Chapter 39
DEX
I’ve been texting Daniela all night long.
Can we talk? Please. Just let me know you’re okay.
No response.
I wait an hour. Then another.
I send an email. I call twice, once from my cell, once from the office line. Straight to voicemail both times.
I leave another text.
Just get in touch. Please. I need to know you’re okay.
Still nothing. I check my phone again. Still no message. Still no ticks turning blue. Is she ignoring me? Or has she shut me out of her life completely?
I hold onto the hope that it’s because she’s in love with me and she knows that if she reads a single word I sent, she’ll crumble.
In trying to fix the problem the old man has created, because I know what matters to Daniela, and what is right, I took my eyes off us, got distracted, and now she’s gone.
But I love her, and this isn’t the end of it. I’m getting her back. I haven’t slept a wink and now I’m getting ready to board a flight to Brazil. I tell the old man, and my brothers that I’m away on business. I don’t take the private jet. Everything must be done stealthily.
Every time I close my eyes, I see her with him—Oscar Fucking Ramos. I let my wife slip through my fingers, the only woman who’s ever had my heart. And maybe… maybe she thinks I don’t deserve the chance to make it right.
The thought rips me to shreds. But this is my one and only goal in life—to get her back. My brothers are working the plan. Rio has personally contacted the trusted legacy investors, rival firms and quiet allies of Daniela’s family. The buzz is building and has created just enough market noise that the old man’s intel network starts to pick it up.
In a few days’ time, Rio will engineer the “crisis” that will help a quiet rumor to spread. The old man will start to take notice and by the end of the week, he’ll panic. Sometime in the next week or two, the shell company will step in anonymously offering a generous but not suspicious buyout of fifty-one percent.
I call Rio for an update. I need to go to Daniela, and I want to know he’s got this.
“Don’t you worry, we’ve got this,” he reassures me. “The old man will take the bait, and I guarantee that by the time you get back with your wife, he’ll be discussing a transfer.”
“You’re sure?”
“I told you. I’ve got this.”
I press a hand to my chest, trying to calm the thudding panic beneath my ribs. “Anything I should know about?”
“It’s all working as planned. He’ll get the company back,” Rio confirms. “Through the shell company as agreed. The old man won’t be able to trace a damn thing.”
I exhale, feeling a sharp relief. “Thanks, brother.”
I have a battle looming ahead of me, but I’m prepared for it. I can handle Ramos. It’s Daniela I fear. It’s her answer I fear. Fear that she might not want me back.
“What are you waiting for, dude? Go get her.”
I hope I can. “You think she’ll listen?”
“I think,” Rio says carefully, “you’ve got a small window before Oscar Ramos convinces her she doesn’t have a choice.”
My blood turns cold, because that’s what worries me. I’ve moved as fast as I can and now I’m about to fly out. I know how fast my wife, my ex-wife , moves when she puts her mind to something. “You think she’d really go through with it?”
“She flew all the way here to talk to Paul Knight. Who the hell does that? And she fought off a mugger. Dude, your wife has bigger balls than you.”
I smile. “She does, and I love that about her.”
“But you telling her about your exit strategy? Probably one of your dumber moves.”
I frown. “I didn’t want to have any more lies between us.” And then I think about it. He’s right. Daniela suffered too much betrayal that night. Me telling her about wanting to walk out, probably was too much.
“And dude, love? You actually used the ‘L’ word. You’re turning all soft.”
“I’ve come to my senses. I just didn’t realize it till I lost her.” I thought love was something I couldn’t have, but Daniela showed me I can. She’s given me the strength to go after what I need and what I want. Strength to love.
“Get on a plane,” Rio urges. “Go to Brazil. Go get the love of your life.”
I stare out at the skyline. New York feels gray today. Empty. Like something’s missing.
Because she’s missing.
“If it’s not too late,” I whisper. Daniela didn’t just love me, she saw me.
All of me.
And she stayed.
Until I gave her no reason to.
***
By the time I arrive at Daniela’s parent’s house in S?o Paulo, I’m soaked in sweat and regret. Her father answers the door, and his expression says it all.
“I’m too late, aren’t I?”
He shakes his head. “Not yet.” He steps aside to let me in. The familiar scent of the house, spices and fresh flowers fills the air. This is a cozy home, a home you’d want to come back to. Nothing fancy or sterile or cold about it.
It’s the type of place where I can see Daniela and her parents sitting down and having a good home-cooked meal. The type of home I want to come back to.
Just like that, I remember the first meal Daniela cooked in my apartment and suddenly, I long for that time again, being with her, living with her. The simplicity and security of domestic bliss, and I’m not sure how much of that was pretending. She changed me. For the better.
What kind of man lets a woman like her slip away from him?
An idiot like me.
Daniela’s mom comes rushing. “Dexter?” She keeps her distance as though she’s not sure how to welcome me, but I sense she wants to hug me.
I make the move first, stepping towards her. “Forgive me.” My voice falters.
She throws her arms around me. “You came for her.” We pull away and I see her eyes are filled with tears. “Save my child, please,” she begs.
My head snaps to her father. Daniela isn’t here, so where is she?
But I already know.
“She told me not to say a word, but she’s out with him,” her father says, voice heavy. “Oscar Ramos. A private dinner. Somewhere quiet. Exclusive. Just the two of them.
My blood pressure spikes. “Where?” I grind out.
“Brisa.” He sighs. “The restaurant at the top, with a rooftop view of the city.”
Perfect.
Just public enough for a scene. Just private enough for a declaration. I turn to leave, but he catches my arm.
“She told us she was doing this to fix everything,” he says, eyes glassy. “I know you’re working on something, too, Dexter, but you have to run. She can’t marry that monster. I don’t care what happens to my company. Let it burn. Let it rot. I can’t watch my daughter marry a man like that.”
I stare at him, stunned. “You won’t lose the company, sir. Everything’s going to plan.”
“My daughter. Save my daughter from him.”
“I will.”
“Go quickly,” his wife pleads. “If you love Daniela, go. Stop her from throwing her life away.”
I nod once.
Then I run.
***
It’s a fancy restaurant. I’ll give him that.
It’s the sort of place I’d like to take Daniela myself. Perched on the edge of the skyline, candlelit and sleek, where two people in love can just be. Stare into each other’s eyes and plan their evening, their future, their life.
Soft jazz plays alongside the clink of silverware and the muted conversations of S?o Paulo’s elite. Amid this quiet tranquility, I storm past the hostess before she can stop me.
And then I see her.
Daniela.
My wife.
Ex -wife.
There’s a pang in my chest, and the realization that she divorced me, sits heavy atop the pile of regret. She’s sitting across from Ramos, wearing a black silk dress that makes her look like something untouchable. Her posture tense, her smile, forced, her makeup minimal. She’s not in the least bit made up, like she was on the night of the charity gala. She doesn’t look happy, and that makes me happy, as twisted as that is.
Soon, I’ll rescue her from this. From him. I stride across. She’s looking down at the table, while Ramos lifts a champagne flute and smiles at her. “To our future—”
“No fucking way,” I growl.
He flinches and her eyes snap to mine, wide, stunned. Her long eyelashes fluttering as she blinks a few times, as if she can’t believe what she’s seeing.
“Dexter,” she murmurs, my name falling from her lips like a prayer. I can’t live without her. I can’t breathe without her. She gives my life meaning.
Ramos stands up defiantly, his face darkening. “You have five seconds to get out.”
I ignore him. “Don’t do this, Daniela. Please.”
“I have to,” she says, her brow creasing. “You don’t understand—”
“I do. More than you know.”
I step towards her, my heart in my throat. My life in her hands. “You think this is your only option, but it’s not. You don’t need to do something you’ll regret.”
Ramos steps between us, eyes hard. “If she regrets anything, it’s marrying you.”
“The fuck she does,” I snarl.
“She can’t trust you,” Ramos signals for something. Someone. “Your father stole her father’s company.”
“I’m fixing that,” I snap. “All of it. What my old man did, what he took. He’s going to lose it all.”
“Empty promises,” Ramos jeers. Just then I hear a skirmish behind me. Plates smashing, glasses shattering. I turn around, to find two burly men in a fisticuff.
My security detail, and I’m guessing, Ramos’.
“Call yours off,” I hiss to Ramos. “The last thing we need is a goddamn fucking spectacle.”
“I’m sorry.” I hold my hands up helplessly to someone who looks like the manager. Next to him, a team of servers quickly and quietly work at clearing up the mess.
“Don’t listen to this buffoon,” Ramos urges Daniela. “These people cannot be trusted. You know that now. You’ve learned the hard way.”
“Don’t listen to him. I’m putting things right,” I tell her. “We’re working on a deal to give your father his majority share back.”
Daniela’s eyes widen. “What? How?”
Ramos pokes me in the chest. “You little—”
“Get your fucking paws off me, man.” I turn to the woman I love. “I was a fool. I never planned to stay. But you changed that. You changed me.”
Ramos pokes me again. “You crazy American—”
“Let him talk.” Daniela’s voice, cold and cutting, stops Ramos in his tracks.
I’m desperate for her to believe me. “I know about the original contract,” I say, my voice low so that Ramos won’t hear. She stands up, her body slightly turned towards me, like we’re blocking Ramos out. Like it’s just the two of us here. “I know he intended to do the dirty from the start. He was just waiting for the year to be up.”
Her brows push together. “Your father ...”
“Is evil. I know. I warned you from the start.”
“I didn’t realize just how evil.”
“You wouldn’t have, because your heart is pure. There’s not an ounce of nastiness in you. I love you, Daniela. I love you so damn much, and if there’s even a sliver of a chance you still love me too, please don’t make this mistake.”
Ramos slams his hand on the table, reminding us that he’s still here. We flinch. “If she walks away now, Knight, you’ll never get the company back. She won’t either. I’ll make sure of it.”
“I won’t either? Is that a threat, Oscar?” Daniela’s voice has a deathly quiet edge to it. Ramos narrows his eyes, like the demure woman he thought he was dealing with is suddenly ready to slay. “I see what this is,” she continues, chin tilted up, eyes defiant. “It was never about helping my father. It was about owning me.”
The old man’s jaw ticks. “You made a deal, and you must keep it.” He starts to reach across the table for her hand.
I see red. “Touch her and I swear—”
The man stops. Daniela presses into the table, rising slowly. “I agreed to the deal, but I take it back.”
Ramos waggles his finger at her. “You’ll regret this. My men will destroy you, your family, and your father’s so-called legacy.”
I face Ramos, my voice calm but lethal. “And my family will eat you alive.”
Daniela steps forward, anger blazing in her eyes. “You don’t get to decide what happens to me, Oscar. Not you, not Dexter, not anyone. I choose my future, and who I spend it with. And I choose Dexter.”
She gives me her hand, and I grab it firmly, like my life depends on it, and it does. I see that now. Her palm, warm, soft, and familiar makes my skin break out in goosebumps. From the moment she walked out of my life, I’ve been on tenterhooks. Now, with her hand in mine, I find my footing on solid ground again. can finally breathe again.
Ramos pounds the table with his fist. “You’re doing this? You’re going back to the American? The one who broke you? The one who let you walk away? He’s not your future. He’s your mistake.”
“I don’t love you, I never will. But this man, he loves me, and I love him, and nothing can break that. He’s my future. He always was. My mistake? Coming to you thinking I’d run out of options.” Her eyes turn to mine, shiny, bright. “I should have trusted you, like you asked me to.”
I nod.
“But you left him,” Ramos hisses, breaking our tender moment. “What makes you think he won’t go back to his old ways?”
“I know this man. I know the deepest parts of him, and still I choose him. He might not be perfect, but he’s mine, and this time, I’m not walking away.”
Ramos’s face is flushed, his chest heaving. “You think this is over?”
I step in front of Daniela, shielding her with my body. “This is me being polite, old man. Disappear. Now.” He blinks. I lean in just enough for only him to hear. “You come near her again, I won’t sue, I won’t negotiate. I’ll bury you so deep your own men won’t find the body.”
Ramos stiffens, but I don’t give him the satisfaction of waiting for a reply. I take Daniela’s hand and we walk out of the restaurant without looking back.
“Asshole,” I mutter, as we stand outside in the balmy night air.
“You came for me, Dexter.” Her voice is soft, with a hint of surprise, like she can’t believe I’m here, for her. Claiming her back. My thumb brushes her cheek, and I don’t care who sees.
Behind her, Ramos leaves a few minutes later, with his bodyguard in tow. I bring my gaze back to Daniela. “I can’t live without you,” I confess. “It took me losing you to realize that.”
Tears glimmer in her eyes, but she smiles through them, soft, fierce, herself. And in that moment, I know. We’ve survived betrayal and trickery. Power dynamics and the old man’s scheming. We’ve come out the other end, and I know now that we can survive anything.
But there’s something I need to know.
“Why did you do this, Daniela? Why did you run to him, when I told you I needed some time and space?”
“How could I trust you?” she whispers, looking at me like she’s torn in two. Like she so badly wants to believe I’m going to do the decent thing, but she’s been so broken by all the lies, too distrustful of anything touched by the Knights.
“But I asked you for some—”
“Time and space, Dexter. I know, but I thought you were pushing me away again.”
I shake my head, catch her hands in mine, pressing them firmly, like I never want to let go.
“Never. You were finding out about the old man, and as soon as I heard what he did, I knew we needed to fight back. All I could think about was how to get your father his company back. I’m sorry I didn’t put you first. I thought you knew how I felt about you. I know how much your family means to you. I know what you did was out of love, you sacrificed your happiness to fly here, to meet a crazy American billionaire, from an even crazier family. I knew your main worry would be your parents. That’s all I was thinking of, how to put things right. I thought you and I were tight.”
I lift one trembling hand to her face, brushing my thumb along her jawline, feeling the way she shudders at my touch. I love her so much. I don’t just need her, I can’t live without her. She’s my oxygen, my redemption, my soul mate. She saved me from myself.
“But you were already thinking of an exit strategy. You weren’t even going to last the year.”
My face falls. “I was. I wasn’t thinking of you, I admit that. I wasn’t thinking of anything but revenge, at that time. You have to know that was before I went into this. And then I did start to think about leaving sooner, after three months …”
Her eyes widen, I see her flinch, and put my hand to her face. Needing her to listen and understand. I don’t want any lies between us.
“Hear me out, amor. That was after we came back from our honeymoon, when I was battling with my heart, warring with my emotions, denying that you meant anything to me. Denying that I was falling in love with you. Love is scary, Daniela,” I whisper. “I thought I wasn’t capable of love,” I continue, my voice wavering. “But you proved me wrong. I can’t let you marry someone else, because you’re the only woman who’s ever seen me. Truly seen me, and loved me anyway.”
Her eyes shine. A solitary tear slides down each cheek.
“I ran because I thought you were retreating again. You were pushing me away.”
“Never.”
“It felt like it.”
“I understand, and I’m sorry.”
“I wanted to believe you,” she whispers. “But I’ve been burned so many times, Dexter. Lied to. Used. And you’re a Knight. I didn’t know if you were any different. I thought you were back to your old tricks, coming home so late.”
I sigh with exasperation, seeing it through her eyes now. “I was on it the second you told me about the majority share.”
“How do I know this isn’t just another Knight maneuver?” she asks quietly. “Another play to protect the brand?”
Smart woman. I see her brain working, trying to triple-check this is real. Not taking my word at face value. “Because there’s no angle here, Daniela. No strategy. I’m not saving a company. I’m saving us.”
She presses against me, her head resting against my chest. I’ve missed this. Her touch, her words, her wisdom. I hate being alone and I plan to never be without her. I wrap my arms around her protectively. “I didn’t sleep that night,” needing her to know why I worked such late nights. “I hatched a rough plan. The next day, I called Rio. Together with Matteo and Enzo, we worked on it.”
She moves her head up, her brow lifting in quiet surprise. “You worked with them all?”
I nod. “Amazing, isn’t it, what family will do.” The weight of it settles in my chest like a punch. I’ve always called them the Italian Knights, like we were somehow different species, not born of the same blood. But somewhere in the simmering resentment, something changed. Despite everything the old man did to divide us, we showed up. We fought together. And in that moment, I realized he’ll never win.
Because blood is thicker than all the lies.
“We would work late into the night, at Rio’s place. We couldn’t do it at work. Needed the old man to think we were still enemies.” A smile crosses my lips just thinking about it. “We worked at Rio’s, over pizza and beer. That’s where I was. I couldn’t tell you, because I didn’t want to endanger anything. I didn’t want to give you hope until I knew things were working. It’s a delicate plan, requiring lots of little parts, and it will take time. I’ll explain it later, but I need you to believe me that I was there. You can ask Rio, Matteo and Enzo.”
“You came,” she whispers, her eyes searching mine.
I nod. “I couldn’t let you go. Because I didn’t realize just how much I needed you, until I lost you. Because I believed I hurt the people I love, destroyed them, and you taught me better. You showed me there was another way. It didn’t feel like winning, losing you. And now …” I press another kiss against her lips. “We win together, your family wins. Paul Knight loses.”
“Does he know?” she asks.
“Not yet. This deal will take a while to shake out, but it’s happening. Don’t you worry.” I nuzzle my nose against her, eliciting a giggle. Her expression relaxes. The tightness around her eyes disappears. I realize how close I came to losing her. Dinner with Ramos. A wedding would have followed soon. I can’t bear to think about it.
“You broke me, when you left, Daniela.”
“I’m sorry.” She lets out a shaky breath, her eyes boring into me. Then her fingers curl around my wrist, and she leans into me. “I hated myself for leaving,” she breathes. “Every second was hard. But I thought you’d already made your choice.”
“I did.” I step closer, our foreheads nearly touching now. “I chose you. I’ve always chosen you. I just didn’t say it fast enough.”
Her lips tremble and her arms wrap around my neck. My arms slide around her waist. My insides flutter with the familiarity of her heady scent. She intoxicates me, soothes me.
“I missed you, amor.” I press a kiss to her lips.
“I’ve missed you I don’t ever want to be apart again.”
“Then don’t ever run from me again, amor.” My voice is a whisper, to her upturned mouth. “You’re the only one for me, Daniela. Always.”