’s too much—”
She closed the distance between us. “Israel, I don’t care about what they’re talking about out there. Or what they say about your family. I love you. I’ve always loved you.”
A moment before she’d said she could love me.
“And the only thing I want is a bit of your time to prove to you that you could love me again, too. No secrets. No lies. I’ll be upfront with who I am, and there will be no more hurtful anything between us. You have my word.”
She’d said something similar the last time. I took a step back. “Dad, I have t—”
He pressed his hand against my back. “Talk to the girl, Israel. The least you can do is
