Chapter 23 #2
Oh, my heart. Pushing up onto my elbows, I smile through my sleepiness. “He’s learning.”
Dante grins and lifts the covers, showing me his pajama bottoms. “This time, I’m better prepared.” He kisses my forehead. “Stay, darling. I’ll make him breakfast.” Swinging his legs over the bed, he calls, “I’ll be right there, Noah.”
“Oh.” I sit up too, brushing my hair from my face. “I can do that. You have to go into the office early.”
“Go back to sleep.” Dante stands, bends down, and kisses me on the lips. “I kept you up way too late last night.”
A shiver of pleasure runs through me at the memory.
Another knock sounds. “Daddy?”
Dante grabs a T-shirt from the chair where he’s left it last night, no doubt in preparation for getting up for our son. “I’m coming, Noah.”
My heart swells as I watch my husband pull the T-shirt over his muscular chest. He planned on letting me sleep in all along, knowing that I was close to collapsing by the time his sexual appetite was finally sated, and I find the gesture impossibly sweet.
I’m tempted to get up anyway. Dante will be tired too. He works long hours and often continues to work in his office when we’ve put Noah to bed, but I also grant them the time together. I have plenty of hours to bond with Noah during the day. Dante has a lot less of those special moments.
When I finally go downstairs an hour later, showered and dressed in a comfy sweatshirt and lounge pants, Emily is humming to herself while dusting in the lounge.
“Morning, Tiana,” she says with a smile as I pass.
“Good morning.” I stop in the doorway. “You’re up early.”
“It’s age.” She sighs. “I couldn’t sleep.”
“Have you thought more about what we spoke about yesterday? I don’t want you to be unhappy. It’s important to me that you feel at home here.”
“I do.”
“That’s good to hear. Please tell me if that changes.”
“I will if you promise to do the same. If you want space, I expect you to be honest with me.”
“I promise.”
“Good.” She nods to herself. “That’s settled.”
Contemplating the strange exchange, I continue on my way to the kitchen where I find Dante and Noah in front of the stove.
Dante is barefoot, still dressed in the pajama bottoms that ride low on his hips and the white T-shirt that shows off his tan and his muscles under the soft cotton.
Noah stands next to him on a stepladder with a spatula in his hand.
A strong feeling of déjà vu hits me. The sensation is so intense that I’m momentarily thrown off balance. The nostalgia is almost painful.
As if sensing my presence, Dante glances over his shoulder. The look he shoots me gives me butterflies.
“Grab a seat, darling. You’re just in time for the house special.”
I pad closer and peer over Noah’s shoulder. “Pancakes?”
“Look, Mommy.” Noah points at the pan. “They have chocolate chips.”
“Mm.” I slip my arms around Dante’s waist and kiss his back. “That does look good.”
Dante switches off the gas and turns around to pull me into an embrace. His voice is husky. “Tastes good too.”
He presses a lingering kiss on my lips that makes my stomach lurch with untimely desire.
“Do you want some, Mommy?”
Dante breaks the kiss and pulls away from me reluctantly. “There’s bacon in the oven.”
He grabs Noah around the waist before lifting him into the air and flying him like an airplane, complete with the noise, to a chair at the island counter.
Noah laughs like only a happy child can laugh, reveling in the attention.
Once he’s seated, Dante serves us. While Noah dribbles an unhealthy amount of syrup over his pancakes, Dante pours me coffee. As I bring the mug to my lips, he pushes a stack of brochures over the counter toward me.
I glance at the glossy booklets. “What are these?”
He sits down and pulls me onto his lap. “Prospectives schools for Noah.”
I fan through the collection. “These are all private and very exclusive.”
He wraps an arm around my waist and puts his hand on my leg. “You say that as if those are bad things.”
My skin catches fire where his fingers are splayed over the outside of my thigh. “I’m just worried that their methodology may not be right for Noah.”
Rubbing a thumb over my leg, he studies me. “Why wouldn’t it be?”
I went to one of those schools, and I know the price I paid. “I don’t want to push him into a mold that may squash his creativity and ignore his unique strengths and weaknesses in lieu of some elitist group of academics’ idea of success and conformity. I just want him to be happy.”
He considers that for a moment. “I went to one of those schools for boys, and I was happy.” His lips quirk. “More or less.”
“I wasn’t.”
“All right,” he says slowly. “You know Noah better than anyone. I’ll let you decide.”
At that unexpected declaration, a warm, fuzzy feeling spreads through me. He’s showing me that he trusts me, that, despite my selective amnesia, he trusts me to know my child. He trusts me enough to leave one of the biggest decisions we can make about our son’s future in my hands.
Of course I’m not going to make the decision on my own.
I want to visit the schools and speak to the teachers, and I want Dante to be present.
His opinion is important to me. But he has no idea how much his faith in me means.
Like the congenial dinner of last night, I didn’t know how much I needed that vote of confidence.
I tilt my face up to hold his gaze. “You’ll really let me choose?”
He kisses me, his lips warm and soft and tasting like coffee. “That’s what I said.”
I only know one way of expressing my gratitude. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I whisper, “I love you.”
His expression becomes strained. Maybe he’s not comfortable with oversharing in front of Noah. I know how hard it can be for some men to say those words. My mother never heard them from my father. Neither did I.
Respecting Dante’s boundaries, I back off. “I already did some research of my own. How about we each select our top choices and schedule visits?”
“Set it up.” He rubs his hand down my thigh and squeezes my knee in an act that’s both reassuring and intimate. “I’ll be there.”
When Dante leaves for the office, I clean the kitchen while Noah fashions an airplane from play dough at the counter.
I call Jazz while he plays soccer with Dante’s men outside. We make a lunch date for the following week when she can take a break from rehearsing. She’s taken up singing lessons with her private tutor again, wanting to make sure she gives the audition her best shot.
A couple of hours before lunch, an idea comes to me. I want to thank Dante for his generosity, not only for showing me that he trusts me but also for being so good to us. He’s a model daddy and husband.
Taking special care with my appearance, I dress in an ice-blue dress and high heels. Noah insists on also changing when I tell him about my plan. He decides to wear his chinos and a button-down shirt with new sneakers that he tells me Dante bought for him.
When we’re ready, I tell Emily that Noah and I will be out for lunch.
Ulysses is on door duty. After what happened, Dante doesn’t want me to drive alone or to go anywhere without bodyguards, so I ask Ulysses if he’ll take us to town. Dante has never said so explicitly, but I’m sure the guards report our movements to him. It’s a measure he’d take for our safety.
Ulysses is surprised when I ask him to drive us to Dante’s office. He escorts us inside the building and into the elevator. If I’ve been here before, I don’t remember it.
An attractive woman with glossy, black hair and a wide smile on her red lips greets us when we exit on Dante’s floor.
She takes both my hands in hers. “I’m Penelope. You can call me Penny.”
I offer her a hesitant smile. “We’ve met before, haven’t we?”
“Briefly.” She waves a hand. “My appearance wasn’t that memorable.”
“You’re just trying to make me feel better. I take it Dante enlightened you?”
“He did.” She scrutinizes me. “How are you doing?”
“I’m fine.” I smile. “Making progress, I hope.”
“Just take it day by day and be easy on yourself.” She turns to Noah. “And here’s the young man I was dying to meet.”
Noah stands up straighter and holds out a hand.
Grinning, she shakes his hand. “Oh, my. You do take after your father.”
“He does.” Pride wells up inside me. I motion at the firm handshake he’s giving her. “In looks as well as mannerisms.”
“I dress like Daddy.” Noah puffs out his chest. “He bought me a soccer ball and lets me watch games on television.”
Penelope—Penny—gives an approving nod. “He sounds like a great dad.”
“He’s the best,” Noah declares with solemn conviction. “My dad is the strongest. He can hit a goal with his head.” He taps his head to stress the point.
Penny’s expression is amused. “Now that’s something I’d like to see.
” She winks at me. “I only get the grumpy or serious side.” She hooks her arm through mine and leads me through an open-plan area where people stop working on their laptops to stare at Noah and me.
“Come. He’s in a meeting, but I’ll let him know you’re here. ”
The hallway leads to a big meeting room. Dante is visible through the glass walls, standing at the head of an oval table while addressing a group of men wearing expensive suits and serious expressions.
When he looks up and spots us, he goes quiet in the midst of what he was saying. Penny waves. Everyone turns their heads our way.
Suddenly not so sure about my brilliant plan, I say, “We can wait in the reception area.” I’m clearly interrupting something important.
Penny lets me go. “Can I get you something to drink? We have a variety of healthy choices.”
I’m about to decline her offer when Dante raises a hand and says something. The men all stand.
Penny raises a brow. “Well, that’s a first. You should come around more often. I can never get him out of those meetings.”
Dante opens the door. The men file out, shooting me glances as they leave. I don’t know who they are, but they don’t look happy at having their meeting cut short. Noah must feel intimidated, because he slips his hand into mine as the formidable men walk past us with brooding expressions.
“I’ll leave you to it,” Penny says in a bright tone before waltzing away.
Dante exits the boardroom when the last man has gone. He stops in front of me with his hands shoved in his pockets, watching me with that intense light in his beautiful eyes.
I feel like I used to when we first started going out—completely out of my league.
Back then, I was just an inexperienced girl, and Dante was already a man.
I’m not that girl any longer, but the gap between us isn’t only about experience or age.
It’s the huge power difference between us.
He’s a god, one of the most powerful and dangerous men in the city, and I’m just a woman who fell for him.
“Tatiana.” His eyes crinkle in the corners. “This is a surprise.” He takes me in. “You look gorgeous.”
Feeling self-conscious, I hook my hair behind my ear. “I didn’t mean to cut your meeting short. We could’ve waited.”
Noah sticks his thumb in his mouth as he looks around the formal space.
“Hey, buddy.” Dante ruffles his hair. “I’m glad you’re here. Do you want to see my office?”
Reassured by Dante’s attention, he drops his hand at his side. “We came to take you to lunch.”
Dante gives me a smoldering hot look. “What a great idea.”
I can feel myself blush like a teenager.
The little smirk that curves his lips is self-assured. He knows exactly what he does to me.
“Come.” He takes Noah’s hand, pulling him toward a door at the end of the hallway. “Let’s do the tour before we head out. Did you book us a restaurant?”
Being addressed like an adult has Noah in his element. “Mommy said we should let you choose the restaurant.”
“Excellent.” Dante ushers us into a big office with floor-to-ceiling windows and a breathtaking view of Manhattan. “I know a great Italian restaurant that’s just around the corner. They make a mean spaghetti.”
Noah’s face lights up. “I love spaghetti bolognese.”
“It won’t be your mom’s.” Dante shoots me a private smile. “But I’m sure you’ll like it.” He takes a remote from a console table and points it at a big television mounted on the wall. “Let me show you how this works.”
I remain in the background, my heart overflowing with joy and gratitude as I watch Dante teach Noah how to navigate the commands.
It’s one of those simple but perfect moments, the ones that truly matter.
It’s my biggest dream come true. I don’t know how Dante convinced my dad not to marry me to Joni Stein.
I don’t even know what happened to Joni or where he is today.
All I know is that this is where I’m meant to be.
With Dante.
He was right. Whatever is keeping me from remembering isn’t important. Us being together as a family is all that matters. Nothing can come between us. I love him too much. And even though he doesn’t say the words I long to hear, I know in my heart he loves me too.