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Dominic went to sit, lazily wiping blood from his face with a dark sleeve. Then he gave me that predatory grin that looked savage with fresh blood trickling from a split lip. “You almost got me, Maddox.”
He chuckled at my scowl. I would have. With my full strength, I fucking would have. I didn’t give a shit aboutwhathe was. How much power he had. How fucking strong he was under that fitted black suit.
Kaylie’s hands were on me, forcing my attention from Dominic to her. She adjusted the now blood-stained shirt, then circled me, stopping in front of me. Her eyes skimmed over the injured arm. “You’re okay?” Worry shone in her eyes, and I hated making it worse.
“No, I’m not fucking okay!” I damn near yelled. I couldn’t stop it. Contain it. My fists itched to wipe that satisfied smirk off his lips. To fuckinghurthim.
“Hey, hey.” Her hands on my arms held me back, and it wasn’t until I let myself see her, to reallyseethat I realized I moved toward Dominic, and she struggled to keep me away from the gun he gripped in his lap.
My eyes jerked from her to the weapon and narrowed. “Gonna shoot me?” I hissed. “Go ahead.”
He just sat there, fingering the gun as if it was a pet. Shiny rings glistened next to tattooed knuckles, and I scoffed. He sure knew how to pack a punch and inflict the most pain from it.Fucker. His calm attitude, despite the blood dripping down his chin, made me grit my teeth a bit harder. He sat there, smug and cool, as if he won. As if he hadn’t just threatened to throw away the most precious thing I had.
He lifted his head, pinning me with his dark gaze. “She won’t be harmed. I would have told you if you let me.” His voice was as cold as his eyes. Each word, sharp as razor. “I’ll let this slide. Because I like you.” He eyed me, sneering at the blood smeared across my jaw. “But if you hit me again…”
“Then what?” I shot back.
“Then I’ll fucking end you.”
I scoffed. “I’m not scared of you.”
“Brave too.” Izzy grinned. “Damn, you hit the jackpot, chica.”
I had no choice but to sit. I was too fucking tired to do anything else. My shoulder throbbed from the fresh pain, but I refused to let it show, even though I desperately needed something stronger than Kaylie’s soothing touches to get me through this.
Her hand ran up and down my arm. It was enough of a distraction to keep me grounded. To restrain from lashing out at everyone. If my mood could sink further, I’d be dragging a black thunderstorm around. My whole body hurt from taking punches, but I was used to it. It wasn’t the first time I ended up in a fistfight. Mostly it was with Johnny, or for Johnny. But one thing remained, I could handle some goddamn sore muscles and bruised flesh. I could even handle the fucking shoulder from hell. What I couldn’t stand was letting her go. I wanted to put up a fight. To turn the fucking world upside down if it meant she stayed with me. But I couldn’t.
No matter what I said in anger, I wasn’t dumb enough to cross Dominic. The guy was a fucking mob boss, and that was nothing I wanted to go up against. No more than what I already had. He was also the only one in the goddamn state we could trust not to sell us out to Mr. X.
My eyes drifted to Kaylie, and something in me clenched. I couldn’t do this. I couldn’t sit here and agree to letting her go. I swore to keep her safe. To protect her with my fucking life.
“I’ll go.” I fixed Dominic with a hard stare, daring him to argue. “I’ll be your fucking tool.”
He chuckled. “Nice of you to offer, but you’ll stick out like a sore thumb.” He jerked his chin in the direction of my sling.
“She will be all right,” Izzy said softly.
I gritted my teeth to avoid screaming. She couldn’t promise that. She couldn’t fucking promise.
“It’s okay, Marc,” Kaylie whispered, then she turned to Dominic. “I want this to end. What do I have to do?”
I couldn’t hear this. I couldn’t sit there and pretend to be okay with this. Kaylie didn’t even try to fight it. She could refuse. She could choose to stay with me. But no, she had to go and do the right thing. Forhim. For the son of a bitch who got her into this shit in the first place. I couldn’t care less if he died. How badly he was beaten. I’d fucking put him in that hospital bed myself if I got the chance. He threatened Kaylie once, he was going to fucking marry her against her will, all for his own selfish needs. And now she was risking everything tohelphim?
I shot her a look that didn’t quite hide the hurt that made me boil inside. She promised to never leave. She fucking lied.
Before she could grab me, I turned on my heel and left. I wasn’t going to sit there and listen to her planning her own fucking funeral. Dominic and Izzy may not give a shit, but I did. It was tearing me apart.
I slammed the door to the bedroom so hard it bounced right open before swinging shut again, then I began to pace. I needed something to take the edge off the pain. I needed to clean up, but all I could think of was her rushing to Alex’s side.He’s gay.I tried to tell myself.He’s fucking gay. It didn’t matter. Not when he was the one with the ring. She’d behiswife. Havehischildren. All so he could fuck other guys behind his father’s back.
I screamed, letting all the frustration and fear surface. It didn’t help. I slammed a fist into the wall, cracking my knuckles against the hard stone. Then I fell forward, hand still on the wall. I leaned my forehead against the cold surface, grinding it into the stone while fighting to stay ahead of the whirlwind of emotions inside. It was a fucking sinkhole. Deep. Dark. And dangerous. If I fell in, I’d never resurface. I’d fucking drown in my own despair. And it was all her fault.
Why did I let her in? How could I be so damn stupid to let myself fall in love again? If I’d just stayed numb, none of this would have happened. I wouldn’t be fighting for my breath. I wouldn’t be falling apart at the thought of losing her.
I only just found her…
The door opened with a low creek, and Kaylie stepped in. I pushed off the wall, fixing her with a cold stare. Her moves were hesitant as she approached me. So was her voice. “How are you feeling?”
Something in me snapped, like a power line tearing. I exploded. “What do you think?” I shouted. “What the fuck do you expect?” I backed away as she neared. “I’ve had enough! I can’t do this anymore! I fucking can’t—” my voice cracked, and when I spoke again, my voice was a raw whisper. “I can’t lose you.”
