Chapter 25
LUCA
It was two days after Alessia’s ordeal, and I was close to losing my mind. I learned she’d gone back to her apartment but not much else. She had only texted a few words here and there, and I’d tried not to push her, but my patience was wearing thin.
I never claimed to be a good man.
I wasn’t even necessarily the best man for her, but I didn’t care.
She was mine. Period.
I would do whatever it took to make her understand, and that included asking her father for help. I wasn’t normally the type to ask for any sort of help, let alone with a woman, but for her, there wasn’t much I wouldn’t do.
Attempting to be respectful, I set up a time to meet with Enzo at his office. It was a Friday afternoon, but the place was still bustling with activity. When I entered his office, I realized I was already feeling more comfortable around the man.
“Have a seat,” he offered in a formal tone. “What can I do for you?”
“I want to talk to you about Alessia.”
He didn’t look surprised. “I know you’re very interested in her, but you need to accept she may not be cut out for this life.”
“There’s nothing to be cut out for—I’ll protect her,” I argued in return.
“Like you did this week?” His eyes were stone cold, but the rest of his features were impassive.
“I’d do a hell of a lot better than you.
At least I didn’t turn a blind eye as my daughter was sexually harassed in an office down the hall.
” My temper was flaring, and it wasn’t going to help me win his support, but I’d be damned if he questioned my abilities when he had been just as negligent if not more so.
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“Her boss, Coleman was his name. He’d been harassing her, making passes at her, even groping her right here at Triton from the day she started working for you.”
Worry lines creased his forehead, and his eyes fell to his desk. “Why didn’t she tell me? Or report him to HR?”
“She said you’d want her to handle it herself, so that’s what she was trying to do, but her methods were ineffective. I caught him forcing himself on her in the bathroom a week ago.”
“Coleman died about a week ago, he was…” His eyes found mine, silent communication passing between us. The tension in his shoulders eased as realization dawned that my devotion to Alessia knew no limits.
I would keep her safe at all costs.
Enzo gave a single nod. “I did the best I could with my girls. This world is a dangerous place, and it’s hard to know how best to protect your children.”
“You kept them uninformed and weak.”
“Be careful how harshly you judge me,” he warned with a bite in his tone. “God willing, someday you will have children of your own, and I think you’ll find the task much more challenging than you could ever imagine.”
“You’re right,” I conceded, lowering my head with a sigh.
“I get emotional where she’s concerned—something I’m not used to.
I haven’t seen her since before she was taken, and it’s making me rather unbearable.
I nearly decapitated one of my best friends when he suggested I needed to get laid.
I want your daughter. I know I can make her happy, but I need help making her see that—getting her to accept our way of life and to accept me. ”
He stared at me for a long moment, his expression detached.
“I appreciate your persistence—it’s an important quality in a young man.
I also believe you’ll keep my daughter safe, which is of the utmost importance to me.
For those reasons, I’ll see what I can do, but I can’t promise anything.
Alessia is her own woman, and she has the freedom to choose who she sees. ”
“I understand,” I replied, dizzy with relief. “All I ask is you talk with her.” I stood and reached out my hand, which he accepted with a firm grasp. “Thank you, Mr. Genovese.”
“Call me Enzo. I have a feeling I’ll be seeing a lot more of you.” He glared at me sardonically, and for the first time, I saw a touch of humor in the old man’s eyes. He’d not said it in so many words, but I’d just received Enzo Genovese’s blessing to date his daughter.