“She was setting up the romantic dinner she had planned for you two on the balcony when I got there. I tried to talk some sense into her, but she walked away from me, saying everything had to be ready for you when you got home. We got into an argument over her ‘choice’ and it turned physical. I grabbed her arm and told her I was dragging her out of the condo to take back home where she belonged. But she panicked and pulled away from me. When I reached for her again, she jerked backward away from me, lost her balance, and fell over the rail.”
“You fucking bastard! All this time, you blamed me for her death when you knew you were the cause of it. You let me believe she killed herself when she was nowhere near being suicidal,” Dominic answers, pure hatred pouring through his words. “She was pregnant and you killed your own sister!”
“It wasyourfault, Dominic. You never should’ve brain washed Carol Ann and led her into that lifestyle. It’s embarrassing,” Harrison shakes his head. “Much like you did this one here,” he gestures toward me. “If you hadn’t pulled her even more into your sick life, she wouldn’t have to die today.
“It’s really too bad that I hate you so much, Powers. You know how to make a woman self-destruct better than any man I know. We could’ve been friends if you’d stayed the hell away from my sister. Now, you’ll be responsible for the death of two pregnant women,” Harrison taunts, pressing the buttons that he knows will provoke Dom the most.
Turning his gaze to me, Harrison continues trying to push Dominic to make a move. “Look what a mess you’re making, Sophia! You’re drooling all over that pretty shirt. You’ll have to be punished for that,” he says mockingly.
“The only man who punishes Sophia isme. I already owe you a major ass kicking for what you’ve done to her in the past. You’ve just earned an extended hospital stay for even touching her. For binding and gagging her, you’ll eat through a straw for the rest of your fucking life,” Dominic threatens.
Harrison’s bravado waivers for a moment after Dominic so calmly issued his promise and dismissed his jabs. His eyes widen and his lips slightly part as he inhales sharply. His body tenses and stills completely, waiting for Dominic to pounce on him. Harrison seems to have forgotten he has a gun in his hand because helooksscared. If I were on the receiving end of the look that Dominic is giving Harrison right now, I would be scared, too.
“You think you scare me, Powers? I’ve been in the cartel for years now, taking care of deadbeats so the boss can keep his hands clean. After all I’ve been through, I know I can take care of a pussy like you.”
Dominic smirks, his eyes alight with amusement. He’s actually glad that Harrison is challenging him. “By all means, put that gun down and face me like a man then. Unless youarescared?”
Harrison puts the gun down on the credenza as he moves to meet Dominic face to face. “You won’t get a chance to sucker punch me this time. I’m ready for you.”
“I wish that were true,Harry Dick-man,” Dominic laughs as he emphasizes the insulting nickname, “but you could never be ready to take me on.”
Harrison begins to respond, no doubt with yet another sarcastic remark, but he doesn’t get the chance to finish his verbal assault. When he opens his mouth, Dominic’s hand is lightning fast as it flies through the air and makes immediate contact with Harrison’s throat. Harrison’s hands wrap around the front of his neck as his face turns bright red. His eyes are open wide, confusion churns in them, and he makes strange wheezing noise when he tries to breathe.
Dominic wastes no time in throwing another punch that connects with Harrison’s eye. He stumbles backward, already unsteady from the first unexpected hit, and lands on his ass. Dom keeps advancing on him, intent on inflicting as much bodily harm as he can. Dom swings his leg around in a low roundhouse kick and his foot connects with the side of Harrison’s head, knocking him over on his side. Dom jumps on top of him with his full body and continues to pummel Harrison’s face with his fists until both are battered and bloody.
When Harrison stops fighting back at all, Dom pushes against him, adding insult to injury, as he stands. His big shoulders heave with his heavy breathing as he stands over Harrison for several seconds before walking away from him. Dominic picks up the gun from the filing cabinet and puts it in the waistband of his pants at the small of his back.
He then rushes to me and removes the ball-gag first, then begins working on freeing my hands and feet. I’ve been tied for so long, and so tightly, my hands and feet were already asleep. The sudden rush of blood back into them is extremely painful and my Dom takes a minute to massage me, even with his hands injured and his knuckles bloody.
Throwing my arms around his neck once I’m free, I smother him with kisses mixed with my tears. He’s kneeling on the floor in front of me in the perfect position for me to hold onto during my mini-meltdown. “Thank God you’re not hurt. I heard the gunshot and I wanted to die with you. Oh my god, Dominic, I was so scared and distraught. Are you hurt? What can I do?”
I’m rambling like a lunatic, asking him a million questions at once, but not giving him time to answer any of them. Especially between the kisses I can’t seem to stop giving him. His amused chuckle makes me smile as he says, “Slow down,My Angel. I’m fine and no, I wasn’t the one who was shot. I sent you a text to let you know I was okay and to stay put, but I see you were a little preoccupied in here.” He holds up the ball-gag, joking with me to lighten the mood, and gives me his full-wattage smile.
“Don’t think I’m wearing that thing ever again, Dominic. I’m adding a new hard limit,” I reply with a smile of my own.
“Nah, babe,” he says casually. “I’m not really into ball-gags. I can think of better uses for your mouth than that.” Dominic sits back on his heels and we both laugh, but I can’t deny that he really does have the best ideas.
The hairs on the back of my neck suddenly stand at attention and my smile falters. “What is it, babe?” Dominic asks.
“She feels the barrel of a Glock .40 in her back,” Harrison hisses from behind me.
Dominic meets my terrified gaze, and despite his best attempts to cover it up, I see the fear in his. Harrison has nothing to lose and everything to gain by taking me away from Dom. No challenge of being a lesser man or being scared will sway his vengeance this time. By allowing him to live, Dominic knows he just gave Harrison another chance to kill me.
“Did you really think I wouldn’t have another weapon on me? I’m a professional killer by trade, Powers,” Harrison says as he stands up behind me. “Now move back – away from her.”
Dominic puts his hand behind his back, pretending to use it as leverage to move. His eyes meet mine and I know what he’s planning to do. Using all my body weight, I jerk to the side, toppling my chair over and giving Dominic a clean shot. Simultaneously, Dominic withdraws the gun from the back of his pants and rapidly fires five rounds toward Harrison. The sound of glass shattering and rushing wind immediately fill the office and I crawl across the floor to Dom’s side.
Turning my eyes toward Harrison, I watch in horror as the front of his shirt fills with blood from the gun shot wounds. His gun is still in his hand, but he doesn’t have the strength to use it. His entire body sways back and forth, his gait extremely unsteady. Rooted to the floor, I watch with my eyes transfixed on him. It’s like driving by the scene of a bad car wreck. I’m unable to look away but at the same time I’m afraid to see the aftermath. He finally stumbles backward and tumbles out of the broken window from twenty stories up.
Dominic drops the gun and pulls me into his lap, his arms wrapped protectively and possessively around me. “Are my girls okay? Do we need to go to the hospital and have you checked out?” he asks with one hand on my stomach and deep concern in his every syllable.
Unable to speak, I just shake my head from side to side and bury my face in his neck. He pulls me close and lets me cry until I have no more tears or energy to cry anymore. I hear others moving around in my office, but somewhere in the back of my mind, I absently wonder if I’m going into shock. I don’t care who else is here, I don’t care what they’re doing, and I don’t care what they want.
No one else matters except the three of us– my Dom, our baby, and me –in our very own cocooned world right here in the floor of my office.
