C102 Not Now, Not Ever

Annabelle paced the room like a caged bear with her thoughts spinning faster with every step. She’d tried looking out the window, hoping for even a sliver of reassurance.

But she realised that it faced the wrong direction from where she had left the two of them.

She swore softly under her breath.

Of course, the one thing she needed right now had to be out of her reach too.

Her stomach twisted.

As much as she wanted to believe Dante wouldn’t go too far, she knew better than to trust that completely.

Dante Cazador was nothing if not unpredictable.

Whatever lines he drew, he crossed them at his discretion, not anyone else’s.

She couldn’t fool herself into thinking her pleas had changed his mind about sparing her father.

Her first instinct was to rush back out there, to put herself between Dante and Patrick, but Rio was stationed at the door.

And Rio, with his unyielding loyalty to his boss, was as immovable as a wall.

They had shared a few tentative, even friendly moments when Dante wasn’t around.

But that camaraderie evaporated when orders were involved.

Dante’s word was law, and Rio wouldn’t so much as blink if it came to hauling her back inside.

So, Annabelle didn’t waste her breath trying.

She paced instead, chewing on her lip and wringing her hands.

“Not that I care about my… Patrick. I just don’t want anyone to commit murder on my account,” she muttered to herself to justify her worry.

When she’d heard the sound of a car earlier, her pulse had spiked.

Was someone leaving?

Coming back?

She had even pressed her ear to the door.

But when Dante hadn’t entered, she figured it meant he wasn’t done with Patrick yet.

“Why does your face look all scrunched up?” Cathy’s sleepy voice pulled Annabelle from her thoughts.

Her younger sister was sitting up in bed.

She was rubbing her eyes as her tangled hair jiggled comically.

The sight of Cathy’s innocent smile tugged at Annabelle’s heart, but it wasn’t enough to ease her nerves.

“Nothing. I was just…meditating,” she said hastily as she went to hug the girl good morning.

Annabelle forced herself to focus as she helped Cathy get ready for the day.

“We’ll be leaving soon,” she told her, brushing out the girl’s hair with steady hands.

Cathy frowned. “Leaving? Why?”

Annabelle hesitated.

She doubted Dante would let them stay in the hotel much longer. “We’ll have to go somewhere else. Back to Acadia maybe?” she said hesitantly, annoyed that her final decision was still based on his response.

“Would you want to come with me?” she asked Cathy tentatively.

Cathy tilted her head, her bright eyes curious. “Wherever you go?”

“Yes,” Annabelle said firmly. “Wherever I go.”

There was a pause, and then Cathy’s brow furrowed. “Who was that man yesterday? The one you didn’t like?”

Annabelle’s hand froze mid-brush.

Nothing gets past Cathy.

She swallowed hard, searching for the right words. “That’s Patrick. He is our dad. He... left after you were born.”

“Did he leave because of me?” Cathy’s voice was small and hesitant.

“No,” Annabelle said quickly, crouching down so she was at eye level with her sister. “No, Cathy.

“His leaving had nothing to do with you. Sometimes, adults make decisions that don’t make sense. Patrick left because of his own... fickleness, not because of you. Any sensible person would be lucky to have you in their life.”

Cathy seemed to absorb that, but her frown deepened. “Will he stay at our house now?”

Annabelle hesitated. “Maybe,” she said honestly.

That only confused Cathy further. “But what if Tad comes back? How can Mom stay with both of them there?”

Annabelle let out a soft sigh. “I don’t have an answer to that, Cathy. That’s something Mom will have to figure out.”

Cathy nodded slowly.

Then she reached out to hold Annabelle’s hand. “I want to go with you,” she said quietly. “Wherever you’re going.”

The relief that swept through Annabelle was almost overwhelming.

She pulled Cathy into a tight embrace as unbidden tears stung her eyes.

She hadn’t realised how much she’d needed to hear those words until now.

“Thank you,” Annabelle whispered into Cathy’s hair. “Thank you, Cathy. I promise not to let you down.”

Her mind raced as she held her sister.

Whatever mess their mother decided to entangle herself in with Patrick, or Tad, if he ever returned, Annabelle wouldn’t let Cathy be dragged into it.

Not now.

Not ever.

If it came down to it, she’d use the threat she’d made to her mother before.

Nothing, and no one, would separate her from Cathy.

The door creaked open, and Annabelle quickly wiped her eyes and turned to see Dante standing in the doorway.

His presence sucked the air from the room.

She realised she had barely paid attention to his appearance earlier.

He was dressed sharply, as always, in a dark shirt that stretched across his broad shoulders, the top button undone.

His hair was slightly mussed, as though he’d run his fingers through it in frustration.

And his dark eyes locked onto her with a possessive intensity that made her heart stumble.

Cathy pulled back from Annabelle and grinned.

“Hi, Dante!” she said brightly, as if greeting an old friend.

Dante looked caught off guard, his formidable expression softening just a fraction. “Hi,” he said, his voice gruff. Cathy darted forward and hugged him around the waist.

Annabelle’s jaw nearly dropped.

Cathy barely said much to Dante before.

She’d been shy around him back at his place, and he’d kept his distance.

He had always watched her with a kind of quiet curiosity.

But now, Cathy greeted him like family, and Dante seemed unsure what to do.

After a moment, he patted her back awkwardly, his large hand resting briefly on her small shoulder. “You hungry?” he asked.

Cathy nodded enthusiastically.

“Good.” Dante glanced at Annabelle, his gaze hardening. “Rio’s waiting. He’ll take you to get breakfast.”

Cathy looked at Annabelle.

“Let’s go eat, Anna” she called chirpily.

Annabelle nodded at Cathy. “Go on, sweetheart. I’ll eat later.”

Cathy hesitated for a moment, then scampered off, leaving Annabelle alone with Dante.

The door clicked shut behind her, and the quiet that followed felt suffocating.

Annabelle’s chest tightened as she forced herself to meet Dante’s gaze.

His expression was unreadable, but his eyes burned with something fierce.

Something that made her breath catch in her throat.

“Better now than later,” she thought as she steeled herself.

But as she stood there, trapped under Dante’s penetrating stare, she realised just how unprepared she was for whatever storm he was about to unleash.

She doubted she would ever be ready for his intensity.