“My little sister?” Dom seethed. “How could you do this?” He brought his fist up and hit me on the side of my face. I tasted iron and spit blood out. “Fight me, motherfucker. Fight me. You want to fuck around with my sister? Then, you better fight me.”
“I’m not going to fight you, Dom.” My tongue ran over my bloody bottom gums. I moved my face and spit again. Goddamn. Fucker got me good.
“Fight me, asshole.” He shoved me again, but his words were weaker. The pain in his eyes hurt me more than any punch. He paced away from me and put his hands up. “FUCK!”
I remained still, focusing on my heart and my breathing, but I didn’t take my mind to a faraway place the way I would have in any other situation. I needed to be present. I wanted this pain. I deserved it. I waited for him to come at me again. Russo and Mikey were so still and quiet, I wondered if they’d stopped breathing. Dominic paced back toward me. I braced for impact. He stopped right in front of me but didn’t touch me.
“Why?” His words were calm. The anger in his eyes was replaced by pain. “Why her?”
I exhaled and glanced toward the house as I tried to think of how to answer that. Lenora and Rosie were both standing by the glass, looking horrified. When my eyes met Lenora’s, the love in her eyes made me shatter. Fuck. I looked at the ground, spit again, and looked at Dominic, who was waiting for a response.
“It wasn’t supposed to happen,” I said like an idiot because, no shit, it wasn’t supposed to happen.
“NO SHIT. This is my sister, asshole.” Dom growled, running his hands through his hair.
I couldn’t even stand here and tell him that it had been a mistake or that I regretted it. I didn’t. I never would. She wasn’t just some piece of ass to me. I would’ve never put myself in this predicament if I thought that was all she would be. He had to know that. He knew how I operated. I didn’t just go around fucking anyone with a pulse. I wasn’t a teenager. The last woman I fucked before Nora was Crystal, over six months ago. I didn’t have to sleep with Lenora, but I wanted her, and I knew without a doubt that this time next year, I still would. I shut my eyes for a moment, enjoying the sound of the birds nearby and the pebbles each time Dominic moved.
“I know I don’t deserve her,” I started. “I fucking know she’s too good for me.”
“If you know that, why did you do it?” he asked, stepping forward and pointing a finger at me. “Because I know,I knowyou’re sleeping with her, and you don’t do anything without thinking it through a hundred and one times, so please tell me why my best friend, the person I trust most in the entire fucking world, would hook up with my sister. She’s going to have her heart broken, and you, what do you gain from this?”
That was a loaded question. I had thought this through a hundred and one times before I decided to go through with it. I tried to talk myself out of it, but every time I looked at her, I was consumed with something I hadn’t felt before. It was addictive. And once I tasted her and had my cock inside her, I was a goner. I never played that bullshit game of “Where do you picture yourself in ten years?” because I knew I could drop dead at any moment, so that had never been a concern of mine. With Lenora, though, when I thought about next year, she was there — cooking dinner with me, mixing drinks at Scarabon occasion, and smiling, just fucking smiling. When I was with her, I felt a warmth I hadn’t felt since my mother died. This was unprecedented for me, but if that wasn’t love, I didn’t know what was. I didn’t say all of these things aloud because I wasn’t about to sound like a pussy in front of these three assholes. Besides, the only one who deserved to hear those words was Lenora herself. Dominic continued to stare at me like I was some alien species. Finally, I spit out the statement I should’ve probably led with, one I never pictured myself feeling, let alone saying aloud.
“I’d die for her,” I said instead simply.
Dom staggered back a step. “What?”
The two bozos on the sideline said a string of things under their breaths.
“I’d die for her.” I spit out more blood and chuckled, because, leave it to me to fall for the one woman I’m not supposed to have. “I don’t know how else to describe this, Dom.”
“You’re in love withmy sister?Jesus Christ, Rocco. You’re. . .and she’s. . .” He held the bridge of his nose and muttered things under his breath; then he looked at me. “What the fuck, man? You know she’s supposed to marry Salvati.”
“She’s not getting married,” I said. His eyes widened. “I don’t care if he’s a king or a fucking god. She’s not marrying anyone.”
Except for me,I wanted to say but held my tongue because that would’ve been overkill.
“You’re in love with my sister,” he said. A statement, not a question, as if trying to make sure he understood me correctly.
His words didn’t warrant a response, so I spat more blood and remained silent. My face was starting to hurt like a bitch. When he moved toward me again, my stomach clenched, my body instantly preparing for the next onslaught. I kept my hands down, though, even as he brought both hands up. I kept mine down and focused on not flinching. He set a hand on each of my shoulders. It was so shocking that I almost moved away.
“Fuck,” he breathed, letting his head hang between us for a moment. He lifted his eyes as he dropped his hands. “I just thought. . .I just figured. . .” He searched my eyes, swallowing hard. “I know you’ll do right by her. I do. It’s just. . .”
“She’s your little sister,” I said, finishing the sentence for him. “I know, Dom. Trust me. This wasn’t planned. I didn’t fucking want to fall in love.” I scoffed. “Look at you and G and Lor. A bunch of fucking pansies.”
His eyes narrowed and he shook his head again. “Fuck, man.”
“I don’t regret it,” I said. “I’ll take any punishment that comes my way, but I will never regret your sister.”
He looked at me for the longest time. I knew he wouldn’t hit me again, but I wasn’t sure what he was thinking, which was a first. Suddenly, he stepped forward and threw his arms around me. He gave me an actual full-on hug. I was so shocked by it that I couldn’t return it even if I’d wanted to.
“You fucking better be willing to die for her.” He stepped away, his brows tugging. “Shit, you actually might.”
No truer words had been spoken. The way things were looking, I probably would.
29
LENORA
