Page 140 of Ricardo

I say nothing.

Mario leans forward, forearms resting on his thighs now. “More than politics, I am concerned for family. Dante is not ignorant.”

“I am aware of my son’s intelligence.”

“Then do not become so blinded by this that you forget it.”

“I have not.”

“He knows you,” Mario continues. “He knows Julia. Perhaps better than you think. If something is changing between the two of you, he will feel it before either of you says a word.”

“I know that.”

“Good.”

I hold his stare. “We are not hiding this because we are ashamed.”

“I did not say you were.”

“We are taking care with it.”

“Then make sure that care does not become delay for your own convenience.”

The words strike closer than I care to admit.

I look toward the window, then back at him. “You think I would do that?”

“I think,” he says, leaning back in his chair, “that you have wanted very little for yourself for a very long time, Ricardo. Not since Dante’s mother. So perhaps you might find yourself blind to certain aspects.”

My eyes narrow.

There are few men alive who could speak to me this way and remain breathing.

Mario is one of them.

“This is nothing like that,” I say tightly. “I am not a boy in college, enamored over some girl.”

Mario does not retreat.

“No. You are a grown man with more power, more money, more enemies, and far more to lose.”

My mouth tightens.

“And Julia is not some girl,” he continues. “She is a woman with her own history, her own connections, and her own wounds. If you make a mess of this, it will not be a youthful mistake that money can fix.”

“I have no intention of making a mess of it.”

“No one ever has any intention of making a mess.” His gaze holds mine. “I am saying this because it needs to be said. If you want her, then want her with your eyes all the way open.”

The edge in Mario’s voice is still there, but beneath it, I hear something else: concern.

Not as don. As my brother.

I look down at the file on my desk, then close it with more care than necessary.

“She is afraid of hurting Dante,” I say.

Mario says nothing.