human decency.”
The door to the study opened, and Robert King filled the space. “I think we need to have a talk,” he said.
“Whatever you have to say to Dante you can say in front of me,” Minerva said.
“I don’t think that’s true, Min,” her father responded.
“It is,” she said stubbornly.
“Fine,” Robert responded. He slammed the door behind him. “How dare you use my hospitality so poorly. She’s a child compared to you.”
“You weren’t angry when I came home with the baby!” she protested. “But now you’re mad?”
“Why rail at you for your decisions?” Robert asked. “You were out in the world on your own, and you did not consult me on your choices. You came home and presented them, and what was the point in holding a postmortem on it? I’m not angry at you. I’m angry at him.”
“That doesn’t make sense,” Minerva shouted.
But Dante knew that it did. Because Robert knew exactly where Dante was from. Not only that, he was thirteen years Minerva’s senior. A man who had seen more and done more than Minerva ever would.
She had been cloistered, sheltered by her family connections, and Robert had extended the same to him.
Robert had always counted on Dante to take care of Minerva.
Oh, yes, the fact that he was treating it as a betrayal made perfect sense to Dante.
And it spoke volumes about Minerva’s actual inexperience and age that she did not.
“Just tell me that you never took advantage of her when she was younger,” Robert said, his voice like iron. “Tell me.”
“I would not,” Dante said, keeping his voice even. “I swear to you, I would never abuse what you gave to me.”
“And yet,” Robert said, “here is the evidence that you have.”
“I seduced him,” Minerva proclaimed.
Both of them turned to look at her. Dante wanted to laugh. There she was, looking as she ever did, a university student in a sweater that was overlarge and a slouchy pair of jeans.
He couldn’t imagine her seducing a trembling virgin. Let alone a man of his vast experience and particular appetites.
“It was the night of my going-away party. Before I went to study overseas.” She gave her father a conspiratorial look and lowered her voice. “He was very drunk.”
Madre de Dios...
Dante remembered that night well. He was not drunk, and had in fact been in the company of a lush heiress who was much more age-appropriate to him.
“I’ve always had a crush on him,” she continued as the color rose in her face. “Yes. You see, I’ve always wanted him, and I thought that before I left I would get what I wanted. So I crept into his room and I... Well, I’m afraid I took advantage of him.”
“Min,” he bit out. “Stop helping.”
“It’s true! You were reduced. Your senses. I apologize for my predatory behavior. And I was ashamed. That’s why I didn’t... That’s why when I found out I was pregnant I hid it.”
“And why did you decide to announce it on TV today?” Robert asked.
“Well,” Minerva said, clearly hunting around for an excuse.
And if Dante weren’t so irritated he would be entertained watching her scrabble around for a reason why she’d chosen to reveal all today. And in public. She squinted. “I had been trying to talk to him. But he hasn’t been returning my calls. I assumed because he was embarrassed.”
“I was embarrassed?” Dante asked.
“Well, you were quite drunk,” Minerva explained, like he was a child. “I don’t know that you were up to your usual standards.”
He could strangle her. Cheerfully. If she weren’t holding a baby he might.
Her father, for his part, looked badly like he wanted to exit the conversation, and at least on that score he could give Minerva some points. She had successfully turned an uncomfortable situation into a horrific one, and Robert no longer looked angry so much as he looked utterly and completely appalled.
“You will, of course, do the right thing,” Robert said, directing that at Dante.
“Of course,” Dante returned.
“What’s the right thing?” Minerva asked.
“Obviously he’s going to marry you,” Robert said.
“In fact, I informed her of this only a moment before you came in,” Dante said. “She’s being stubborn. She has no concept of the consequences of her actions.”
“Well, then it will be up to you to ensure she does.”
“Dad,” Minerva said, her tone scolding, “stop playing the part of tyrant. It doesn’t suit you.”
“It does, however, suit me, cara mia,” Dante said.
She shot him a fearsome look.
He would never have ascribed a word like fearsome to Minerva before. She had always seemed timid to him. But standing there, cradling her baby as she was, her posture defiant and defensive, he found that fierce and fearsome were words that described her extremely well.
As irritating as he found the situation he was in, he could only admire it.
That she was a woman willing to do whatever it took to protect her child.
Along with that came the discomforting thought of her being touched by a man who was involved in organized crime.
What had happened? Had the man seduced Minerva? Had she seduced him? Was it a piece of truth buried in the outrageous story she had made up about taking advantage of Dante while he was drunk?
Minerva was twenty-one, but he couldn’t imagine that she had a very long or intense history with men. For as long as he’d known her she’d been unattached, and she had never seemed overly interested in that kind of thing.
He was basing that off her total lack of efforts when it came to making herself up. Her sister was a makeup mogul. If Min wanted to improve herself she could have easily done it.
But then, the fact that she had come back with a child, the fact that she had claimed for all the world that he was the child’s father, and the fact that he had never guessed she would do any of those things made him acutely aware of the fact that he didn’t actually know her that well at all.
“Your mother will want to speak with you,” her father said.
“I imagine Maximus will want to speak with me,” Dante said.
Robert gave him a long look. “Yes. I imagine. Though as you are marrying her...” He appraised him slowly. “You do know, I suppose, that this will put King Industries in your hands.”
“It had occurred to me.” There was no point pretending it hadn’t. Robert knew him too well.
“Had the timing been different, I would’ve suspected you of nefarious behavior, but you never inquired about the child, or made any effort to see if it was yours.”
“It didn’t occur to me the child could be mine,” Dante said. “And no, I didn’t plot this.”
“No,” Robert agreed. “A plot of yours would’ve been much neater.”
Dante grinned ruefully. “Well, at least we both agree on that.”
“I will leave you for the time being. But Dante, the wedding must