She dislocated her thumb and then still had the strength to punch me in the face afterwards.
Fuck, she must be in so much painafter that.
"Is she okay?"
"Do you even care?" he shouts, looking at me with disgust.
His words infuriate me, and in seconds, I have my hands twisted in his shirt and his body shoved against the wall.
"How dare you ask me that?" I spit, digging my knuckles into his chest. "Of course, I fucking care about her."
"Well, maybe you should learn to show it, Dom!"
"I can't!" I shout, my grip loosening as I take a step back and shake my head. "I can't show her how I feel, Jay."
Our heaving breaths fill the silent room, and the fury from his face slowly falls away as a look of sadness replaces it.
"You're trying to push her away," he says, a level of understanding in his tone.
Sighing, I turn away from him and begin pacing the room. He pulls himself away from the wall and smooths his clothes back out.
"I have to."
"No, you don't," he retorts.
"I do. This was an arrangement, Jay. One I wasn't happy with, but as soon as I saw her, I knew it'd be a constant struggle for me. It's why I was somewhat glad when she opened her mouth and threw some sass at me—it gave me a reason to dislike her."
Rubbing my hand along my aching jaw, beard prickling my fingers, I huff.
"If I'm being honest with myself, I like everything about her. Not only the way she looks, but the way she acts, and the way she carries herself. She has a response to everything, and if I wasn't so mad at her, I'd probably laugh at the things she says. She's feisty, but also emotional, and caring—she just keeps it hidden."
"Like you do," Jaylen says, interrupting me as he watches me with intrigue.
"Yeah, like me," I admit. "No matter what she says or does, I still find her enchanting. All her strengths, all her flaws, they're all a part of her, and I'd be lying if I said I hated any of them."
"So why, exactly, are you pushing her away?"
"Loving someone is a weakness. We all know that, Jay. She's all-consuming, and I have so many things to focus on right now. I have to prove myself, and I have to appear strong. I've only just taken over the King organisation, and I'm still trying hard to successfully integrate everyone who was loyal to the Rossi's. If people see anything they think might make me weak, they'd use it against me."
He moves over to me, clapping his hand on my shoulder.
"Unfortunately, Dom, that's going to be a worry for you for the rest of your life now. It's a worry for us all, even Kaleb, who claims he's retired. We can't allow it to scare us away from people who can make us happy, though. We just have to make sure we're strong enough to deal with the repercussions if they come. We have to be ready to protect the people we care about with our lives… I think you need to get out of your own head, throw caution to the wind for once, take a leap, and do something for you. Something that is out of your control, something that may make you happier in life. You deserve it, man. So does Alicia."
He squeezes my shoulder and then steps away from me, offering me a smile.
"Just think about it, okay? And stop being such a harsh bastard towards her. She doesn't deserve it, Dom. Stop being this cruel person just because you're scared. Be yourself, let her in, and try to make things work."
Chapter Thirty-Two
Alicia
Creeping out of my room, I tiptoe halfway down the stairs, peering into the living room to make sure it's still empty. When I only see Jellybean lazing around on the sofa, and don't hear any other noise in the apartment, I hurry back up the stairs, stopping outside the door I know leads to Dom's office.
He hasn't come back home for the past two hours, or not that I know of anyway. I'm hoping with me punching him earlier and slamming the door in his face, it was a clear enough sign I want to be left alone.
With the impression I'm going to be left alone for a while, and not knowing when the next time will be after everything that's happened today, I decide to pull up my big girl panties, and sneak into his office to—hopefully—find something of importance I can give to Lenny so he'll get off my back.
The annoying fucker has already messaged me twice since our phone call, asking if I've got anything for him yet.
