Page 82 of Bound in Ruin

"Switch to video right now!" Sienna demands. "I need to see this creature immediately."

Swallowing down the lingering tight knot in my chest, I switch the call to video. The screen splits into four grids, revealing my sisters' eager faces. I angle the camera down toward Yapper, who sits up proudly, tilting his head with big, glassy eyes as the phone screen lights up.

"Oh my gosh!" Camilla coos, clutching her hands to her chest. "Look at those ears!"

"He's tiny!" Daniella giggles. "What's his name?"

"Yapper," I say, a small, genuine smile finally breaking through the heavy sadness on my face. "I got him as a stray. Dominic let me keep him."

For the next ten minutes, the air of betrayal and legal battles completely melts away. We talk about Yapper's ridiculous antics, my sisters taking turns making silly voices at the screen to get his attention, making me laugh until my cheeks ache in the best way possible.

When we finally say our goodbyes and the call ends, the quiet settles back into the room.

I set the phone down on the nightstand and sink back against the plush pillows. Yapper curls right into the bend of my waist, resting his tiny chin on my leg with a soft sigh.

Left alone with my own thoughts, the silence isn't as terrifying as it was an hour ago.

I stare up at the dim light reflecting off the ceiling, replaying the last few weeks in my head. Can I forgive Dominic?

It won't come easy. It can't. The deceit ran too deep, and the foundation was built on dark, ugly secrets. But as I peel back the layers of my anger, a quiet truth settles in my chest.

Dominic isn't a bad person. He’s a dangerous man who has done terrible things, yes, but with me... he's been something entirely different. He's been patient. He’s been surprisingly goofy, fiercely protective, and inexplicably tender.

And if I’m being completely honest with myself... I’ve never missed Luciano. Not for a single second. I’m actually relieved that the monster who tormented me is dead and gone, erased from this earth so he could never hurt me or anyone else again.

Dominic delivered a justice the law never would have given me.

I fall back flat onto the bed, staring up at the chandelier, taking a long, deep breath that expands fully in my chest for the first time all day.

I make my decision.

I won't let him off the hook completely—he still has to earn every single inch of my trust back. But I won't tear down what we've built, either. I won't walk away.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

DOMINIC

It’s well past midnight when I finally return to the estate. The front doors shut behind me with a muted thud, the quiet of the house wrapping around me like a cold shroud.

My feet drag as I make my way up the grand staircase. For the past six hours, I couldn't focus on a single fucking thing. Out in the city, tracking Dante’s movements should have had my full, undivided attention, but my mind was completely trapped in our bedroom.

Keane had noticed instantly. What the hell is wrong with you? he’d asked, watching me stare blankly at a surveillance feed.

When I finally snapped and laid out the entire sickening mess—everything he already knows about—the bastard had just looked at me with solemn, brutal honesty. She’s going to leave you, Dominic. Any sane woman would.

Fucking bastard.

Those six words have been echoing in my skull ever since, a relentless, deafening drumbeat pounding against my ribs.

I reach the master suite, resting my palm against the mahogany door for a long, agonizing second before slowly turning the handle.

The room is dim, lit only by the warm glow of the bedside lamp. Rosalia is sitting up against the headboard, an open book resting in her lap.

The moment I step inside, Yapper pops his small head up from the end of the bed. His ears back, he lets out a sharp, defensive bark, his tiny body stiffening as he glares at me.

A small, unexpected twist of quiet satisfaction touches my chest. This dog impresses me every day. The little creature is protecting her. He senses her pain, senses the threat in the room, and he's standing his ground. Good. It proves the dog is loyal to her, and if nothing else, I’m glad she has a guardian who won't betray her trust.

I glance warily past the dog, expecting her to be looking away, but her dark eyes are already fixed directly on me.