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“He adored yourhis little business, trying to win her hand But at the first sign of calamity, Portia fell apart She blamed hiht of your sisters’ disappointe unit of leeches that constitute your various uncles and aunts and cousins, and their taunts—that hat sent hirave No one believed in him anymore, Raphael, not even the woman he loved”

Raphael felt winded as if he’d been dealt a hard blow He’d thought of his father as a coward Instead, had his heart siiven up on him? Because he couldn’t bear to be diminished in the eyes of the woman he loved?

His father had been a man who’d cared deeply, a man who’d loved his wife, his family from the bottom of his heart

His vulnerability had only brought him ruin and a broken heart “You backed ht back”

A shrewd light entered his grandfather’s eyes “How?”

“You’d hear it from my own mouth? About Pia?”

He shrugged and exahter have to do with you buying up stock?”

“Basta! Stefano Castillaghi, Gio? You think I’d let that bastard touch VA? Did you think I’d ever give you the chance to pull soain?”

“So you claimed Pia” A cat wouldn’t have looked as satisfied as Gio did That his hunch had been right made Raphael’s blood boil

“I didn’t clai that I did You terrified her with your demands and your ill health She came to me as a last resort”

Silence thundered in the air instead of the outrage he’d expected Damn it, had Gio known that it was a pretense too?

“No one will coain At least no one that cares about her and not her wealth In the last month, all of Milan has seen how possessive you are of her Do not think I have not seen you look at her like a starved dog stares at meat”