The former was something that might only lead to disapproval and a warning from my Capo. The latter however could cost me everything, and not just me. Dad had worked hard all his life and was well respected. Even if he had nothing to do with my shit, he would probably be dragged into the mud with me.
揝antino,?Dante said with a curt nod. He stood in front of the window, his arms behind his back and a look of worry on his face. Despite his age, he oozed strength, and his authority certainly hadn抰 been diminished over the years. He was one of the few people I truly respected. Lying to him didn抰 sit well with me for various reasons.
揑抳e asked you to come to my office because I need your honest opinion on a matter.?
揂ll right. Dad always tells me I can be brutally honest, so that shouldn抰 be the problem,?I said, my voice reasonably calm considering the rage still bubbling under the surface.
Dante turned to face me fully, which made me work even harder to keep my face controlled. 揂nna抯 been accepted to attend a school for fashion design in Paris starting this Fall and I have to decide if I抣l allow her to go.?
揚aris,?I said, surprised, as if that was news to me. 揑 assume you抮e not talking about Paris, Texas.?
Dante let out a dry laugh. 揢nfortunately, Anna抯 dream is a year in France. Possibly longer.?
Did she really expect me to live in France for years? I sure as fuck wouldn抰 learn French just so she could eat baguette with a view of the Eiffel Tower. I couldn抰 believe I抎 allowed Anna to blackmail me. Why had I kissed her? What the fuck had gone wrong in my brain? 揟hat抯 a long time away from home.?
揑ndeed. You抳e been responsible for Anna抯 safety for years and I trust your judgment. I need to be sure that Anna will be safe living in Paris. That would require your presence at the very least.?
I took a deep breath. 揚aris is probably safer than Chicago for Anna, considering that the Camorra and the Famiglia are far away. If we make sure Anna抯 presence in Paris isn抰 widely known and we arrange for her to live as a normal student there, I doubt she抣l face more dangers than here.?
揊or the time of Anna抯 studies in Paris, you抎 have to uproot your entire life. You could only visit home when Anna comes back to Chicago for social events, which will happen frequently, but you抎 still have to give up your life for her.?
What life? I wanted to ask. Since I抎 become Anna抯 bodyguard, I抎 worked almost every day. And it wasn抰 just a fucking nine-to-five job. More like seven to ten in the evening. I had to always be available when she wanted to go anywhere. I was at her beck and call. So the only thing that would make Paris an even harder experience was that I wouldn抰 even be off at night and that I抎 have to sleep with an eye open to make sure Anna didn抰 sneak into my bed. 揑 don抰 have a wife or girlfriend, and my sister isn抰 living at home anymore. And I抦 sure I抣l see my father whenever you and Valentina visit or when Anna and I come to the States.?
揧ou抎 have to live a lie. It would probably be feasible to pretend you抮e her brother in public to explain the two of you being together all the time.?
Brother? Of course, Dante wouldn抰 want us to pretend to be a couple, which was probably for the best anyway. Crossing boundaries had let me here in the first place, so getting me in the mindset of seeing Anna as firmly off limits again was key.
揧ou can抰 have any days off, not even a night,?Dante continued, unaware of my racing thoughts.
I nodded. 揟hat抯 true. It抣l be challenging.?I cleared my throat. 揑抣l do it and I抦 confident I can keep her safe, but after I抳e watched Anna in Paris, I抎 like to resign as a bodyguard and return to working with Arturo. I miss that line of work.?
Dante抯 brows drew together. I wasn抰 sure if it was a good or bad sign. Despite knowing the man for decades, I had trouble reading him. He finally inclined his head. 揑 give you my word that you抣l become Enforcer once you抮e back.?
Fuck yes!
I couldn抰 wait to tell Anna one day, but definitely not any time soon. 揃etter not tell Anna yet. I don抰 want her to think I won抰 work properly because I have my head elsewhere.?The little she-devil would only find a way to convince Dante to keep me as her bodyguard or blackmail me into staying. After Paris, I was fucking done. Things between Anna and me were spiraling out of control, and Paris was already a ridiculously high risk.
揑 told Anna she could leave in February. We have to wait for her engagement and a few important social events to pass before she can leave.?
揥ill the Clarks agree to her going to France??
揟hey follow very different rules than we do, which brings me to my next point.?
I waited. I had a feeling I knew where this was going, and it probably had partly to do with me.