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“Agreed.” I pursed my lips. “Let me put it this way: I’ve had affection for him all my life. There was a time, I admit, I was obsessed with him.” I grinned at Dad. “It’s not only the men in our family who get hit with obsession.”

“That was my worry. I was afraid Sandro would take advantage.”

“He never did.” I raked my bottom lip, not sure if Dad wanted to hear about my less than stellar behavior, but he needed assurance that Sandro did all he could to respect me. “Even when I threw myself at him.”

Dad gave a pained chuckle and scratched his brow the same way Matteo did when he was unsure or embarrassed. It was arare occasion when the men in my family found themselves in situations where they didn’t know what to do. “That’s…good,” he said gruffly.

I rolled my eyes. “What? No reprimands? You think your little princess can do no wrong?”

“You’re always going to be my little princess,” he said sharply. “He’s not taking that away from me.”

“Oh, Dad.” This time I scooted closer and picked up his hand. “You’re not losing a daughter. Can’t you see you’re gaining a son in Sandro?”

He stared at our joined hands. “I took advantage of him having affection for you. It was like having another son to look out for my youngest child.”

My mouth twitched. “So you did see him as a son.”

“It didn’t worry me at first until you were old enough to date.”

“Let’s not talk about my dating life.” All the men I dated paled in comparison to Sandro, especially now that I’d experienced the intensity of what it meant to belong to him.

“I should’ve sent you to a convent.”

I laughed. “I heard Sera had also been threatened by hernonnoand Luca.” I gave Dad a reassuring smile. “Sandro is not a phase. Yes, I was forced to marry him and he did so to protect me. But it gave us a chance to explore the feelings that were there all along. Sandro has always felt unworthy.”

“No man is worthy of you.”

“Says every dad about his daughter.”

“I just worry,carina.”

“I can’t stop you from worrying, but I hope you’ll let me make my own mistakes.”

Dad didn’t answer except to harden his jaw. I was afraid by the time this was over he would need to see a dentist to check the condition of his molars from all that grinding. I didn’t know howelse to soothe him. I myself didn’t know what the future held. But I admit it was a mixture of excitement and anxiety. I needed Sandro right now, but the Rossis needed him more. It wasn’t an overnight fix anyway. To convince Dad I was going to be okay was to show him proof. In time, I could give him that proof.

I was committed to this marriage. It had been my dream. A dream that had taken a detour into a nightmare, but its challenges were exactly what I needed. I didn’t need a change of place to find myself. I needed to get thrown into the deep end and claw my way out of it on my own. Because to exist in the darkness of Sandro’s world, I needed a little darkness in myself. To survive, I needed the grit. Not to be sheltered from it.

Mom walked in with a tray of milk and cookies. “How are you two getting along?”

“We’ll get there. Right, Dad?”

After my epiphany, the pull of leaning into my old man was automatic. His arm came around me and he kissed the top of my head. I spread my palm over his chest, feeling his heartbeat. The heart that was full of love for his children. It was soothing to know in all this turmoil I would always have my parents’ love.

“You never thought that I would become your most problematic child, did you?” I teased.

Mom laughed, handing me a glass of milk. “I think he’s always known you’d be his biggest headache.”

I straightened on the couch and protested, “Hey, I’m not bad.”

“I thought three older brothers would be enough to keep you out of trouble, but I forgot you have McGrath blood in you,” Dad teased back. The grimness in his features was gone. Without a doubt, it was largely due to Mom’s presence.

“Hey, is that a jab at me?” Mom mock-glared.

“Do I need to give you two a moment?” I asked dryly.

“No,carina,” Dad said. “Just sit between us, would ya?”

I resumed leaning against him. “Let’s watch a movie.”