A Moment on the Lips(64)

‘You’re not going to turn into your father,’ she said softly. ‘If you keep believing that, you’re letting him ruin your future as well as your past. Think about it.’

Was she right? Had he been wrong, all these years? ‘But I told you, I broke my father’s arm. I pinned Niccolo to a wall and threatened to break every single bone in his body.’

‘And you did it only because you were trying to protect someone who was vulnerable, to stop someone being hurt.’ She paused. ‘The rest of the time … have you ever really been in trouble?’

He thought about it. ‘At school?’ He shook his head. ‘I worked hard. I’ve earned my keep since I was fourteen years old.’ It was the only way to get out of the misery at home.

‘In the holidays?’

‘Your grandfather gave me a job selling ice cream from a kiosk on the seafront.’

‘And then you made a business empire out of nothing.’

‘He gave me good advice.’

‘And you’ve repaid him for that. You have six restaurants. All your staff trust you and rely on you. So tell me, Dante Romano, just how are you like your father apart from possibly a physical resemblance?’

‘I …’ He couldn’t answer.

‘OK. Tell me something else. When you get a setback, what do you do?’

He thought about it. He didn’t just give up. He didn’t start drinking and then smashing things up, hurting people and taking out his frustrations on them, the way his father had. ‘I analyse things. I look at what went wrong, and learn from my mistakes.’

And then it hit him. Maybe it was time he made peace with his past. Time he went after what he really wanted. Time he made the right choice for himself, as well as for everyone else.

‘I love you, Carenza. That’s the other reason why I came here tonight. I wanted to tell you.’

She frowned. ‘Weren’t you in an important meeting?’

She had him there. ‘Yes. But you were more important. I thought you might be in trouble when you didn’t answer your phone, and it scared me spitless.’

Her eyes filled with tears. ‘You said it wasn’t going to work between us. That we had to be strictly business.’ She lifted her chin. ‘And you’re completely wrong.’

‘I know.’

‘You’re not your father.’

‘I know that, too,’ he repeated, keeping his tone mild.

She didn’t seem to have heard his admissions. ‘And let me point out something else: you inherit half your genes from each of your parents. Half your genes are your mum’s. The other half … Well, supposing half of your father was the violent side, and you inherited the non-violent side of him? So then you wouldn’t have any of the violent genes at all.’

He couldn’t help smiling at that. ‘I don’t think genetics works quite like that, Princess.’

She narrowed her eyes at him. ‘Call me an airhead and I’ll make you babble.’

He smiled. This was his Carenza. She’d just faced a tough situation, but she wasn’t going to let it get her down. She was going to find something to smile about. ‘I’m not sure if that’s a threat or a promise.’

‘Both. I think.’ She dragged in a breath. ‘I love you, too, Dante.’

‘We’re both going to have to learn to compromise,’ he warned. ‘But I’ve been thinking about it. This is going to work. And we’re going for a full merger.’

‘Merger?’

‘Uh-huh. Your business and mine. Actually, make that an expansion. We can add in an art gallery. And we’re not living above the shop or the restaurant. We’re getting a proper house.’

‘Merger.’ She blinked, as if she couldn’t quite take it in.

‘Marriage,’ he said.

Her eyes went wide. ‘You want to marry me?’

‘Yes.’

She coughed. ‘You once told me that you were the one who asked the questions. Isn’t that one meant to be a question, not a statement of fact?’

‘I guess so.’ He dropped down onto one knee. ‘Carenza Tonielli, I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?’

‘I have conditions.’

‘Conditions.’ That was definitely the princess talking. He hid a smile. ‘Do they involve high-end designer shoes and wedding dresses?’