Chapter 80: Finding Out Ahe Escaped
Dante’s POV
I cursed under my breath. What the hell was I thinking, letting Gianna cross my mind here, of all places?
I shut the thought down hard and forced my focus back where it belonged, on the only light left in my dark world, my daughter.
“I’m really proud of you, Princess,” I said once she finished telling me about making the honor roll again. “Your grades, your attitude… you’re doing incredible.”
She beamed, and my heart melted a little. “Thanks, Dad.”
I turned to Seline, who’d been calmly managing dinner with that same steady, motherly grace she always had.” And thank you,” I said quietly. “For everything you do. I know it’s not easy, giving up your own life to take care of my daughter.”
Seline’s eyes softened. “Our daughter,” she corrected gently. “Ariel is my daughter now, Dante. This is my family.”
Ariel reached over and squeezed her hand. “Thank you, Aunt Seline. For everything.”
“Always, sweetheart,” Seline said, smiling tenderly.
I watched the exchange, that familiar mix of gratitude and guilt crawling up my chest again. Seline had stepped into an impossible role after Esme died, raising her sister’s child as her own, managing a house that was never truly safe, and doing it all without ever asking for anything in return.
Well, almost never.
“I’ve missed this so much,” Seline said softly, her eyes meeting mine across the table. “These family dinners. I wish they could happen more often.”
“Me too,” Ariel chimed in, turning those big eyes on me. “Dad… I wish you’d spend more time with us. Or maybe we could come visit you at the estate?”
Everything in me wanted to say yes. To pull her closer, keep her within reach, protect her myself instead of depending on bodyguards and security walls.
But that was exactly why I couldn’t.
“Princess,” I said, setting my fork down. “I wish you could. But it’s safer here. The guards protect you, the location’s secure, and hardly anyone knows about it. My estate… everyone knows that place. Every rival, every bastard with a grudge. It’s not safe.”
Her face fell. “But…”
“You’re the most important person in the world to me,” I assured her. “I can’t afford to lose you. I won’t risk it.”
Ariel nodded slowly, disappointment flashing in her eyes. don’t want to lose you either, Dad.”
I reached across the table and squeezed her hand. “You wont. I’ll stay alive. For you. That’s a promise.”
“Daddy’s close to getting the bad guys who hurt our family Seline added, a bit too brightly. “And once that happens, we’ll be together again. No more distance. No more hiding.”
I shot her a look. She shouldn’t have said that. Shouldn’t have dangled hope in front of Ariel like that, or mentioned anything about what I was doing.
But Ariel’s face had already lit up. “Is that true, Dad?”
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Chulpher Browing Cut Ahe Escaped
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Damn it, Seline.
I forced a small smile and met my daughter’s hopeful gaze. ‘Yeah, Princess. Very close. And soon, it’ll all be over.”
I hoped to God that was true. Even if I didn’t know when. Just seeing the joy on her face made the lie worth it.
“I can’t wait for everything to go back to normal,” she whispered, her face glowing. “We can finally have those daddy–daughter dates again. Go to the park. Go shopping. Do normal things… like normal people.”
Every word cut deep. Those were the moments we’d shared when Esme was still alive, simple, ordinary things that now felt like luxuries. Every park could hide a sniper. Every restaurant could be compromised. Every crowd could turn into an ambush.
This is what she’s missing, I thought, my throat tightening. This is what my life has taken from her.
Ariel deserved to be a teenager, to laugh too loud, to have birthday parties, to invite friends over without fear. She deserved a father who could walk her to school instead of sending guards. She deserved peace.
Instead, she got me.
“Soon, love,” I promised.
Dinner eventually wound down, and Ariel pushed her chair back and began gathering the dishes.
“Hey,” I stopped her with a hand on her arm. “Leave it. You’ve had a long day. Go rest.”
To my surprise, she didn’t argue like she usually would. She smiled faintly and said, “Alright, Dad.” Then, with that playful glint I’d missed so much, she added, “But just so you know, I haven’t had any fainting spells in weeks. So technically, I could do this. But tonight…” she shrugged teasingly, “I’ll let you win.”
I chuckled, shaking my head. “That’s very generous of you.
“I’m going to watch my favorite movie,” she said, stretching. “Don’t take too long, okay? I want us to watch it together.”
“I’ll join you soon, Princess.”
She smiled and bounced off toward the living room, leaving me alone with Seline and a table full of dishes.
Seline reached for the small bell that would summon the chef. “I’ll have…”
“I’ve got it,” I intercepted her hand. “Really. I want to do this.”
She looked at me questioningly but didn’t argue. I started gathering plates, stacking them with more care than they probably deserved. Tonight I just needed to do something normal. Something that didn’t involve blood, guns, or men waiting for my orders.
For a few minutes, we worked together in silence, her collecting glasses while I scraped plates.
Then her hand brushed mine as she reached for a wine glass, and she didn’t pull away.
“Dante…” Her voice was soft, heavy with the kind of emotion I’d spent years avoiding. “I know how hard you work to keep us safe. And sometimes it seems like I don’t make it easy, but it’s only because I’m scared. Scared I’ll lose
you too.”
I kept my eyes on the dishes, avoiding her gaze so I wouldnt have to face what I already knew was coming. “I told you earlier, Seline, I’m not dying anytime soon.”
Her fingers rested on my forearm, stopping my movements I had no choice but to look at her, eyes dark, earnest,
and far too vulnerable.
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Chapter 80 Finding Out Ahe Escaped
+25 Bonus
“Dante… I know you’ve built walls around yourself. You shut everyone out after Esme died, and I understand that. But it’s been years.” Her hand slid up my arm, lingering. “Maybe it’s time you opened your heart again, time you saw what’s right in front of you.”
Fuck. This was the last conversation I wanted to be having.
I’d known Seline had feelings for me, hell, I’d known for years. It was one of those quiet, uncomfortable truths you try to bury and pretend doesn’t exist. She’d always been careful, respectful, never pushing too hard. But now, with the look in her eyes, hopeful, longing, it was impossible to ignore.
The problem was, I didn’t see her that way. I never had.
She was Esme’s sister. The woman who helped me raise my daughter. The one person I trusted to protect what was left of my family.
Anything beyond that would be a betrayal, of Esme’s memory, of the promise I made to her, and of the only part of myself I still respected.
I opened my mouth to respond, to let her down gently, to find some way to extract myself from this without destroying what little family I had left.
My phone buzzed in my pocket, the specific vibration pattern that meant business. Franco.
Franco never called unless something was wrong.
“I’ve got to take this.” I stepped back, pulling away from her touch.
The disappointment that flooded Seline’s face was immediate, her eyes dimming, her shoulders dropping slightly before she caught herself and smoothed her expression into something more neutral.
But business was business.
I turned away, already moving toward the other side of the dining area, creating distance. I swiped to answer. ” Franco.”
The voice that came through made my spine go rigid. Roug. Panicked. All wrong for a man who’d once garrotted three Russians without breaking a sweat.
“Don, there’s been a situation.”
“Gianna…” Franco’s voice broke a little, like he was afraid to say the rest.
I had no patience. “Fucking out with it, Franco.”
He hesitated for half a second too long. “She tried to escape Don. Through some kind of hidden passage in the garden. We didn’t even know it existed… Luckily we caught her before she made it out. She’s been restrained.”
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
