THE DON WHO COULDN'T LOVE
I said carefully.
"I suspected," Nonna Rosa corrected, echoing almost precisely the distinction Luciano had drawn weeks earlier about his own suspicions regarding his parentage. "Suspicion without proof felt safer, in a house that punished women for asking too many questions about the men who ran it. I've carried that particular cowardice for longer than I care to admit."
***
"It's not too late to correct it," Dante said gently. "I intend to acknowledge Renata publicly, formally, as part of this family's history rather than a buried scandal. I'd like your support in that, if you're willing to offer it."