The Heiress' Revenge

Chapter 187: The Wedding

Dante’s POV

I just got out of a meeting and had just settled into my office.

I sat and leaned back in the chair momentarily resting my head, but the door bursting open had my brows furrowed, but I didn’t look up.

I didn’t care who it was. Could be Marcus or an assistant.

"Dante." Her voice was sharp and Familiar.

My mother.

Of course, it was my mother; she had been calling me for weeks and leaving messages demanding to see me.

I had been ignoring her.

I didn’t have the energy to deal with her. I didn’t have the patience for her lectures. I didn’t have the strength for her disappointment.

"Mum," I said, still didn’t look up. "What do you want?"

She walked to the chair across from my desk. She sat down with her back straight, and her hands were folded in her lap.

"I want to talk to you about something important," she said. "Something that can’t wait any longer. Something that I should have done a long time ago."

I finally looked at her.

Her hair was perfect.

She looked like she belonged on the cover of a magazine. She looked polished for her age.

"I’m listening," I said, but I wasn’t really. My mind was somewhere else.

Mother leaned forward. "It’s been two years, Dante. Two years since Ariana died. Two years since you’ve been alone, and the children have had a mother."

I felt my jaw tighten. "The children have me. They have nannies and teachers. They have—"

"They have no one," Mother interrupted. Her voice was sharp. "They have a father who spends all his time at work. Who barely looks at them. Who barely talks to them. Who barely acknowledges their existence. They have nannies who come and go. Teachers who don’t know their names. Drivers who don’t know their faces have no stability and love ."

I stood up and walked to the window.

"You don’t know what you’re talking about," I said. My voice was low. Tight. "I love my children, I provide for them. I protect them. I—"

"You ignore them." Mother’s voice was hard. "You come home after they’re asleep. You leave before they wake up. You spend weekends in your room, staring at the walls, crying over a woman who is never coming back. You are not there for them, Dante. You are not present. You are not engaged. You are not a father."

I turned to face her; my hands were clenched into fists. "How dare you. How dare you stand there and tell me I’m not a father? I have sacrificed everything for those children. I have given them everything. I have—"

"You have given them things," Mother interrupted. "Things don’t love them. Things don’t hold them when they cry or when they need a parent figure in their life. They need a mother, Dante. They need a feminine figure in their lives. Someone who can give them the love and attention and care that you cannot."

I felt the annoyance come. I blinked them back. "I can’t replace her, I can’t find someone new. I can’t pretend that everything is okay when it’s not. I can’t—"

"I’m not asking you to replace her." Mother stood up, walking toward me. Her heels clicked on the floor. "No one could ever replace Ariana. She was a wonderful woman, a wonderful wife, and a mother, but she’s gone. She’s been gone for two years, and you need to accept that. You need to move on. You need to live."

I shook my head. "I can’t, I don’t want to. I won’t."

Mother stopped in front of me with her eyes hard. "I have already made arrangements."

I stared at her. "What? What arrangements?"

Mother pulled an envelope from her purse. She held it out to me. "Her name is Natasha. She’s the daughter of an old friend of mine. She lives in England, and she’s sweet, kind, and intelligent. She has a good character. She comes from a good family. She’s perfect."

I looked at the envelope I didn’t take it. "What are you talking about? What arrangements?"

Mother’s voice was firm. "You are going to marry her, Dante. The wedding is set to take place in two months in England. At her family’s estate. Everything is already planned."

I felt the blood drain from my face. "You can’t be serious. You can’t just decide who I’m going to marry. You can’t just plan a wedding behind my back. This isn’t the Middle Ages. This isn’t an arranged marriage. I have a say in my own life. I have a choice."

Mother shook her head. "You’ve had two years to make a choice. Two years to find someone on your own and to give your children a mother. You’ve done nothing. You’ve wallowed and pushed everyone away. You’ve made yourself and your children miserable. So I’m taking matters into my own hands."

I grabbed the envelope and held it up. "You think this is going to fix anything? You think marrying a stranger is going to make me happy? You think bringing some woman into my home is going to make my children forget their mother?"

Mother stepped closer with her face inches from mine. "I think it’s a start. I think it’s better than the alternative. It’s time you stopped living in the past and started living in the present for yourself, your children, and your family."

I threw the envelope on the floor. "I won’t do it. I won’t marry her. I don’t care who she is, I don’t care how sweet she is. I don’t care how perfect she is."

Mother’s face softened. Just a little. "I’m not asking you to love her, I’m asking you to give her a chance to give your children a chance and yourself a chance."

I shook my head. "No. No. I can’t. I won’t."

Mother walked to the door. She paused. She looked back at me. "The wedding is in two months, Dante. In England. You will be there. You will marry Victoria. And that’s final."

She walked out, and the door slammed behind her.

The room was quiet again.

The only sound was my breathing.

I stood there for a long time.

What the hell just happened?