59
Steam clung to my skin as I stepped out of the bathroom, the towel wrapped tightly around me. My hair dripped water onto my shoulders, and I shivered slightly at the cool air in the room.
Dominic was perched against the edge of the bed, his elbows resting on his thighs, a pair of jeans and a shirt hanging loosely in his hands. His dark gaze trailed up my body slowly, deliberately, starting from the bare skin of my legs up to where the towel clung to my chest. The corners of his mouth quirked up when his eyes met mine, a cocky grin forming on his lips.
I froze, my grip tightening on the towel as heat rushed to my cheeks. “What are you doing?”
“Looking,” he replied casually, his tone low and playful.
“Well, stop it,” I snapped, taking a step toward the wardrobe, but his gaze didn’t waver.
He chuckled, shaking his head as he leaned back slightly, making himself comfortable. “I didn’t fuck you sore enough earlier, did I?” His voice was teasing, but there was a heat in his eyes that sent a shiver down my spine. “That attitude’s still there. Maybe I need another round to fix it.”
“Dominic,” I hissed, my voice sharp, though I couldn’t stop the blush from creeping further down my neck.
“You’re shy,” he teased, his grin widening. “Ellie, after what we just did, you’re shy? That’s adorable.”
I glared at him, clutching the towel tighter around myself. “I am not shy.”
“Really?” He raised an eyebrow, his gaze dropping briefly back to the bare skin of my legs before returning to my face. “Because from where I’m sitting, you look like you’re about to bolt back into the bathroom.”
“I’m not,” I said firmly, though my voice wavered just enough to make him laugh again.
“Sure, you’re not,” he said, his tone dripping with amusement. “Come on, Ellie, I’m just enjoying the view. You can’t blame me for that, can you?”
I rolled my eyes, desperate to change the subject before my face burned completely red. My gaze flicked to the clothes in his hands. “What’s that?”
“Jeans and a shirt,” he said with a shrug, holding them up.
“And Adeline approves?” I asked, arching a brow.
His grin turned playful. “Not exactly.”
I frowned. “You didn’t ask her, did you?”
“Nope,” he replied, completely unapologetic. “I borrowed them.”
“You stole them?” I asked, crossing my arms despite still holding the towel, which loosened dangerously.
Dominic shrugged. “Borrowed, stole, same difference. You didn’t exactly pack a bag, Ellie.”
I opened my mouth to argue, but he cut me off, tossing the clothes onto the bed. “Come on, put them on. You don’t really have a choice unless you’re planning to stay in that towel.” His eyes glinted with amusement as he added, “Not that I’d complain.”
I huffed, snatching the clothes from the bed. “Turn around.”
“You’ve got to be kidding,” he said, laughing softly. “Ellie, I’ve seen every inch of you.”
“Turn around, Dominic.”
“Fine, fine,” he said, raising his hands in mock surrender as he turned his back to me, though I caught the small smirk lingering on his lips.
I pulled the shirt over my head and tugged the jeans up, adjusting them as Dominic’s eyes followed every movement. There was something about the way he watched me—like he was savoring every second of it. But the playful glint in his eyes slowly faded when he spoke again.
“We need to leave.” His voice was softer, but there was a firmness there, something unspoken that made me pause.
I stopped mid-motion, glancing at him. “Why?”
His jaw tightened, and for a second, I swore I saw him hesitate. He avoided my gaze, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. His hands were stuffed into his pockets, but I could tell he was nervous.
“Adeline asked us to,” he said, his voice unusually flat.
I narrowed my eyes, a sinking feeling in my stomach. I didn’t buy it. Not for a second. “Why? Why did Adeline ask us to leave?”
He didn’t respond at first. Instead, he turned toward the window, as if the view outside would somehow offer him an escape. But the tension in his body gave him away.
“Dominic.” I said his name more firmly this time, crossing my arms. “What happened between you and Adeline?”
His fingers tightened around the hem of his shirt, but he still didn’t answer. He was deliberately avoiding it, and the silence between us grew thicker with every passing second.
I took a step closer, not giving up. “You’re not going to dodge this, Dominic. What happened?”
A long, uncomfortable silence followed. He was stalling. I could feel it, and I was done waiting. “Last night when we arrived, Adeline tried to shoot you. Do you mind explaining why?”
His head snapped up to meet my gaze, his expression hardening. There it was. He was caught. But instead of answering, he just stared at me, a blank expression on his face.
“What the hell happened, Dominic?”
“Ellie…” He let out a frustrated sigh, dragging his hand through his hair.
“No. I want to know. Why did she try to shoot you? I’m not letting you get away with dodging this.”
He let out another sigh, this one heavier, like the weight of whatever he was carrying was too much. “It’s not important.”
I shook my head, my patience wearing thin. “Not important? Really? You can’t just brush it off like that.”
He ran a hand over his face, clearly frustrated. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“You really don’t want to talk about it, huh?” I raised an eyebrow. “You’d rather just let me assume you did something to piss her off enough that she pulled a gun on you, is that it?”
The silence dragged on, and I could see him shutting down, trying his best to keep his guard up. But the more he avoided answering, the more I needed to know.
I crossed my arms again, eyes fixed on him. I was going to get the truth, whether he liked it or not. “You’re really not going to tell me, are you?”
He turned his back to me, walking over to the edge of the bed, and I could hear his breath catch in his throat. I could see him trying to push the conversation away, trying to change the subject, but I wasn’t having it.
I stepped toward him, my voice firm. “I’m waiting, Dominic. You don’t want to talk about it, fine. But I’m not going anywhere until you do.”
One minute passed.
Two.
Three.
The silence stretched on, and I stood there with my arms crossed, not backing down. Finally, his shoulders sagged, and he turned to face me.
“You really want to know?” He sounded almost... resigned now, like he was finally giving in.
“Yes,” I replied without hesitation.
“Ten years ago,” Dominic began, his voice heavy with the weight of the past, “there was a car crash. A big one.” He paused, staring off into space as though trying to gather his thoughts. “I wasn’t supposed to survive.”
I crossed my arms, irritation bubbling to the surface. “Oh, the one you used to fake your death?”
His expression tightened, frustration clear in his eyes. “No. I wasn’t faking my death, Ellie,” he said, his voice a little sharper now. “It wasn’t like that.”
I sighed, pushing for the details I needed. “So, what happened? Get to the point with Adeline.”
Dominic ran a hand through his hair, obviously trying to calm himself before continuing. “The crash... I wasn’t racing for fun that night. I realized too late that Vaughn’s men were involved. They were out to kill me.”
I could see the tension in his body, the way his shoulders stiffened at the memory. “And Adeline?”
He exhaled slowly, clearly reluctant to continue. “Adeline and her father nursed me back to health for months. It wasn’t just that they saved me... Adeline and I... we grew close.” His voice softened as he said it, a brief flash of something I couldn’t quite place in his eyes. “We started to care for each other.”
A pang of something sharp twisted in my chest, but I pushed it down, trying not to let it show. I waited for him to continue, though the thought of Adeline and Dominic... together... wasn’t something I was ready to confront.
“Then, she told me she was pregnant,” he said quietly, almost as if the words were painful to say aloud.
Pregnant. The word hit me harder than I expected, and I felt a jealous knot twist in my stomach. But I kept my voice neutral. “And then what?”
Dominic looked away, guilt clouding his gaze. “And then, without a trace, I left.”
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
