He struggled, and Salvatore held on to his wrist. Luigi and Salvatore fell to the floor on the back of the van, wrestling with each other. Zoey took the opportunity to jump to her feet, lunged for the back door of the van, and fumbled for the lock.
Before Salvatore and Luigi could grab her, the door flew open and she fell out onto the street. The van was only moving at a crawl, because they were skulking around the west side, trying to find a way to get past Arturo’s men. They’d been complaining about it the whole time.
They were on a tiny side street. Zoey shot down the street, heart in her throat, and made it on to the main road, but then a growl behind her made her spin around. She stared at two large, angry, wolves. Salvatore and Luigi, who stood there facing her with their tails swishing.
There was no point in running – but she wouldn’t make this easy for them.
“You fleabags are going to have to drag me back,” she yelled. “I’ll gauge your eyes out, you mangy poodles!”
They froze. And they turned. And they ran.
Wow. Was she somehow actually a badass, and she’d never known it? “Yeah, you better run!” she yelled at their retreating backs.
Then she saw what they were running from – two more enormous wolves who were barreling down the street towards her. Dominic, and Romano.
They reached her and shifted back to human form, and Dominic grabbed her and squeezed her so tight she groaned in protest.
She looked up at him, blinking away tears of relief and love and gratitude. “What took you so long?”
Chapter Nineteen
Before they went into Dominic’s apartment above the restaurant, Romano tromped up the stairs to make sure it was safe. Then he went back downstairs and gestured at them to go inside.
“We’re here, instead of Arturo’s?” Zoey said, flopping onto Dominic’s couch. “I mean, I’m certainly happy to be closer to Sergio’s restaurant, but is it maybe safer at Arturo’s right now?”
“Romano, go wait out in the hall,” Dominic said. Romano obeyed instantly, leaving the apartment and closing the door behind him. Dominic sank down onto the pillow next to Zoey, his eyes hollow and his face grim.
“What’s wrong?” Zoey asked, stricken. She’d never seen Dominic look so…lost.
“Nothing’s safe right now, Zoey,” Dominic said bleakly. “Arturo believes that I put his niece in danger, and therefore, he has kicked me out of the pack. As a lone wolf, I can’t offer you the same kind of protection that I would have before. If you want me to relinquish my claim…”
“What did you just say to me?” Zoey spluttered. “That’s…I don’t…I’m seriously tempted to punch you right now. The only reason I don’t is because it would hurt me more than it would hurt you.”
“You’re not relieved to be rid of me?”
Zoey thought she might actually explode, she was so furious. “You win first prize for being the dumbest wolf on the face of God’s green earth. Abandoning a mate claim…your wolf would be okay with that?”
He shook his head in resignation. “No. My wolf would go crazy. And it would take me with it.”
“And you didn’t think that was information that you should share with me?” she yelled, and punched his arm. “Ow! You see?” She shook her hand, which stung.
“I would do anything to keep you safe. And right now I’m a lone wolf caught in the middle of a pack war, and you’re my mate, which paints a big fat target on your back.”
“You’re not lone, you still have me!” Romano called from the hallway.
“Stop listening!”Dominic yelled at him. “Good God. Can’t a man do something heroic and self-sacrificing without an audience?”
“How about cowardly and insulting?” Zoey said angrily. “How could you think so little of me, that I’d run at the first sign of trouble? And how dare you give up on yourself like that?”
“I knew she was a keeper!” Romano yelled.
Dominic leapt to his feet.“I will kill you,”he shouted at the door so loudly that the walls shook and a painting fell to the floor.
“I’m going to wait downstairs so you can guys can not-have sex!” Romano shouted back, and they heard his footsteps pounding down the stairway.
Dominic sat down again.
“I will consider being your mate,” Zoey said, struggling to contain her hurt and fury. “On one condition.You stop hiding things from me. Right now you’re treating me like a bed partner, not a real mate, or wife, and I will not accept that. I deserve better than that.” She blinked away tears. “You’ve made me feel like I deserve better – but every time I start to get close to you, you do something to push me away. Don’t try to deny it.”
