When It Falls Apart (The D'Angelos, #1)(66)

“It’s fine, cara. I have a chef out. I’ll be working a lot the next few days.”

“Text when you can. I’ll get the messages and respond.”

He smiled. “I will.”

They said their goodbyes and Luca disconnected the phone.

Franny walked around the corner from her room, ready for school. “Was that Brooke?” she asked.

“It was, and she wanted you to know she is studying.”

Franny smiled. “Good. Because I have a pop quiz.”

Luca paused. “A what?”

“Pop quiz. It’s a surprise test teachers do sometimes. And I have one for Brooke.”

“I’m sure she’ll do fine.”

Franny hiked her backpack over her shoulder a little higher. “Let’s go.”

Luca found himself staring at his daughter and worried about sharing her with a mother she didn’t remember. “Let’s go,” he repeated.



“What do you want? What do you really want?” Luca sat across from Antonia in one of the many tables in the courtyard of the Marriott. They moved away from the pool, and anyone that could overhear them.

She had suggested they talk up in her room. He refused.

He didn’t trust her and wanted to make sure there was no misunderstanding in his feelings.

“I have no ulterior motive, Luca. I want to know my daughter.”

“For how long? A week? A month?”

Antonia sat forward. “I don’t expect you to understand. I have lost years already. My own fault, I know. That’s going to change.”

“How do you plan on doing that?” Luca rubbed his thumb and forefinger together in circular motions. The questions coming out of his mouth had been thought of the night before with Gio. Antonia never planned anything, unless it was a way to get what she wanted without working for it.

Even now, looking at her, he could see the shadow of an ulterior motive. She was perfectly polished. Her nails painted, those eyelash extension things women liked. Luca couldn’t tell you a designer label to save his life, but her clothes didn’t look worn or outdated.

The car she drove was not the one she’d left town with years ago.

“It starts with me seeing my little girl. Spending time with her.”

“What does that look like to you?” he asked.

“I don’t understand the question.”

“What is your plan, Antonia? Your life plan? How do you plan on being a part of Franny’s life? You gave up custody when you walked away. You handed me divorce papers and said we could fight, or I could give you what you wanted, and you’d leave.” He pointed to his chest. “I held up my end of the bargain. You got your lump sum, your freedom, and never looked back.”

“A mistake I will live with for the rest of my life. I’m her mother, Luca. I have rights and you know it.”

His jaw tightened. “Be careful.”

Antonia softened. “We split amicably, and we can do this the same way. I don’t want to fight you.”

All he could think about was fighting her.

The phone in his pocket buzzed. He pulled it out and looked at the screen.

Brooke’s name popped up. He forced the call to voice mail.

He considered the woman in his life. Look at the effort she was putting in for the parent that was absent nearly all of her childhood. Did she despise her mother for keeping her away from her father in her childhood? Is that even what happened? How would Franny feel as an adult if he forced Antonia to go away?

He wiped his hand down his face, scratched at the stubble on his jaw.

“What is your plan, Antonia? Where are you going to live? Do you have a job, or did you invest the money I gave you and don’t need to work, what?”

She blinked several times; her half smile never fell. “I have some provisions. I need a little time to figure the rest out.”

“Time? How much time?”

“You sound so angry, Luca.”

“I am angry. But more, I’m worried for my daughter. She’s learned to live without you. To have you come back into her world just to leave again could scar her for life.”

Antonia recoiled. “I’m not a monster.”

She was to him.

Antonia looked away. “I haven’t been well, Luca.”

He paused. “What do you mean?”

She closed her eyes. “I promised myself I wasn’t going to tell you about this. I don’t want sympathy to rule you here.”

He hated how sincere she sounded. “Tell me.”

“I’ve been ill.”

He hesitated. “What kind of illness?” She didn’t appear sick to him.

“It started with fatigue. The doctors ran blood tests, haven’t completely ruled out cancer, but haven’t found anything definitive yet.”

“You’re tired.”

She narrowed her eyes. “They looked for autoimmune issues, and things I couldn’t even pronounce. I had managed my money well. Better than before I met you.” She smiled briefly as if the statement was a compliment. “But the money dissipated quickly as the medical bills piled up. And then I simply kept having problems. The experience has changed me, Luca. Made me realize that I may not live forever.”

For the first time since he laid eyes on her, he started to feel something other than anger.