Chapter Twenty-Five

 

Cara picked up her pace as she neared the end of the block where she would turn for the bus stop, partly because it was chilly outside this early in the morning, but mostly because she dreaded walking past the infamous corner house that Mirai had warned her about. Just yesterday, in fact, when she’d made her usual Sunday trip to the laundromat, the two creeps who lived in the house had harassed her, calling out lewd, suggestive comments, and even following her a short distance as she’d walked briskly to the bus stop. Unfortunately, there was no other route she could take to the bus stop, at least not one that wouldn’t take her several blocks out of the way, so she resolved to not only remain extra aware of her surroundings but to keep her little canister of pepper spray in her coat pocket at all times.

She hated this time of the year, not only because the weather tended to be cold and rainy, but because it was still dark outside when she left for work and darker still when she arrived home late at night from her classes. Most days were so busy at the office that she often didn’t go outside for more than a few minutes, if at all, so her exposure to daylight was greatly reduced. Winter was the most depressing time of the year for her as a result, giving her cause to worry at times that she was suffering from Seasonal Affective Disorder.

Classes would be starting up again a week from today, an event that alternately dismayed and thrilled her - the former because it meant the resumption of late nights, weekends spent studying and writing papers, and not having a minute to herself; the latter because this would be the second to the last semester before she completed her studies and earned her degree. And the last few months where she would have to scrape together enough money to pay for the ever increasing costs of tuition, books, and fees. And then it would finally be time to start contemplating her future - where she would end up working and living, whether she would elect to remain in the San Francisco area, or perhaps move elsewhere in the country where the cost of living was cheaper.

Nick and Angela had been far too busy preparing for their wedding, and then heading out on their honeymoon, to have discussed the future with her just yet. But Cara would go into such a discussion with an open mind, knowing that she truly enjoyed working with both of them, and that if the terms were right she would probably welcome the opportunity to stay right where she was. Both husband and wife were equally brilliant in terms of their financial acumen, and she knew she could learn a great deal by becoming an official part of their team. Working for them would also allow her to remain in San Francisco, a place she’d gradually come to regard as her home, and where her best friend resided.

But remaining at Morton Sterling would also mean having to encounter Dante at least once a month, perhaps even more frequently if she began to work more closely with Nick and his clients. And that was definitely something she’d have to come to terms with at some point, and find a way to treat him in a professional manner without the past getting in the way.

There had been no further texts or other communication from him since Saturday afternoon when she’d finally replied to him, and Cara still wasn’t sure how she felt about his continued silence. She wondered if perhaps she’d been too hard on him, but then she recalled how humiliated she had felt after he’d shoved her up against a wall, kissing and groping her like she was some sort of horny slut, and thought angrily that she’d been too easy on him.

But now that the constant barrage of texts had finally stopped, it felt like - well, the end. And while she should have been both happy and relieved, all she felt was sad.

“Hey, baby, whatcha doing out this early? You need a ride somewhere? Cause we can do that. Hot babe like you shouldn’t have to take the bus everywhere, not when she’s got two guys like me and Joey who’d like nothing better than to show her a good time.”

Cara was startled out of her reverie when a car pulled up alongside of her. She was still half a block away from the dreaded corner house, and had planned to cross the street just prior to reaching it. But it seemed like the two creeps - Joey and his unnamed friend - were either heading out very early or arriving home very, very late, and it was her very, very bad luck to have been walking by at the same time their junky, lowrider car was cruising by.

She tried ignoring them, as she’d been doing these past few weeks, continuing to walk at a brisk pace and look anywhere but at them. But then Joey jumped out of the car and directly into her path, and his much larger frame wouldn’t allow her to pass.

“Excuse me, I need to get to work,” she mumbled, still refusing to meet his gaze. “I’ll miss the bus if you don’t let me by.”

Joey reached out and grasped her by the arm, startling her, and his leering, menacing face was mere inches from hers. “My friend Ricky just told you, babe - we’ll give you a ride anywhere you want. And maybe in return you can give us a little ride, hmm? Come on, get in the car.”

“No.” Desperately Cara tried to yank her arm out of Joey’s strong grasp, but only managed to wrench her shoulder in the process, causing her to yelp in pain. “Please leave me alone. I just want to get to the bus stop.”

Ricky had double parked the car by now, and joined the two of them on the sidewalk. “Too bad. Cause we’re in the mood for some fun. And we’ve had our eye on you for awhile now. You’re just the sort we like - long hair, nice ass, big tits. And Joey and I can show you a real good time, baby. Ever had two guys at once before - one fucking your cunt and the other up your ass?”

Joey reached out and squeezed one of her breasts through her coat, and Cara was so revolted she instinctively kicked him in the shins. She was wearing the new pair of boots she’d bought for herself, the ones with pointy toes, and Joey yelped in pain as the point connected with his lower leg.

“Fucking bitch!” he yelled, as he slammed a fist into her ribs, quickly followed by a vicious blow to her cheekbone.

Cara screamed, doubling over from the pain in her ribs and face, and struggled to remain upright. She felt two pairs of hands now grabbing at her, pulling at her coat and her purse. Desperately she fought to keep hold of her purse, which only earned her another blow to the ribs, this one administered by Ricky’s heavy black work boot. The pain was so intense that this time she did drop to her knees, scraping them on the sidewalk as she fell. One of the thugs succeeded in jerking her purse away, and wasted no time in rifling through it.

“Shit!” cursed Joey. “What a piece of crap phone this is, not worth a damn. And can you believe this cunt only has a fucking ten dollar bill in her wallet and no credit cards? What a fucking waste!”

“Guess she’ll have to make it up to us in some other way,” jeered Ricky, as he began to pull Cara to her feet.

She had trouble drawing in a breath due to the pain in her ribs, and she was willing to bet at least a couple of them were broken. Fighting off the overwhelming dizziness and her desperate fear, she shoved her hand into her coat pocket and pulled out the slim canister of pepper spray. Praying that she was using it correctly, she depressed the nozzle directly in front of her tormentor’s face.

From Ricky’s screeching and cursing, Cara guessed that she’d hit her target, and took off running, not bothering to look back. But she hadn’t gone more than a few steps before a hard body tackled her from behind, slamming her to the ground. The pain from her cracked ribs was so horrific that she passed out just as her head smacked against the sidewalk.

 

 

 

 

Dante nodded at the receptionist as he exited the elevator. “Hey, Anna, how’s it going this morning?”

Anna gave him a little wave, preoccupied as she was with answering calls and signing for a delivery from UPS. She knew from his frequent visits to Morton Sterling that it wasn’t necessary to call ahead and announce his arrival to Nick and his team, even for an impromptu visit like this one.

And Anna didn’t need to know that for once Dante wasn’t here to see Nick. Instead, he was hell-bent on seeing a very different employee - one who hadn’t answered any of the dozen different texts and emails he’d sent to her so far today.

After breaking things off with Katie last evening, he’d been sorely tempted to drive directly to Cara’s and demand that she hear him out. But considering how emotionally exhausted he was after the ordeal with his ex, he’d decided instead to get a decent night’s sleep before pleading his case before Cara. God knew he hadn’t slept well since Nick’s wedding, and he wanted all his wits about him when he pulled out all the stops to try and coax Cara into taking him back.

He’d done as his mother had so wisely advised him, and followed his heart when it came time to make this momentous decision. Dante was both proud and stubborn, and admitting to himself that he’d made a huge mistake in going back to Katie hadn’t been an easy task. But he was also man enough to own up to his mistakes and do the right thing when the situation called for it. And after a sleepless night of soul-searching, he’d known exactly what to do next.

He’d left Healdsburg right after lunch with his family yesterday afternoon, calling Katie on the way to ask if she was free for dinner. She’d accepted at once, sounding positively delighted with the idea, little knowing what his purpose was in extending the invitation. His next call had been to the restaurant, an establishment he’d patronized many times before and where he knew the maître d’ very well. Snagging both a reservation and the secluded table had been the easiest thing about this whole ordeal.

And of course Katie’s ego hadn’t allowed her to just let it go without a parting shot or two. Before he’d even reached home, she had sent a barrage of texts, emails, and voice mails, each one more virulent than the next, and all of them filled with insults, recriminations, and half-threats. He’d calmly deleted them all before deftly blocking her number.

He’d had a decent night’s sleep, though he had been awake before dawn this morning, mentally rehearsing what exactly he was going to say to Cara - provided, that is, she would even permit him to speak to her. He knew that she was also an early riser, and thus didn’t waste any time in texting her first thing. But when she stubbornly didn’t respond after so many messages, Dante decided to take the bull by the horns and confront her in person. Ideally, that particular confrontation should have taken place at her apartment after work, but he wasn’t sure if she had already resumed her night classes. And since there was no way this conversation was going to wait until ten o’clock tonight, he’d headed over to Nick’s office like a man with a purpose - a description that fit him to a tee right about now.

But when he arrived at Cara’s desk, he frowned to find her absent. Not only that but her computer was still off, and her desk neat as a pin. Adding further to the confusion, it appeared that both Nick’s and Angela’s offices were dark, even though he was positive they were due back at work today after their Hawaiian honeymoon.

“Oh, Dante. I - I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you had an appointment with Nick today. It’s just been such an awful, awful morning! Like a nightmare, really.”

He glanced up as Leah appeared by his side, looking both stricken and ever so slightly crazed, and was quick to reassure her. “Hey, take it easy, Leah. Nick doesn’t know I was stopping by, it was sort of an impulse. But what’s going on here? You look pretty upset.”

Leah nodded, and he realized now that she’d been crying earlier. “Oh, God, it’s terrible, just terrible, Dante! Poor little thing. Angela was so upset when she got the call, she just ran out of here like the place was on fire. Nick almost didn’t catch up with her.”

Dante’s pulse rate ratcheted up in alarm. “Is something wrong with the baby? Is Angela having a miscarriage or something?”

“No, no,” reassured Leah. “Nothing like that. Angela’s fine. Well, except for being all upset about Cara, of course. We all are. I just wish one of them would call with an update.”

“Whoa.” Dante held up a hand. “Slow down there a second, Leah. What about Cara? Did something happen to Cara?”

Leah’s eyes filled with tears again, and she sniffled loudly. “She - she was mugged or attacked, nobody’s exactly sure what, on her way to work this morning. Her friend called Angela from the hospital to tell her. I swear that Nick and Angela had barely walked through the door, hadn’t even taken off their coats, when the call came in. Angela didn’t know all that much, just that Cara was in the ER, but she promised she’d call with more information. We’re still waiting to hear, but I don’t want to bother her. Oh, God, poor Cara!”

Dante’s heart was racing so fast by now that it was a wonder he could even speak. “Jesus Christ.” He ran a hand through his carefully styled hair, not giving a damn what he looked like at the moment. “Do you know what hospital she’s at, Leah?”

“What?” Leah was weeping softly, and obviously distracted. “Oh, uh, she’s at General. San Francisco General. Why do you ask?”

He gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “I’m going to head over there right away. I’ll track down Angela and Nick and find out what’s going on.”

Leah looked greatly relieved at his announcement. “Oh, thanks, Dante! That’s good of you to offer. But can you really spare the time? I mean, I can just try calling Angela to get an update.”

Dante didn’t bother telling her that nothing and no one could have prevented him from dashing over to the hospital right now to find out what had happened to Cara - the woman he’d likely been in love with for months, but had been too blind to see what was right in front of his eyes until just recently. “I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he told Leah. “Cara’s important to all of us. Look, I’ll make sure someone calls you as soon as possible, okay? Take care of yourself.”

During his mad dash to the elevator, down to the lobby, and then summoning a taxi, he toyed with the idea of calling Nick to get more information on Cara’s condition, then thought better of the idea. Nick would start asking questions, like why Dante was so interested in Cara, and especially why he felt the need to rush over to the hospital to check on her. Dante was going to have some serious explaining to do, but for now the only thing on his mind was getting to Cara as quickly as possible, and finding out what her exact condition was.

‘Jesus, please let her be all right,’ he prayed silently. He recalled a dozen different prayers he’d learned during his many years at Catholic school, and prayed every one of them during what seemed like an interminably long taxi ride to the hospital. He tried to remain calm, telling himself that getting mugged could mean a lot of things, some more serious than others. And he would have hoped that Leah would have been more specific if something truly horrific had happened to Cara - like being shot or stabbed.

‘Don’t go there, just don’t,’ he scolded himself. ‘Don’t jump to conclusions until you see what’s happening for yourself. And, fuck it, why did I have to get the slowest fucking taxi driver in this city? I’m pretty sure I could walk there faster at the rate we’re going.’

When the driver finally pulled up outside of the hospital entrance, Dante all but shoved the fare in his hand, not waiting for change, and jogged inside. He made three wrong turns before he found the ER, and once inside the area found it to be total and utter chaos. Fortunately, it was hard to miss someone as tall as Nick, so Dante was able to locate him and Angela fairly quickly.

The newly married couple glanced up in surprise as he approached, though he could swear the look on Angela’s face told him she knew exactly why he was here. But he was far too worried about Cara to wonder if and when she’d confided in her boss about her past relationship with him.

“How is she? I went by the office and Leah told me what had happened,” he explained in a rush. “But she didn’t have any details so I headed over here to get the most updated information. What the hell happened?”

Nick’s scowl was terrifying to behold. “Two punks accosted her on the way to her bus stop this morning. Tried to rob her, I guess, but aside from her phone being all busted up her friend didn’t think they actually took anything. One of the neighbors heard some commotion, called 911, and an ambulance and the cops arrived less than a minute later. The punks ran off, but they live in the neighborhood, so I’m guessing they’ll get picked up sooner than later. Unless I find them first, that is.”

“Stop it.” Angela held up a hand in protest. “Nick, stop talking like that, please? It’s not helping Cara. Or me, for that matter.”

“Sorry, Angel.” Nick slid an arm around her shoulders and pressed a kiss to her temple. “I’m just so fucking furious right now that I really, really need to hit something. Like those two fuckers who did this to her. Or her total loser of a father who hasn’t even bothered to return any of my messages. What a fucking loser that asshole is, huh?”

The woman who’d been sitting on the other side of Angela suddenly vacated her chair, and Dante immediately slid into it. He placed a hand on Angela’s forearm, calling her attention his way.

“How is she?” he asked urgently. “What exactly is wrong with her? Jesus, they didn’t - you know - ”

“Rape her?” finished Angela in hushed tones. She shook her head. “No, it doesn’t appear that way. But she does have a concussion, bruises and scrapes all over, and they think two or three cracked ribs. She’s having some x-rays done right now so they can determine that. They’ll probably be admitting her after that.”

“Christ.” Dante ran a hand over his face, forcing himself to take several deep, calming breaths. He now knew exactly how Nick felt, because his own fists were practically itching with the need to punch someone, to inflict serious bodily harm on the punks responsible for what had happened to Cara - his sweet, vulnerable little Cara, who’d never hurt anyone in her life. She’d suffered through far too much for someone so young, and this morning’s vicious attack was beyond reprehensible.

“Leah mumbled something about a friend of Cara’s calling you?” prodded Dante.

Angela nodded. Her hands were trembling a little, even clasped tightly in her lap, until Nick took them between his own to still their shaking. “Yes, her best friend from college. Mirai. She was listed as Cara’s emergency contact on her insurance, and dashed right over here the minute she got the call. Nick and I had barely walked into the office when Mirai got ahold of me, and we came right over. But she’s left now, said something about it being her first day of classes, and that Cara would be furious if she missed attending. She’ll be back later today.”

“Okay.” Dante exhaled sharply. “And what’s this about her asshat father not having called back? What the fuck is wrong with that SOB anyway?”

Nick frowned, his dark brows furrowing together. “How do you know so much about Cara’s father?” he asked sharply. “And tell us again exactly why you felt the need to rush over here? I mean, I guess it’s nice of you to be so concerned about one of our employees, but a phone call would have probably sufficed.”

Dante hesitated, not sure if he really wanted to further provoke a pissed-off Nick right now. But before he could think up a believable response, Angela saved him the trouble - even while she opened up a giant can of worms in the process.

“He’s here because he and Cara were seeing each other for a while last summer,” she stated bluntly. “And I’m guessing he feels guilty about breaking up with her so he could get back together with Katie. Does that about sum it up, Dante?”

Angela was glaring at him now, but he’d rather face a dozen angry Angelas than a seriously enraged Nick. And there was zero question that his best friend was good and mad at this moment - at the punks who’d attacked Cara, at her useless father, and now at Dante. Unfortunately for him, he was the only one within striking range at this exact moment.

“You fucker,” hissed Nick, starting to rise to his feet. “I cannot fucking believe you had the balls to mess around with that - that little girl. She’s a kid, Dan, just a kid! And I lost count years ago of how many women you’ve had. What the hell were you thinking of?”

His voice had become louder and more forceful with each word that rumbled from his chest, and several other people in the waiting room began to turn and regard him with concern.

Angela tugged urgently at his suit jacket. “Sit down!” she demanded. “Right now. I’m going to tell both of you this just once, so listen up. You two are not going to get into this right now, understand? The waiting room of an ER is not where you get to hash all of this out. So knock it off, and let’s focus on the real reason we’re all here - Cara.”

Nick took his seat reluctantly, though the expression on his face was nothing short of murderous. Both men glared at each other for several minutes, with Angela unfortunately being stuck in the middle and thrust into the unwilling role of peacemaker.

Dante was the one to break the uncomfortable silence first, grudgingly admitting to himself that he owed Nick and Angela an explanation. “I never meant for things to go that far between us,” he muttered. “I was just going to take her out to dinner the one time, because it was her birthday, and I was trying to do something nice for her. That was going to be it. But, well…”

Nick rolled his eyes. “But old Casanova here couldn’t resist laying on the charm and getting another notch in his bedpost.”

“No.” Dante shook his head emphatically. “It was never like that with Cara, not at all. Hey, I’m not a complete bastard, Nick. Not like you were. I mean, before you met Angela, at least,” he amended hastily.

Angela gave him a tight smile. “It’s okay. I already knew what an asshole he was. Fortunately, that’s all different now or I would never have agreed to marry him, baby or no baby.”

Nick cuffed her playfully on the chin. “What can I say, Angel. I’m a changed man thanks to you, that’s the honest truth. But at least I did the right thing by you eventually - which is more than I can say for Dante.”

Dante winced at the accusatory tone of his best friend’s voice. “You’re right. I was a first class jerk. But without getting into all the private details of our relationship, I will tell you that Cara knew exactly what to expect between us. She’d be the first one to tell you that I never lied to her, never led her on. And when things ended between us, I tried to be as sensitive about it as possible, even though I know it hurt her a lot.”

Nick scoffed. “Well, of course it did, asshole. She’s just a kid, a babe in the woods compared to your other women. Compared to Katie. Speaking of which, how do you have the balls to be here pretending to care about Cara when you’re still involved with another woman?”

“I’m not,” assured Dante. “Involved with Katie, that is. As of last night officially. Things haven’t been the same between us since we got back together, and I’ve been seeing a whole different side of her this time around. Or I guess I just never wanted to notice it before since I was so blinded by her.”

Nick and Angela exchanged a look before he grinned at Dante. “What you really meant to say was that you were too dumb to notice it last time around,” corrected Nick. “See, if you had gone to Stanford like Angela and I did, you would have had a real education and been smarter about stuff like that.”

“Hah, hah.” Dante wasn’t about to debate the merits of their respective colleges, given that it would be two against one. “Book smarts don’t always equate to good old-fashioned common sense. Or listening to the advice your mother always gave you.”

Angela snorted. “Maybe your mother gave you good advice. Nick and I can’t say the same for ours. But why break up with Katie now? Did you two have a fight or something?”

“No. At least not until I told her it was over between us. Then she didn’t hold anything back, let loose with a string of insults that made my ears burn. I’m guessing Nick hasn’t heard some of the stuff she was flinging at me, even after spending all those years in NFL locker rooms. As for the timing of it all - I guess you could say the catalyst was seeing Cara at your wedding cozying up to her date. It sort of brought out the caveman in me, made me realize that I had real feelings for her. So I’m going to try and make it right between us now. If she’ll even agree to hear what I have to say that is. She’s pretty pissed off at me for some things I said to her at your wedding,” admitted Dante reluctantly.

“Hmm,” remarked Angela thoughtfully. “You know, I’m not even going to ask what you did to make her mad. But since Cara’s the nicest person I’ve ever known, it must have been something pretty rotten.”

Nick didn’t seem particularly happy even after Dante’s humble confession. “Listen up, buddy, and mark my words,” he warned, waggling a finger at Dante. “If you break that little girl’s heart again, I will make you regret you were ever born. Got it? I’m still so pissed about the fact that you got involved with her in the first place, and then made the bonehead move of the century by leaving her for that airhead Katie. So you’d better fucking make it right between the two of you again, or you’ll have to answer to me. And speaking of answering to me, what the hell is wrong with that loser father of hers? What sort of man gets a phone call - six of them, to be exact - saying that his daughter was mugged and taken to the ER and doesn’t immediately call back?”

Dante was about to offer up his own unfavorable opinion of Mark Bregante when a slim African-American woman dressed in hospital scrubs walked over to where the three of them were sitting.

“You’re here for Cara Bregante, right?” she inquired of Angela. “I think the nurse said you work with Cara.”

Angela nodded. “Yes, she works for my husband and me. Do you have an update on her condition?”

The woman, whose name badge read Rachel Selby M.D. - and who looked far too young to be an actual doctor in Dante’s opinion - nodded. “She’s being transferred to a patient room now, and we’ll be keeping her at least overnight. The CT scan we did of her head shows a definite concussion, but as long as she gets plenty of rest that should resolve itself over the next few days. We also did X-rays which determined she has two cracked ribs. Unfortunately, aside from wrapping them and giving her regular doses of pain medication, those will have to heal on their own. Aside from that, she’s got a number of bruises and scrapes, and I’m sure it will take her some time to get over the trauma of the attack. She’s been in and out of consciousness, though most of that is because she’s sleepy from the pain meds. But she was able to give a statement to the police officers earlier and seemed pretty lucid. Even recalled that she was able to zap one of the jerks who did this to her with pepper spray. Physically, she’ll be fine after some rest and just letting everything heal up.”

“Can we see her now?” asked Angela, already getting to her feet.

Doctor Selby glanced at the two men who flanked Angela, then back at her. “Not all of you at once,” she cautioned. “One, maybe two at a time, and then just for a few minutes each. She really needs to rest right now, that’s going to be the best thing for her. And don’t let her talk much, as even that can make the pain in her ribs worse. She’s in Room 424, but wait about ten more minutes before heading up there to make sure she’s all settled in. I’ll be in to check on her during afternoon rounds, and we’ll determine tomorrow morning if she’s ready to be discharged. Does she have anyone living at home with her? Between the concussion and the ribs, she won’t be able to stay on her own for at least a week.”

“She lives alone but she can stay with - ” began Angela.

“With me,” interrupted Dante. “She can stay at my place. I can arrange to work from home for as long as I need to and look after her.”

Angela looked dubious at this impulsive announcement. “Dante, honestly, I’m not sure that’s the best idea. Nick and I have plenty of room, and she might feel more at ease with us.”

Dante shook his head firmly. “The two of you just got back from your honeymoon yesterday, and the last thing you need now is a houseguest. Besides, you need to take care of yourself, Angela, and that baby. Cara’s going to stay with me.”

The doctor shrugged. “Look, I’ll leave the three of you to figure out the details. Or let’s have Cara decide what she wants to do. So long as she’s not alone, then it’s really up to her where she winds up. I’ve got to dash off now to see another patient, but one of the nurses can call me if something comes up.”

She hurried off then, leaving Dante to face a scowling Nick and an anything but convinced Angela.

“What makes you think that she’d want to stay with you if she’s that pissed off?” asked Angela calmly.

Dante sighed. “Guess I’ll have to convince her otherwise, huh? But if she’d rather stay with you, I won’t fight her on it. So now that that decision’s been made, how do we determine who gets to see her first?”

Nick and Angela exchanged a look, and he merely shrugged, silently leaving the decision up to her. She sighed, throwing up her hands in surrender.

“I’m too tired to argue with you, Dante. You can go in and see her first. But if she doesn’t want to see you, or you start upsetting her, forget about Nick kicking your ass, because it will be my foot doing the job,” she threatened.

Dante squeezed her hand. “If she really doesn’t want to see me, I promise I’ll leave immediately,” he assured her gently. “Let’s head on up, shall we?”

Despite Doctor Selby’s assurances that Cara would be all right after resting up and recovering for a few days, Dante felt like he’d just taken a blow to the gut when he saw her for the first time. She looked so tiny and fragile in the stark white hospital bed, an IV tube in her arm, and hooked up to a monitor of some sort. Her face was ghostly pale, save for the bruises that had already begun to darken her jaw and cheekbone. Small bandages covered the scrapes on her forehead and left forearm, and he guessed angrily that there were more scrapes and bruises hidden beneath the hospital gown she wore and the blankets that covered her body. The rage he felt at seeing her this way - bruised, bandaged, helpless - made him want to kick a hole into the wall, or throw the first heavy object he could find through a window. But he knew that violence and anger weren’t going to help Cara at this moment, so he took a few deep, calming breaths before murmuring, “Hi.”

Cara blinked sleepily, raising one eyelid to peer up at him as he stood by the side of her bed. Even as doped up as she so obviously was, though, she seemed startled to see him.

“Dante.” Her voice was barely audible, not much more than a hoarse whisper. “What – did - did Angela call you? Is that why you’re here?”

“No.” He pulled the guest chair up to the side of the bed, getting as close to her as he possibly could. Careful not to interfere with the various tubes and wires, he placed a hand gently on her shoulder. “Leah was the one who told me you were here. I went by the office this morning, determined to see you since you weren’t replying to my texts. I had something important to tell you, really important, and when you weren’t answering me, I realized it was going to have to be face to face. I figured you were still mad at me, and that’s why you weren’t answering my messages. But this - Jesus, Cara. This is the very last thing I expected.”

She nodded, her eyes closing tiredly. “Yeah, me, too. So much of it is still fuzzy to me right now. And - and it hurts to talk, to breathe. My ribs…”

Dante caressed her cheek tenderly. “Yeah, a couple of them are busted up, I’m afraid. And coming from someone who’s had their fair share of injuries from all those years of playing soccer, I can unfortunately tell you that it’s going to hurt like a bitch for a few weeks. Which is one of the reasons you need to take it easy and let someone look after you. Why you’re going to come stay at my place and let me be that someone.”

“What?” she asked incredulously, her head lifting up off the pillow in surprise. “Oh, ow!”

He grimaced as she clutched her ribcage. “Hey, take it easy, honey. Shh, just lay back and rest, okay? Guess I shouldn’t have sprung that on you without warning. But your doctor said you can’t be alone for the next week or so between the concussion and those ribs. And since I absolutely refuse to ever use that futon of yours again, you’re staying with me. In a very large, very comfortable king sized bed that doesn’t have to be folded out every night.”

Cara gazed up at him in bewilderment. “Um, I know I’m spaced out big time on meds right now, but aren’t you forgetting something here? Namely, your girlfriend? Remember her?”

Dante took her hand in his, the one that didn’t have an IV needle inserted in it. “Wish I could forget her, actually,” he admitted. “And I really, really wish I hadn’t let myself believe that she had changed, or that things would just go back to the way they’d been between us before she broke up with me. Speaking of break-ups, Katie and I are officially over as of last night. Done. Finito. For good this time.”

She gave his hand a tiny squeeze. “I’m sorry. Actually, I’m really not, but I’m sorry if you feel badly about it.”

He guffawed. “That’s one of the things I love the most about you, Cara mia. You’re always honest, always say what’s on your mind, and never pretend. And I’m handling it just fine, thanks.”

Despite her drowsiness, her eyes widened in shock. “Did - did you - what did you just say? That first part, I mean.”

Dante bent forward to press a little kiss to the tip of her nose, just about the only place on her beautiful face that wasn’t bruised or scraped to some degree. “Oh, you mean the part about how I love you? Oops, guess I sort of sprung that one on you, too, didn’t I? Yeah, it’s true. I’m crazy about you, Cara, and I think I have been from the start. And if I hadn’t been so stubborn, and so messed up over what had happened with Katie, I would have realized it a long time ago. And I don’t expect you to forgive me that easily, or agree to give me another chance, but I swear to you, Cara, that if you do I’ll do everything in my power to make it all up to you. And the very first thing I’m going to do - well, once you’re all recovered and up for the ride - is to take you to meet my mother. I told her about you, you know.”

Tears were glistening on her eyelashes, and he brushed them away with his thumb. “You did?” she asked in disbelief. “When?”

“Saturday. And you know what? I should have asked my mom’s advice a long time ago, should have brought you to meet her last summer. Because she would have told me the same thing then that she told me two days ago - when in doubt, follow my heart. And when I finally did, it told me what I think I knew all along - that I should have picked you, Cara. That you were the one who made me truly happy, the one I belonged with. So if you could possibly find a way to forgive me even a little, I promise to make everything up to you.”

Cara gave a brief shake of her head, wincing as even that tiny movement caused her pain. “You already have,” she whispered. “The moment you told me you loved me nothing else mattered. I love you, Dante. I have from the very beginning, even though I wasn’t supposed to.”

He pressed a soft kiss to her lips, then grinned as she promptly fell back asleep.

 

 

 

“So what you’re telling me is that you’d rather take your trophy wife on some little getaway to celebrate her birthday instead of flying out here to see your daughter who was viciously attacked earlier today? Wow, you know, when Cara told me about you, Mark, I thought maybe she might have been exaggerating a little. After talking to you for five minutes, though, I see it was just the opposite - she couldn’t begin to describe what a total waste of space you really are.”

On the other end of the line Mark Bregante sputtered and stammered angrily. “Now listen here, Dante - whoever the hell you are. You don’t know shit about my life, or about my relationship with Cara. So don’t start passing judgment about things you don’t understand.”

“Oh, I understand plenty, Mark,” replied Dante testily. “I understand that you more or less abandoned your daughter so you could play happy family with your new wife and kids. I understand that you cut Cara off without a cent or any warning, and used the money that you promised your first wife - on her fucking deathbed - would be spent on Cara’s college education on your spoiled, selfish wife instead. And I totally understand that you sure as hell don’t deserve a daughter like Cara. Now all I have to do is figure out a way to break it to her gently that her own father doesn’t care enough about her to fly out and see for himself how she’s doing after getting punched and kicked and traumatized. Then again, she might not be all that surprised.”

There was silence on the other end for long seconds, before Mark spoke again, his voice sullen. “It’s just not that easy,” he argued. “Holly and I made these plans months ago, and she’d be devastated if we had to cancel or postpone them. Not to mention the airfare and hotel are non-refundable, and I just can’t afford to lose that sort of money.”

“Tell you what,” offered Dante. “I’m a rich guy. Why don’t you tell me how much your little vacation is costing you and I’ll wire the money to your bank account? And on top of that I’ll pay for you to fly out here to San Francisco to see Cara, put you up in a hotel for a few days, the works.”

“Why the hell would you be willing to do all that?” asked Mark in disbelief. “You don’t even know me, haven’t even spoken to me until just now.”

“Because it would mean a lot to Cara to have her father here by her side right now,” answered Dante. “And making your daughter happy is my number one priority right now. So do we have a deal?”

There was another long pause before Mark told him, “I can’t. I’m sorry, I don’t expect you to understand, and you can think the worst of me, though it sounds like you already do. But I love my wife and making her happy is my top priority. And even if I re-scheduled this vacation for next week or next month, Holly wouldn’t understand. She - well, I’m afraid she’s always been jealous about Cara. And if I chose Cara over her, there’d be hell to pay from here until eternity. Look, I’ll call Cara tonight, I swear it. I’ll explain things to her, maybe arrange to fly out there next month sometime.”

“No, you won’t,” Dante told him sternly. “First of all, her cell phone was damaged when she was attacked, and isn’t functional any longer. And second, I’m not going to permit you to upset her when she’s already in such bad shape. You’ve apparently made your choice, Mark, and now there’s going to be hell to pay for you in a very different way. Because my advice to Cara is going to be to forget she even has a father. She has me now, and I’m more than happy to take care of her, something you’ve been a complete failure at.”

He disconnected the call then, so enraged that he didn’t dare remain on the line a second longer for fear that he’d say something really vile to Cara’s father.

“Here’s your phone,” he told Nick, holding it at arm’s distance. “Better take it from me quick, otherwise I’m liable to hurl it against that wall right over there.”

Nick somewhat gingerly removed his very expensive phone from Dante’s outstretched palm. “That bad, huh?”

“Worse. Can you even believe someone as nice as Cara has such a total dickwad for a father? Wait until I tell you what he said.”

When Mark had finally returned one of Nick’s multiple messages, Dante had demanded to speak to him instead, figuring that he had a better chance of keeping his temper under check than the fiery Nick. But that was before he’d realized just how small of a man Mark Bregante really was.

Nick shook his head as he listened to the details of Dante’s conversation with Cara’s father. “Unbelievable. You know, as much of a tool as my own dad was, even he would have flown out on the next plane to see me if I had wound up in the hospital. And when Angela had that accident a year and a half ago, her parents and her sisters drove up to see her. Admittedly, her father was the only one of the bunch who was actually worried about her, but be grateful for small favors, I guess.”

Angela walked over to them then, looking elated and exhausted at the same time. “You guys won’t believe this one,” she said, giving her head a little shake. “I just got off the phone with the police officer in charge of Cara’s case, who told me they’ve already apprehended the thugs who attacked her. And you will not believe where they caught up with the idiots.”

“Don’t tell me,” drawled Nick. “They were stupid enough to go back to where they were living, even though the neighbor who called 911 had already told the police what house it was.”

“Stupider than that,” corrected Angela. “Dumb and Dumber walked into the ER at this very hospital a little while ago so the one that Cara pepper sprayed could get treatment. Apparently she got him real good, and none of the home remedies they tried were working. Of course the ER staff was on the lookout for anyone coming in who’d been sprayed, so they called the police right away. Dumb and Dumber are officially in custody as we speak, being booked at the county jail.”

“Good news,” replied Dante. “Real good news. Now, you two should head home. At least Angela should. You need to take care of yourself, especially since Cara won’t be able to come in for at least a week, maybe longer.”

“No.” She shook her head stubbornly. “We’ve both got way too much work to get caught up on right now. I’ll be all right, just need some food and coffee. But if you don’t mind, Dante, we probably should get back to the office now.”

“I don’t mind at all,” he told her. “My schedule is clear for the day, and I’ve already told Howie I’ll be mostly working at home this week. I’ll stay here with Cara, maybe duck out and get some lunch for a few minutes when her friend returns. Otherwise, I plan to be here until they boot me out.”

Angela gave him a brief but fierce little hug. “Maybe I won’t have to kick your ass after all,” she joked. “You know, as awful as Cara looked when I went in to see her, she was also happier than she’s been in months. Maybe you do deserve her.”

“I’m going to do my damndest to convince everyone of that,” he assured her. “Look, I’ll call you later to update you on her condition, okay? You just make sure to take care of yourself and that baby.”

Nick slid an arm around his wife’s still-slender waist. “She will,” he said arrogantly. “Be sure to call us, Dan. And take good care of Cara for us.”

Dante waited until they were out of sight before extracting his own phone from inside his suit jacket. He scrolled through the list of contacts until he found the one he was searching for, an old high school buddy that he admittedly hadn’t kept in very close contact with as of late. But he knew that Carlos wouldn’t mind, and moreover that his old friend would be more than happy to accommodate his request.

“Carlos? Hey, que pasa, man? Yeah, I know. Go ahead and chew my ass out. Yeah, I know it’s been over a year since I called you last. Tell you what, let’s make sure to get together for dinner soon so I can introduce you to my new girlfriend. No, not the sexy blonde, that ended up being a big mistake. But listen, I’ve got a little favor to ask you, buddy.”

Carlos had worked for the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department for a decade now, and was fairly high up in the rankings from Dante’s recollection. And while Carlos didn’t work directly at the county jail, he definitely knew people who did, people who wouldn’t hesitate to help him out.

Briefly, Dante told his friend about what had happened to Cara, and that the two thugs who’d mugged her had just been taken into custody.

“Which in a way is kind of a shame, because my friend Nick and I - yeah, the football player - would have liked to get our hands on the little punks first. I don’t suppose you could maybe ask some of the officers there at the jail to, uh, make life something of a living hell for those thugs, could you? Ah, now that’s what I like to hear, Carlos. You’re a good buddy, you know? And dinner will be on me for sure, you pick whatever place you like. All right, it’s a deal. I’ll call you in about a week. Thanks.”

Dante was grinning from ear to ear as he ended the call. Under normal circumstances, he wasn’t one to condone violence. But every time the image of a bruised and battered Cara came to mind, he had to fight off the urge to hit something. And while what he’d told Carlos was true - that it would have been so much more satisfying to dole out the punishment to those muggers with his own two fists - at least he would have the satisfaction of knowing that they’d be pushed around mightily by the guards at the jail.

Whether it was telling off her loser father, or making sure the creeps who’d attacked her got what was coming to them, Dante vowed that he would do whatever it took from here on end to look after Cara. And to make sure no one ever had the chance to hurt her again.