53. Dominic
CHAPTER 53
Dominic
I’LL DO ANYTHING
PRESENT
“ W ho the fuck is that?”
The image Morales has pulled up is a still from a traffic cam—a sedan matching the one that chased Ellie—alongside the DMV photo of the registered owner tied to the plates.
After Morales informed us we got a hit from the traffic cams, we gathered in the conference room to go over her findings.
“Name’s Matt Pagio.”
The name rings a bell. I stand, walking closer to the screens to get a better look at his picture.
“I think he was in my class,” I mutter.
Morales nods. “Based on his age, he likely was.”
Vorheis clears his throat. “Do you know of any ties he has to Elyse? Has she mentioned him recently?”
I shrug, unable to recall her ever bringing Matt up in conversation .
“Let’s ask her,” Morales chirps in. “She’s still in the lobby.”
Guilt twists low in my gut. Ellie’s got to be exhausted—working all day to pull off the wedding, only to end up at the station afterward.
If this doesn’t get resolved soon, it might kill us both.
I walk out to the lobby, where Ellie is passed out, sitting straight up in a chair. She looks so uncomfortable it physically hurts me to see her this way.
I cast a glance at the night shift clerk and she smiles politely.
“She fell asleep about thirty minutes ago,” whispers the clerk—Nora, according to her nameplate.
“Thanks,” I whisper back.
I crouch down in front of Ellieand start stroking her thighs in soothing motions. “Ellie girl. Time to wake up.”
She stirs for a moment before her eyes fly open.A sharp gasp bursts from her lips as her chest rises in a sudden, panicked breath.
I gather her face in my hands. “You’re fine. You’re okay. It’s just me.”
It takes her a moment, but soon there’s clarity in her gaze.
“What’s going on?” she asks, groggily.
“We might have something,” I tell her, pulling back and helping her stand. “If you’re up for it, we’d like you to look at some traffic cam stills.”
She nods. “Yeah. At this point I’ll do anything.”
With my fingers threaded through hers, we walk into the conference room.
The moment her gaze lands on the screens, her eyes widen.
“Matt?” Her head whips at me. “It’s Matt?”
Vorheis steps forward, extending his hand. “Sergeant Vorheis, but you can call me Dennis. ”
She smiles, years of being a Ledger kicking in—her manners on autopilot. “Elyse.”
Vorheis returns her smile and gestures for her to have a seat.
As she gets settled Ryker nods at her. “Are you thirsty? Do you need anything?”
She shakes her head. “I’m fine, Ryker. Thank you.”
Morales moves to stand near the screens. “Okay, let’s get started.” Using the remote, she changes the image. “At 6:18 p.m. the traffic camera on Main and Third, captured this image.”
It’s of a black sedan.
Ellie nods. “That’s it. That’s who followed me.”
“According to the plates,” Morales continues, “it’s registered to Matt Pagio.”
My attention turns to Ellie. “Has he been giving you problems? You never mentioned him.”
She huffs a dry laugh. “Well, up until yesterday afternoon I was planning his wedding. That woman you saw me meet with was his fiancé.”
Vorheis leans over the table. “Is there any reason he would have something against you?”
Ellie shrugs. “I guess so. I’m the one who convinced her to call it off.”
“Well, there’s your motive,” Ryker says, twisting in his chair.
I shake my head. “That doesn’t explain everything prior. If he didn’t have a reason to be angry with her before Friday, then he’s probably not who’s responsible for the other incidents.”
“Alvarez is right,” Vorheis says. “We’ll need to bring him in for questioning. We’ll have patrol pick him up in the morning, but as of right now, his overall motive is shaky at best.” He points between me and Ellie. “You two should go home, and get some rest. We’re not getting any further tonight.”
Ryker stands. “Agreed. I’ll have full-time patrol surveillance reinstated, and you’ll have an escort home.”
I shift my focus to Ellie. “Ready to go home?”
Her gaze settles with mine. “You have no idea.”
“Have you ever been so tired, you can’t fall asleep?” Ellie asks, in the darkness as we lie in bed.
“All the time,” I admit. “Sometimes I’m afraid to fall asleep, and it keeps me up no matter how hard I try to relax.”
“Why?” Her voice is hushed, like she’s worried about waking someone up even though we’re the only ones home.
I turn to face her, propping my head up on my palm. “Bad dreams. Bad memories.”
The blankets rustle, and I feel her body reposition, mirroring mine. “You never told me you have bad dreams.”
Ever since I started sleeping at Ellie’s I haven’t had one. “It’s been a while, but sometimes I have one creep up. Same one every time.”
She swallows. “What happens in the dream?”
I don’t like talking about it, but there’s a layer of comfort in the darkness. If I can’t see anything, it makes it less real. And if there’s anyone who’s ever going to know all of me, it’s her.
“The shooting, but in my dream I shoot him, and I always wake up before knowing if I killed him or not.”
Her hand reaches out, smoothing over my cheek. I can only see her eyes as they stare back at me. “That sounds terrible.” She pauses for a moment. “Is that how you would’ve preferred it went? Do you wish you’d killed him? ”
“No.” I shake my head. “Never. He was just a kid who made some bad decisions. I’m not sure I could live with myself if I’d killed him—or even shot him in the first place, justified or not.”
She sighs, moving against me. “Maybe that’s why you wake up. Your brain is protecting you.”
“Maybe,” I admit.
Her arm drapes across my stomach as she cuddles up to me. I immediately pull her closer.
“You should probably talk to someone,” she murmurs against my chest. “Might help.”
I let out a sigh. “I know.”
She’s quiet for a long moment—so long I’d think she might’ve drifted to sleep, but her breathing isn’t even enough.
“I’m sorry.” My hand glides up and down her arm softly. “I’m sorry for getting angry and raising my voice. I was just scared—scared of all the bad things that could’ve happened to you.”
She blows out a humorless laugh. “It’s not like you were wrong. It was a stupid move on my part.”
I shake my head. “No, it wasn’t. Nothing about you is stupid. None of this is your fault.”
“Doesn’t mean I don’t still feel like it is.”
“This was part of the problem, wasn’t it? Me trying to control everything—be everything, and not giving you the space to make your own choices and mistakes.”
She twists her neck, resting her chin on me. “You weren’t controlling of me, it wasn’t like that. I think I just got too used to doing everything with you, I didn’t know how to do anything alone.”
A beat of silence stretches between us before she takes a breath. “I don’t feel like that this time, though. I’m more independent, sometimes too independent, depending on who you ask.” She laughs quietly. “I’m not worried about not being able to function without you. I can live without you, I just don’t want to anymore.”
“I never want to again. It wasn’t great.”
“What was it like? When you were working in California? What did you do besides work?”
“Exist.”
She snorts. “That’s not the answer I was looking for.”
“It’s true,” I defend. “I mostly worked, did a lot of overtime. Sometimes I would hang out with the guys, but mostly it was just me. Alone.”
“I bet you left a string of broken hearts down there.”
“Nah, I never got that close.” I tilt my head to kiss her forehead. “You see, there was this girl I could never get over and I left my heart with her a long time ago. No one could hold a candle to her, so why bother trying.”
“You’re very swoony when you want to be.”
“Only for you. Always for you.”
We stay wrapped in each other, the only sound coming from the whirr of the ceiling fan above us.
Ellie starts running her hand up and down my stomach. I think she’s trying to be comforting, but the more she does it, the less I feel comforted and the more my dick hardens.
I close my eyes, willing it to go away.
Now isn’t the time, but my body doesn’t know that.
I take a few deep breaths, hoping it does the trick.
“Are you okay,” she asks. “Why are you breathing so hard?”
There’s laughter in her voice and now I’m thinking maybe her touch isn’t so innocent after all.
“It’s very difficult when you’re touching me and I’m trying to be a gentleman.”
She giggles, nuzzling her face into the crook of my neck. The heat of her breath skirts across my collarbone, and I get a little harder .
“Maybe I don’t want you to be a gentleman.” She nips at the skin just under my ear. “Maybe I want to end the night on a good note.” She sits up, and even though I can’t make out her expression, I know it’s more serious than it was a moment ago. “I want to forget for a little bit.” She bends to kiss my chest. “Distract me.” Her lips trail kisses down to my stomach. “Please.”
I feel like I’m failing her, not being able to catch the person behind everything. But this? This I can do. I can distract her. I can love her until she’s mindless. Until all she feels is us, and how good we are together.
Gripping her thighs, I flip us to settle her beneath me. Her legs cross behind my lower back like it’s second nature.
Thrusting, I nudge at her entrance even though we’re still clothed. “Is this what you need?”
Her back arches. “Yes, I need you.”
My heart squeezes, overwhelmed by how much I love her—how much I need her.
Together, we strip off the layers between us, and soon we’re tangled with my cock pressing into her thigh.
Ellie lifts her hips, silently begging for it.
“Do you want it quick and rough?”
Through the faint light filtering in from the stars, I see her lips quirk up. “You know I’m never satisfied with anything quick.”
I laugh against her mouth before slipping my tongue in. “Slow and rough it is.”