out of their home because she hadn’t wanted to be around a dying man, and that hadn’t been the truth, either.
No, his brother had turned his back on his wife and child when he should have needed them most. All at once he knew why. Liam simply hadn’t the fortitude to continue the charade. It had all been too much for him. He had no doubt Liam had loved Cassandra and had loved Nicole as his niece, but in the end loving them hadn’t been enough. So Liam had done the only thing he could.
He had given his brother back his daughter.
And had given his brother his wife.
It wasn’t what he would have done in that position. As sure as hell if he had been dying—God forbid—then he’d want to take his last breath in his wife’s arms and with his children around him.
“Dominic, I don’t think you knew your brother at all,” she said, pulling him back to the present, shooting him a glare beneath wet lashes. “But no matter how wrong Liam was in doing what he did, what you did was worse, Dominic. I’ll never forgive you for this.”
Her words hit him where it hurt and intense pain erupted inside him. The only thing he’d been guilty of was loving too much. His brother. His daughter. Now his wife.
All at once he could see everything with clarity. This wasn’t just about Nicole being his own child. This was about him and Cassandra. He was standing here, looking at her heart breaking over what he’d done, and he realized it went further than that. He knew then in his heart that she loved him.
And he had to make her admit it…or risk losing her forever.
“That’s because it’s easier to forgive a dead man,” he said.
She gasped. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, you’re upset with me because you love me more than you ever loved my brother.”
She stiffened. “I never said that.”
His heart caught, then released. “I know, Cassandra. I know deep down that you love me. I know because I love you, too.”
“Wh-what?”
He knew because it was a feeling of having his heart linked with hers. When she laughed, he laughed. When she cried, he cried. When she loved, he loved. He was aware now that she felt the same for him. It was in her every breath. It was deep in her eyes. He couldn’t let this woman go.
“Sweetheart, you give yourself away every time you’re in my arms. I just hadn’t recognized it until now.”
Her eyes went on guard; then she tried to scoff at him. “That’s sex, Dominic.”
“No, that’s love. I’m standing here watching your heart break, and it makes my heart break, too. I love you, Cassandra. I’ll never stop loving you.”
She stood motionless, the expression on her face telling him she was wrestling with something.
Time ticked by.
All at once she started to walk toward him, and his heart rose in his chest, but then she swerved toward their walk-in closet and disappeared inside, saying, “Stay there for a minute.”
Puzzled, he did as she asked.
She was back in no time and came toward him with an envelope in her hand. “Here. Read this.”
He took it off her, then looked down. It was the letter Liam had given him to give to her after his death. “What’s this about?”
She held herself stiffly. “Read it and then tell me if you still love me.”
That sounded ominous, but he knew it didn’t matter what was in the letter. He still loved her.
And then he began to read, briefly aware she had gone back to her position near the bed. It took him a minute to put together what Liam was saying. And even then he had to reread the letter.
He looked up with a frown. “Liam says here that he paid you to have his baby?”
She nodded. “That’s right. Five hundred thousand dollars.” She angled her chin. “Do you still love me now, Dominic?”
He didn’t answer that. His love for her wasn’t in question. “Why, Cassandra? Why did you need the money?”
She hugged her arms to her body, as if bracing herself. “Why do you think?”
He didn’t understand, but said, “I don’t believe it was for anything other than a noble reason.”
She blinked; then her eyes searched his. “You don’t?”
“Everything you’ve ever done has been to help someone else.”
She gave a little sob, and then her throat convulsed. “Thank you for that, Dominic,” she said, her voice quavering slightly. “It was to pay to get my father