Chapter 24 Savannah #2
"Then what do you want?" His voice is cold now, all pretense of paternal concern gone. "To throw away everything for some criminal? To ruin your life and your family's reputation for a man who deals in violence and corruption?"
"Romeo has never hurt me."
"He's a criminal from a criminal family, and he's using you to get back at Thaddeus and me.
" Edgar moves closer, and his voice drops lower.
"Savannah, I know you think you love him.
I know you think this is some grand romance.
But it's not. It's a disaster waiting to happen.
And I won't let you destroy yourself for it. "
"You don't get to decide that. You don't get to tell me who I can love or who I can be with or—"
"I'm your father." His voice is final. "And I'm telling you that you will marry Thaddeus Whitmore as planned. You will end this affair with Romeo Ciresa. And you will learn to be the kind of woman your family needs you to be."
The words settle over me like a death sentence, and I realize with horrible clarity that this was always going to be his answer.
No amount of evidence, no proof of Thad's violence, no appeal to his love for me was ever going to change his mind.
Because Edgar Beauregard doesn't see me as a person.
He sees me as an asset. A tool. A means to an end.
"You don't care." My voice is barely above a whisper. "You don't care that Thad might kill me. You don't care that I'm terrified. You don't care about anything except your business deals and your reputation and—"
"I care about your future." But there's no warmth in his voice. No genuine concern. "I care about making sure you don't throw away everything for a momentary infatuation."
"I'm pregnant." I force myself to meet his eyes. "With Romeo's baby. And I’m keeping it. So whatever plans you had, whatever arrangement you made with the Whitmores—it's over. I'm not marrying Thad. I'm not—"
The slap comes so fast, I don't see it coming. One moment I'm standing there, and the next, my head is snapped to the side. My cheek is burning, and I stare at my father in shock.
He's never hit me before. Never. In all my years of trying to please him and sometimes failing, he's never once raised a hand to me.
"You stupid, selfish girl." His voice is shaking with rage. "Do you have any concept of the damage you've caused?"
I touch my cheek. I can feel it already starting to swell, and I'm too shocked to speak.
"I have spent years building this alliance.
Years cultivating the Whitmores, positioning our families for maximum advantage.
And you've destroyed it all for what? For some criminal who got you pregnant?
" His hands are clenched into fists. "You're going to fix this.
You're going to end things with Ciresa, and you're going to marry Thaddeus, and you're going to pass that baby off as his.
Do you understand me? Get Thaddeus to come back and fuck him tonight if you have to. "
I feel sick, hearing him speak to me that way. "No. I'm not going to do any of that."
"You don't have a choice—"
The door opens, and Romeo is there. His eyes go immediately to my face, to the red mark on my cheek, and something in his expression shifts and goes cold. Dangerous.
"Get out." His voice is quiet, but I can hear the violence underneath.
"This is a private conversation—" Edgar starts, but Romeo is already moving into the room.
"I said get out." He's looking at my father now, and I've never seen him look at anyone like this—like he's calculating exactly how much damage he can do, exactly how much pain he can inflict. "You have five seconds to leave before I make you leave."
"Romeo—" I start, but he holds up a hand.
"Did he hit you?" His eyes are still on Edgar, but the question is for me.
I touch my cheek again, and I can feel tears starting to fall. "Yes."
Romeo takes a step toward my father, and Edgar actually backs up. I can see fear flash across his face before he covers it with indignation.
"You can't threaten me—"
"This isn't your apartment." Romeo's voice is still quiet, still controlled. "This is mine. And you just hit my woman in my home. So I'm going to give you one chance to apologize to Savannah and leave peacefully. Or I'm going to break every bone in your hand and throw you out myself."
"Your woman?" Edgar sounds aghast. "She's my daughter. She's engaged to Thaddeus Whitmore. She's—"
"She's mine." Romeo moves to stand beside me, and his hand finds mine. "She's carrying my child. And she's not marrying Whitmore. Not now. Not ever."
"You have no say in this—"
"I have every say in this." Romeo's voice is harder now.
"I'm giving you one chance—one—to accept that and help us stop Whitmore.
Or I will destroy everything you've built.
I will dismantle you piece by piece. I will expose every corrupt deal, every bribe, every dirty secret you've spent decades hiding. And I will watch your empire burn."
Edgar stares at him for a long moment, and then he laughs. "You're threatening me? You're a thug. A criminal. You have no real power. No connections that matter. You think you can go up against the Beauregard family and win?"
Romeo smiles, and it's the coldest thing I've ever seen.
"You're right about one thing. I am a criminal.
Which means I don't have to play by your rules.
I don't have to worry about social consequences or public opinion or maintaining appearances.
" He takes a step closer to Edgar. "Men like you—you have systems you have to abide by.
Rules you have to follow, even when they're corrupt.
You have to maintain the illusion of respectability. You have to keep your hands clean."
"And you don't?" Edgar's voice is mocking.
"No." Romeo's smile widens. "I don't. Which means when I say I'll destroy you, I mean it literally. I will take everything you care about and burn it to the ground. And I won't lose a single night's sleep over it."
The silence that follows is suffocating. Edgar is staring at Romeo like he's seeing him clearly for the first time, and I can see the moment when he realizes that Romeo isn't bluffing. That he means every word.
"You're insane," Edgar says finally.
"Maybe." Romeo's hand tightens on mine. "But I'm insane about her.
And I will do anything—anything—to keep her safe.
So you have a choice to make, Mr. Beauregard.
You can accept that Savannah is with me now.
You can help us stop Whitmore. You can be part of your daughter's life and your grandchild's life.
Or you can keep pushing, keep trying to force her into a marriage that will get her killed, and find out exactly what I'm capable of when someone threatens what's mine. "
Edgar looks at him for a long moment, and I can see the hatred in his eyes, the fury at being dismissed, at losing control. But he's smart enough to recognize when he's outmatched.
"This isn't over," he says as he moves toward the door. "You think you've won, but you haven't. The Whitmores won't let this go. And neither will I."
"I'm counting on it." Romeo's smile is cold, dangerous. "Because when you come at me, I'll be ready. And I'll make sure everyone knows exactly what kind of man you are."
Edgar leaves without another word, and the moment the door closes behind him, I collapse. My legs just give out, and Romeo catches me, pulls me against his chest. I'm sobbing so hard I can barely breathe.
"I've got you," he says, over and over. "I've got you. You're safe. I've got you."
But I'm not crying because I'm scared. I'm crying because I finally understand the truth. My father doesn't love me. Maybe he never did. Maybe I was always just a tool to him, a means to an end, a way to secure power and social status.
"He knew," I manage to say through my sobs. "He knew what Thad did, and he didn't care. He wanted me to marry him anyway. He wanted me to learn to manage being beaten."
Romeo's arms tighten around me, and I can feel the rage radiating from him in waves. "He's never touching you again. I promise you that. He's never getting near you again."
"What are we going to do?" I pull back to look at him, and my face is wet with tears. "He's not going to help us. And Thad—"
"We handle it ourselves." Romeo's voice is hard, absolute. "No more trying to play by their rules. No more hoping your father will see reason. We do this my way now."