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CHAPTER SIX

NERVOUSLY EMMA SMOOTHED her hair, straightened her skirt, and then opened the door to the restaurant where she was meeting Larenzo. It had been three endless days since he’d shown up at her sister’s house, and Emma had almost started hoping that Larenzo had decided to leave them alone. Yet tangled up in that hope had been an absurd disappointment that he might have given up so easily.

She’d spoken to a lawyer two days ago, and he’d told her that since the charges against Larenzo had been dropped, he would most certainly have a legal right to see Ava. Access could be limited or denied if a court decided there was any danger to her daughter, but it was by no means clear cut or simple.

The next day Larenzo had called and Emma’s heart had actually lifted at the sound of his voice. They’d set up a meeting over dinner at a local restaurant, and Emma knew she had no idea what she wanted from this meeting. Her emotions and thoughts were all over the place, and no matter how she tried to order them they raced off in all directions as soon as she thought of Larenzo, remembered how he’d once been with her.

The atmosphere, she saw as she came into the restaurant, was elegant and understated, candlelight flickering over snowy white tablecloths. It almost seemed romantic, which didn’t help her disordered thoughts, her clamouring emotions. No matter what she and Larenzo decided about Ava, romance had no place in their lives any more.

She gave her name to the maître d’ and he showed her to a table in the back, set in a private alcove. Larenzo was already seated, and he rose as she approached. He wore a white button-down shirt and plain grey trousers, and yet he still seemed bigger and darker and more magnetic than any other person in the room.

Once, only once, she’d allowed herself to be drawn by that magnetic force. Now she knew she needed to be immune. To stay strong.

Emma sat down across from him, busying herself with putting her napkin in her lap as Larenzo settled back into his seat, seeming to take up too much space, too much air. Why had it become hard to breathe?

‘Thank you for coming,’ he said.

Emma took a deep breath, letting the air fill her lungs. ‘I didn’t really have much choice, did I?’

He pressed his lips together and Emma could almost feel the tension crackle between them. ‘This doesn’t have to be unpleasant, Emma.’

‘And how do you figure that?’ she shot back. She’d wanted to stay calm for this meeting but already her composure was cracking, revealing the fear and uncertainty underneath. ‘I’m here to discuss a man with Mafia connections being involved with my daughter—’

‘My daughter,’ Larenzo cut across her, his voice low and intense. ‘She’s my daughter too. Never forget that.’

‘Unfortunately, I won’t.’

He sat back in his chair, his fingers laced together as he gazed at her. ‘Do you hate me?’ he asked, as if it was a matter of academic interest, and Emma could only stare at him, flummoxed. Where had that come from? ‘Because,’ he continued, ‘you seem as if you hate me.’

‘I...’ She searched for words, disconcerted by how much his question had unsettled her. ‘I don’t hate you,’ she said finally. ‘I don’t feel anything for you.’ Which was a bold-faced lie. She didn’t know what she felt for Larenzo Cavelli, but it was definitely something. ‘But I love my daughter,’ she continued shakily, ‘and I want to protect her—’

‘And you think I don’t want that?’

‘I don’t know what to think about you, Larenzo. I have no idea what to believe.’

‘How about the truth?’

‘Which is?’ she demanded, her voice rising. ‘Eighteen months ago you confessed to a long, sordid list of crimes. A week ago, your business partner was convicted of those same crimes, thanks to new evidence, but what am I meant to believe? How on earth do you expect me to trust you?’

Larenzo expelled a long, low breath. ‘I don’t,’ he said flatly. ‘You can’t trust anyone in this world. That’s one thing I’ve come to realise.’

‘Why did you confess if you weren’t guilty?’

He pressed his lips together as he flicked his gaze away. ‘Because there was overwhelming evidence to convict me.’

‘How?’

‘Look, I don’t want to get into all that now. I left that life behind—’

‘And I’m supposed to just accept that?’

Larenzo leaned forward, his gaze glittering. ‘Emma, do you honestly think I’d put my own child in danger? Do you think I’d be here if I thought I’d be hurting Ava?’

Emma bit her lip. She didn’t think that, but she was still afraid. Still reluctant to relinquish control, to let Larenzo into Ava’s life. Into her life, in any way at all, and with a jolt she realised it wasn’t just because of his possible criminal connections. It was because this man affected her. And she was afraid to let him do that again.

Larenzo leaned back in his chair. ‘I left Italy for good and severed all ties to Cavelli Enterprises. Bertrano Raguso is in prison for the crimes he committed. That is all you need to know.’

‘Why New York?’ Emma asked. The waiter came forward to take their order, and she gazed blindly at the menu. She had no appetite at all. Finally she picked a relatively plain chicken dish, and Larenzo ordered for himself, before they were left alone again and he answered her question.

‘I wanted a new start. Cavelli Enterprises had no holdings in America.’

‘What’s happened to Cavelli Enterprises?’

‘Its assets were seized by the government. Everything’s frozen while the investigation continues.’

‘So even though there was evidence...?’

Larenzo’s mouth hardened into a flat line. ‘Bertrano is claiming he is innocent, but the evidence is incontrovertible.’ His mouth twisted. ‘In the meantime the company will most likely be liquidated, and its remaining assets distributed to shareholders.’ He spoke dispassionately, as if it was a matter of indifference to him. Emma searched his face, saw a hardness underneath his bland expression that she didn’t think had been there before.

‘Were you close to him? This Raguso?’

Larenzo hesitated, one hand resting flat on the tabletop. ‘A bit,’ he finally said.

‘And do you think he did it?’

‘I know he did.’ He shifted in his chair, his gaze arrowing in on her. ‘While I was in prison, my staff investigated and found proof of his guilt. But enough talk of what is past. It’s the future that concerns me.’

‘The past is important, Larenzo—’

‘I’ve told you all you need to know,’ he cut across her. ‘I want to talk about Ava.’

She knew it was coming, and yet she still resisted. ‘What about her?’

For a second his face softened, his mouth curving into something almost like a smile and just that little look made Emma start to melt. ‘What is she like? From the little I saw of her already, it seems like she knows her own mind.’

‘She does. She’s a force to be reckoned with, that’s for sure.’

‘Her strength will serve her well later in life.’

‘So I keep telling myself.’ To her shock Emma realised she was smiling, and Larenzo was actually smiling back.

‘I want to see her,’ Larenzo said firmly, and Emma took a deep breath.

‘There’s a playground near the house—’

Larenzo’s expression darkened, his eyes flashing silver fire. ‘A playground? Do you think you can fob me off with an hour or two at a local park?’

‘It’s a start, Larenzo—’

‘I’ve missed the first ten months of my daughter’s life. I want to spend time with her, Emma. Real time. Not be introduced to her as if I’m some stranger in a park playground.’

Emma stared down at the table, conscious of how quickly Larenzo had torn apart her suggestion. She’d wanted to stage-manage his entrance into Ava’s life, to exert some control over the proceedings, and hopefully to limit them. She should have known Larenzo wouldn’t let her do that. He was a man who was in control. Always.

‘Very well.’ She took a deep, even breath and let it out slowly. ‘What do you suggest?’

‘I’ve taken an apartment in New York, and it has plenty of room. I suggest you and Ava move there with me.’

Emma gaped at him, stunned into silence for a few seconds. ‘You want me to move in with you?’ she finally managed, her voice ending in something close to a squeak.

‘I’m not suggesting we have some sort of relationship,’ Larenzo clarified coolly. ‘I have no interest in that. But I want to see my daughter as much as possible, and be a real presence in her life. Your current living arrangements are neither sustainable nor suitable.’ He lifted one powerful shoulder in a shrug. ‘The answer seems obvious.’

‘To you, maybe.’ Emma nearly choked. She shook her head and reached for her glass of water. She’d never expected Larenzo to suggest something like this. To live with him...to be that near to temptation...

‘I don’t see an alternative,’ Larenzo answered. ‘I want unlimited access to my daughter—’

‘Unlimited? Larenzo, be reasonable—’ At the very most she’d thought she’d have to have some kind of joint custody arrangement with Larenzo. But this?

This was dangerous. Impossible. Tempting...

‘I don’t really see what the problem is,’ Larenzo replied calmly. ‘Surely you agree it’s better for Ava to have two interested and loving parents in her life?’

Emma swallowed. ‘Yes, but that doesn’t mean we have to live together—’

‘What, precisely, do you object to?’ Larenzo asked. His voice had gone quiet, dangerously so. ‘You’ll have your own room, your own bathroom, and your quarters will be far more comfortable than they are currently.’

Emma stared at him helplessly. He made it all sound so simple, and yet it wasn’t. It couldn’t be. ‘Everything’s changed so quickly,’ she finally said. ‘I can’t process it all—’

‘Then take your time,’ Larenzo answered. ‘You have until tomorrow.’

‘Tomorrow—’

‘I want to see my daughter, Emma.’

‘I know you do.’ Except she hadn’t expected Larenzo to feel this strongly, this fiercely, about his role as a father. That he did surprised her, but she realised she couldn’t resent it. She knew what it was like to have a parent who chose a life without you. Who walked away from her child. Despite all the obstacles, all the unknowns, she realised she was, amazingly, glad Larenzo wanted to be involved...even if she was scared about what it meant.

‘I can’t just live with you,’ she finally burst out.

Larenzo arched an eyebrow, all arrogant assurance. ‘Why not?’

‘Because...because...’ Because she was afraid of this man, and it had nothing to do with any criminal connections. She was afraid of his power over her, her need for him. ‘I need to have my own life, Larenzo. I was planning on moving out of my sister’s house for that reason. I’m twenty-seven years old and I’m not going to freeload off people for ever.’

‘So this is a question of money?’

‘Not just money,’ she returned. ‘It’s about independence and autonomy. I need to be my own person—’

‘And you can’t do that living in my apartment?’ He made her feel ridiculous, and yet she couldn’t just fall in with his plans, fit into his life without having one of her own.

‘I can’t believe I’m even thinking of moving in with you,’ she said, shaking her head slowly.

‘It makes sense.’

Emma didn’t answer. It did make a certain kind of bizarre sense, which both aggravated and alarmed her. Three days ago she’d thought Larenzo Cavelli would spend his life in prison. Two days ago she would have fought tooth and nail to keep him out of her daughter’s life.

And now she was thinking of living with him? She pressed her fingers to her temples and closed her eyes. ‘This is so crazy.’

‘Maybe so,’ Larenzo agreed with a shrug, ‘but it’s our reality. I won’t take no for an answer, Emma.’

She opened her eyes and stared at him, saw that coldness in his eyes, the hint of how hard he could be. ‘What would you do if I did say no, Larenzo?’

‘It won’t come to that.’

‘But if it did?’

He hesitated, then stated flatly, ‘I’d sue for custody.’

Emma jerked back, appalled. ‘So this is basically blackmail.’

‘No.’

‘Then what would you call it? “Live with me or I’ll take your child.” That’s what you’re saying, Larenzo.’

‘And what are you saying?’ he answered, a hint of anger in his voice. ‘“You’re my child’s father and I don’t want you involved in her life,” even though you know I am innocent.’

‘I didn’t say that—’

‘You’ve been saying that for ten months, Emma.’

She took a deep breath. Arguing would get them nowhere. ‘Things have changed, Larenzo. I recognise that. But you can’t expect me to fall in with your plans without a second’s thought—’

‘I haven’t. I told you, you have until tomorrow.’

‘Well, thanks for that,’ she answered sarcastically. There was no reasoning with this man. No swaying him. So what was she going to do?

The waiter came with their meals, giving Emma a few minutes’ respite from the intensity of their conversation.

She picked at her chicken, her gaze lowered; she didn’t think she could swallow a single mouthful. Then, to her shock, she felt Larenzo’s hand on her own, his palm warm and strong just as it had been a year and a half ago, when he’d covered her hand with his own and she’d felt, for a moment, closer to this man than anyone else on earth.

‘Why are you fighting this, Emma?’ he asked quietly, and his voice was as sorrowful as it had been back on that night. His touch and his words catapulted her to that time when she’d felt so much for this man, had longed to comfort him. Had seen tenderness and understanding in his eyes, had felt it in his arms.

A lump rose in her throat and she blinked rapidly, swallowed past it. ‘I don’t know,’ she whispered, and it sounded like a confession.

‘I want to be with Ava. I never had a family of my own, except...’ He stopped, his voice choking, and shook his head. ‘I don’t want this to be acrimonious, God knows. I want to get to know my daughter and love her. Please let me do that.’

She gazed up at him, saw the sincerity and emotion in his eyes, and felt her last reservations melt away. She believed Larenzo. She believed he was innocent, but, more importantly, she believed he wanted what was best for Ava.

She only hoped it was best for her too.