Forgive Me Father For I Have Loved by Tiana Laveen Read Free Book Online Page B

to eat, then head back to the rectory. As he made his slow steps toward the parked vehicle, still drowning in isolated, painful thoughts of his ailing friend, he caught an image out of the corner of his eye. Stopping, he watched the woman bend slightly as she stretched. Her elegant swanlike neck arched as she moved gently in the breeze, her form kissed by rays of sunlight. It seemed almost as if the sun had slowed down from setting, just to get a few more seconds with her. She’d wrapped her hair in thickly wound black fabric, and suddenly he wanted to know what those tresses looked like. Wearing a black leotard, she moved with grace, like poetry in motion.
    As if aware of his presence, she slowly turned toward him, her arms outstretched as if she were a ballerina frozen in time. Their eyes locked. Caught, he simply offered a smile and gentle wave. She smiled back, then continued with her calisthenics. He sighed, shoved his hands in his pockets and proceeded on his way, hoping he could shake the nasty mood he was in—but seeing the loving, elderly couple and the beautiful woman had at least given his heart a break from the recent emotional stab wounds that refused to heal...
     
     

CHAPTER TWO
     
     
    “Well, that is just unbelievable.” Daisy scoffed as she crossed her long, pale, skinny, legs and blew her reddened nose. She shot an angry sky blue glare at her brother, Dane, causing him to grimace and turn away from her before he said something he may regret. Everyone sat or stood huddled close together in the stifling lawyer’s office. Attorney Dawson licked his finger tip and nonchalantly turned the next page in the stack of papers, peering at the Caruso family from over his thin-framed dark glasses.
    “Now.” The older man with graying temples cleared his throat as the stuffy dust-filled place made Dane’s nose itch. “Mr. Rossi made it plain as day about this. He left the bulk of his money to his grandson, Fr. Dane Caruso, in hopes that i t would be used for the church.” Coughing, he glanced around then turned back to the papers.
    “Why are we just now hearing about this? The man has been dead for almost two years,” Daisy asked, her tone pockmarked with jealousy and a dollop of animosity. She looked around the room, more than likely searching for support. Her gaze settled on Dane, who, however, couldn’t humor her.
    He was still in shock himself, unable to utter so much as a word. But his heart swelled with warmth as he contemplated what the church could do with dough like that...
     
    $4,237,374.78
     
    My God!
    Fact of the matter was, Grandpa Rossi was miserly. According to family rumor and speculation, the man always claimed to be destitute, especially after his wife, Angelina, Dane’s grandmother, had passed away long before he’d been born. The money was locked away in Italy, away from curious eyes and greedy hands, to ensure that the nursing home didn’t get their claws on it and no fights would be had. A devout Catholic, he proved to be an astute yet slightly paranoid businessman that owned several dry cleaning stores, large plots of land for building real estate in prestigious suburban areas across the country, a grand rental house in Italy and two thriving foreign luxury pre-owned car dealerships, which he always pretended were on their way under. In reality, he’d made money while others went broke and had become a self-made millionaire, without anyone being the wiser. When his grandson had entered the seminary, the man accused of rarely showing a grin, smiled so much it may have hurt.
    Dane had an agreeable relationship with his grandfather, but nothing, in his mind that warranted such a gift. Matter of fact, they rarely spoke apart from sharing pleasantries. Despite him being a spitting image of the man, they seemed to share little in common. As the shock mounted, he began to plan out things in his mind...
    I can get Josh the best treatments in the world now! I’ll fly him wherever he