“Nothing. There’s nothing that can make me believeanythingyou say,” he spits out at me.
I nod while keeping my eyes lowered. My heart breaking all over again at the confirmation of what I knew was to come. “I see,” I say quietly. “In that case, I don’t see that we can work together anymore, Dominic.” Taking a deep breath, I raise my eyes to meet his. “You will have my resignation on your desk within the hour. I just need time to pack up a few personal things from my office.”
The shock registers on his face before he has a chance to hide his feelings. He wasn’t expecting that reply and, frankly, neither was I. After his declaration, I don’t see any other way of handling this. Leaving here is my only option because I can’t pretend that I don’t love him. Working here with him, living in his company’s executive condos, driving his company’s car – the reminders of what I had and lost are all too painful.
I can’t see him every day and have this pain multiplied every time I hear something new about him moving on without me. The fact that my waistline will soon be expanding to the point I won’t be able to hide it is also a huge factor to consider. I still don’t know how or when to tell him about that, but right now definitely isn’t it.
“You can leave it with Dana,” he replies coolly.
Not crying as I rise from the chair in front of him is one of the hardest things I’ve ever accomplished. I’m walking out of his life, in every way, and he says to leave my final statement with his secretary instead of with him.
Where is the loving, caring Dom I love?
You killed him and created this version of him.
Walking to his office door, I can feel his eyes burning into my back. When I reach for the door handle, his smooth, sensual voice calls out, “Sophia.” One word from him and my whole body stills, suspends in motion, and waits for his next command.
The heat radiating from his body physically touches mine. The smell of his cologne envelops me and invades my nostrils. That scent has been gone from everything that reminds me of him and makes my heart ache even more to have it so close once again. He is standing behind me, close enough that if I simply leaned back, I could touch him. My hair lightly sways from the closeness of his breath. The only thing I want to do is turn and be taken into his arms.
“You don’t have to leave, Sophia,” his voice is low and the hateful edge is gone. “You’ve shown that you can effectively do your job and I’d like for you to stay on with the company. I would appreciate it if you would rescind your resignation.”
Letting go of the doorknob, I nod my head in agreement. Turning slowly to face him, his sharp inhale creates a hissing noise as he takes in my face from his up close vantage. His eyes flow over my face, taking in the light green remnants of the bruises around my eyes and on my cheekbones that are hidden by makeup from a distance. His hand involuntarily rises and strokes my face with such tenderness it instantly makes me hope for more. He cups my face with his hand and I lean into the warmth of his touch. My eyes close and I relish in the touch of his skin on mine.
“Did you really go to his house that night to protect me?”
My eyes flutter open, and although my heart wants nothing more than this, my mind knows I’m setting myself up for more pain. Pulling away from his touch, I fix my gaze on his and reply, “Yes, I did, Dominic.”
“Why would you do that?” his soft voice asks as his hand goes back to my face again.
He’s killing me. One touch at a time, he’s killing me.
There’s no point in lying about it. My whispered response is from the depths of my heart. “Because I love you, Dominic. I can’t tell you how sorry I am for hurting you, but it’s not all what you think. I’m not as terrible as you believe I am.”
His eyes travel down my body and come to a stop, and he just stares. I look down to see what he’s looking at and notice my hand is protectively covering my lower abdomen. When I look back up at him, his intense eyes have locked onto mine and I can feel him probing my mind for answers. Trying hard to school my expression and not give anything away, I hold his gaze until he speaks again.
“Are you feeling well enough to work? You can take more time off if you need it,” he offers with sincerity.
“I’m fine, thank you. I get a little tired easily but that’s about it.”
He reaches down and takes the hand that’s covering my stomach in his hand. My breath catches in my chest when his eyes peer into mine yet again.He knows. Oh my God, he knows something is up. Do I tell him now?
“You let me know when you need a break then,” he says as he examines my hand. “Do we need cameras installed to be able to work together?”
“If that would make you more comfortable, I’m fine with it. I have nothing to hide…from the cameras.”
He noticed the hesitation in my statement. I couldn’t say I havenothingto hide, because Iamhiding something for the time being. He knows it, too. There’s no doubt about that look on his face. It’s not a look of suspicion now–it’s a knowing look.
“Is there anything else you need to tell me?”
“I’m sure there’s plenty of things I need to tell you, but I’m not sure where to start, Dominic.”
