Page 21 of Queen’s Gambit

“Does your father know about Ms. Mikhailov?”

My eyes snapped to Maurice’s in the mirror. “How do you know about her?”

“Like I said, I’m a good listener.”

“Noted. And no, not yet. I need things in place before I propose to her.”

“May I make a suggestion, sir?”

“Yes, as long as it’s not that I marry Patricia. That is not happening,” I said, crossing my arms.

“No, I was going to recommend telling your father. Before you disagree, try to remember that he isn’t your enemy. He is trying to secure your future so that you have every opportunity to continue to succeed. I have never known your father to scheme as you claim. If he knows how you feel, maybe he can help you get what you want.”

It was unnerving to trust him with this information. If I did and Papa didn’t agree, he could use the knowledge against me and Ana. Secrecy had been the one thing that kept us safe. He could ban me from going on any more trips or tell her father. But then again, my mama had proven herself to be an incredible ally and had kept my secret.

“I don’t know, Maurice. It’s an awfully large risk,” I said.

“Maybe, but at least you’ll have stopped him from unknowingly creating more issues.”

Sighing, I had to agree that Maurice had a point. Papa had never been malicious, and he didn’t know of my feelings for Ana. If he only wanted me to be happy and have a plan then I needed to negotiate a new plan. The bottom line was that I’d need his help at some point and could only hope this wasn’t a huge mistake.

“Maurice, take me to the tattoo shop. There is something I need to do.” He looked at me and then smiled.

“You’ve got it, sir.”

I wasn’t spending another moment without Ana’s name on my body. She was mine, and I was going to prove it, starting right now.

It was after ten when I walked through the front door. I’d ignored the numerous calls from both my papa and mama while I was getting my new tattoo. It was a large piece and would take time to complete, but it would be stunning, just like her. I used the pain to clear my mind and the time to think and plan.

Following their voices, I found them in the sitting room. Mama spotted me in the doorway first and jumped up to run to me.

“Edmundo, don’t you ever take off like that again. I was so scared.”

“Sorry, Mama, I just needed some space to cool down,” I said.

She stepped back and cupped my cheeks, tears threatening to escape.

“I’ll leave you two to talk.” She looked between me and Papa. “Talk, Alessandro, no yelling, or I will be back,” she threatened before leaving the two of us alone.

“May I start,” I asked, sitting down.

Papa poured himself a drink and nodded.

“I want to start by apologizing for what I said to you. I was angry and felt threatened. I don’t respond well when that happens, but that doesn’t excuse how I spoke to you. I would never hurt you, Papa.”

Papa sighed and sat down on the couch across from me.

“Who is this girl?”

“I can’t tell you that unless you agree to help me and not sabotage my relationship. I won’t let you or anyone else rip us apart.”

He took a sip of his drink and finally met my eyes.

“She cannot be someone that I will approve of then.”

Shrugging, I unbuttoned my suit jacket and sat back.

“I don’t know what you’ll think. But if you suspect she doesn’t come from a good family, you’re wrong. If you think that her family doesn’t have money, you’re also wrong.”