Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 65054 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 65054 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
“Well, now the money is paid, and you have no reason to stay there. How is this even a choice?”
“I’m pregnant,” I finally manage. “And Dominic is the father. So, no, I can’t just walk away from him now. It’s a lot more complicated.”
He doesn’t respond at first. He just stares at me, jaw tight, his face completely unreadable. Then he walks to his office, steps inside, and slams the door.
I go after him, pushing my way into the office. By the time I get there, he’s already in his chair, staring at the spot on the wall where Dominic’s business card was pinned.
“Papa?” I ask.
“No,” he says lowly. “Don’t ‘Papa’ me. How could you do this?”
His voice is quiet, but it’s full of rage. I’ve never seen him like this, and it scares me. I can take the shouting, but this quiet fury is too much.
“As I said, I’m a grown woman.”
He shakes his head. “Then why did you do something so childish? Sleeping with that monster is bad enough, but you got pregnant with his child? Didn’t your mother and I raise you better than that?”
My eyes start stinging with hot tears. “It just happened.”
“Did he force you?” he asks, meeting my eye. “It’s okay, Sofia. He’s a powerful man, but I’ll fight for you.”
“No!” I shout. “He didn’t force me, I chose to be with him. I want to be with him.”
“You don’t know who he is,” he tries.
“I do,” I say bravely. “I know exactly who he is and what he does and what he’s capable of. He told me everything.”
He shakes his head and looks down at his desk. The shame and disappointment are written so plainly on his face. I feel like a child again, being reprimanded for breaking a vase or bombing a math test. Of course, this is much, much worse.
“Okay,” he finally says. “A baby is a miracle, no matter where it came from. I want to be part of my grandchild’s life.”
Finally, he’s seeing reason.
“Of course you’ll be part of his life,” I say, a tear sliding down my face. “I don’t want to do this without you. He’ll need his grandpa around. I’ll need you around.”
He looks back up at me with shining eyes. “Then you can’t let Dominic be involved.”
I stop breathing for a second. What he’s asking is so unfair. Either I let my child be fatherless, or I make myself fatherless? That’s no kind of bargain.
“How could you want that for your grandchild?” I ask harshly.
“How could you want this life for your child?” he asks, gesturing around. “This is the kind of life you’d be giving him. Constant violence and blood feuds. You’d never know if you were safe. Dominic would probably keep you locked away around the clock just to keep his enemies off you. What kind of life is that?”
“We’d be taken care of. My child wouldn’t want for anything ever again. He could go to the best schools. He could be anything he wants to be, instead of just an assistant.”
“So that’s it?” he asks. “You blame me for the fact that you’re ‘just an assistant?’”
“I don’t want to get into this with you,” I beg. “That’s an entirely different conversation. The point is, I can’t deprive my child of a good life, and if you really loved me, you wouldn’t ask me to.”
“Little girl, I have done nothing but sacrifice for you,” he huffs. “And I will continue to sacrifice for you. You can move into my place. I’ll help you with the baby. I’ll close down the shop and take care of him full-time. You could go back to school. Be something better than an assistant if that’s what you want.”
“With what money?” I ask, incredulous. “You were barely scraping by as it was. If you close the shop, you’ll have nothing.”
“I own my home,” he argues.
“For now,” I say. “You’re getting older, and you’re going to need more medical care. Don’t you see how staying with Dominic would be good for all of us?”
He shakes his head. “No, Sofia,” he says sadly. “I see nothing but destruction and pain if you stay with him. And I want no part of it. The choice is yours. I’ve told you what I’m willing to do to help you. But if you still insist on staying with that man, I want nothing to do with you or your child.”
The tears flow freely now, and my face burns. His eyes are cold and empty, though I know that’s just a tactic. He wants to pretend this doesn’t touch him. He wants to act like losing his only child forever is fine with him.
At his core, he’s no better than Dominic but he doesn’t see it that way. He’s prideful and thinks everything in this world should go the way he plans it.