Sienna sat across from him. “I didn’t come here to call you innocent.”
“Then why did you come?”
“To tell you Milo had his first nightmare since the cemetery.”
Dante’s face tightened. “What happened?”
“He woke up calling your name.”
Dante looked away. Sienna reached across the table and rested her hand over his. He went rigid — and then, slowly, turned his palm upward and held her fingers instead of pulling back. It was the first time he had willingly let a woman touch him since Elena died.
“I can’t ask you to wait for me,” he said.
“I’m not waiting.”
His eyes came back to hers.
“I’m raising Milo. I’m helping the investigation. I’m rebuilding an entire life.”
“Good.”
“And every Friday, I’ll bring him here to see his father.”
“You don’t owe me that.”
“No. But he does.”
Dante nodded slowly. Sienna started to rise, and he didn’t let go of her hand.
“What was the last secret?” he asked.
She went still. “The last one?”
“You told me your brother vanished. That his body was never recovered.”
She sat back down. “Ray’s alive.”
Dante’s expression shifted. “Where?”
“Federal protection.”
“He abandoned you and Milo?”
“He was already working with investigators before the bombing. Elena had found Salvatore’s accounts and reached out to him directly. He helped her build a case.”
“Then why didn’t he come to me?”
“Salvatore had judges, cops, and federal agents on his payroll. Ray had no idea who he could trust.”
“But he trusted you with my son.”
“Because I wasn’t part of his investigation.”
Dante absorbed it slowly. “Did he send you into that club?”
“Yes.”
“So all of it was planned.”
“Getting the locket to you was planned. Salvatore taking Milo was never part of anyone’s plan.”
“Your brother used you as bait.”
“I volunteered for it.”
Dante let her hand go. Sienna felt the distance return instantly.
“You’re angry.”
“I’m wondering if anything between us was real.”
Her heart sped up. “What exactly happened between us?”