Chapter 35
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chloe
T he scent of citrus and musk envelops me as Dominic joins me on the porch steps, his loose, black hair blowing in a breeze. With it down, he appears softer, more vulnerable. It’s grown so much since high school, when his parents demanded he cut it every time it brushed the tips of his ears.
As he takes the plate of breakfast sandwiches and balances it on his knee, the warmth of his body reaches me, heating my skin and sending tingles of awareness through me.
Unsure of how to react to these sensations, I focus on the steaming mug of coffee cradled in my hands. While I don’t flinch away from him anymore, a different uneasiness fills me, the electricity under my skin tempered by fear that, if I open my heart to him, he’ll crush it again.
In the yard, Quinn’s laughter mingles with excited barks as she plays with Sprinkles, the huge black Newfoundland chasing after her with gentle affection. The sweet innocence of their contrasts fills me with an ache for something I never had.
“I can’t imagine what it would have been like to grow up that carefree,” Dominic murmurs, his attention on the little girl. “Even with Sadie the way she is, nothing holds Quinn back.”
“Must be because of Blake.” I reach out to take one of the bacon and egg biscuits. “He makes sure she never has a reason to doubt herself or his love for her. You all do that.”
“Yeah.” He leans back to rest on his hands. “She deserves the happiness we missed out on as kids.”
Silence lapses between us, but it’s not uncomfortable as we eat breakfast and keep an eye on Quinn, making sure she stays close to the house. Since the cameras and security went up around the Homestead, there’s been no sign of the intruder, but we’re not taking any chances. Especially not with Louie still out there.
What will it take for him to give me up? Once the Misty Pines Alphas Mark me, will he concede defeat?
A shiver goes through me. No one can contest a true mating, and based on the way our scents mingle and the bond hums around these Alphas, I know in my heart that we’ll be bondmates.
I stare into the inky depths of my coffee, swirling the steaming liquid as if it can give me the answers I seek. “I hate that Louie still found a way to reach me. Even on a secluded island, he slithered his way in.”
Beside me, Dominic shifts, his jaw working. “The island is still considered private property. If he comes here, we’ll have him arrested for trespassing.”
I set my mug to the side and turn to face him. “How long would it take for the police to arrive?”
He grimaces. “Fifteen minutes, if they come by helicopter. It’s the one downside of living on an island. It’s the same challenge if we need a hospital.”
“Maybe I should have become a doctor instead of an author,” I joke. “I’m pretty useless, as far as being a benefit to the pack, aside from my money.”
“You existing is all we need.” His words wrap around me, soft as a blanket, and I want to believe him. “Holden is the glue of our pack, but you’re the heart.”
My bottom lip trembles. “But what if Louie does something to stop you from meeting your deadline for the resort? What if Blake and Nathaniel?—”
“That won’t happen,” he says, cutting off my doubts.
I hang my head. “If I knew what Louie really wanted from me, at least I’d have a chance of getting rid of him.”
“Whatever it is, he won’t get it.” He sets the plate with the remainder of our breakfast aside to shift toward me. “You’re not alone in this, Chloe. I’m here. We all are.”
I meet his gaze, and my pulse stutters at the raw understanding in his expression. There’s no judgment there, no pity. Just a quiet strength that steadies me, even as my world wobbles on its axis.
“I know, but…” My voice cracks, and I clear my throat. “When you and Holden helped me escape from the hospital, I thought that meant we were past this. Past him. But he keeps popping up. And every time he does, I’m back in that locked room, afraid every time the door opens, but also terrified when it doesn’t, scared that I’ll be forgotten in there with no way to call for help.”
Dominic’s fingers twitch, as if fighting the urge to reach out and touch me. Part of me wishes he would. That he’d pull me into his arms and let me lose myself in the citrusy pheromones on his skin.
But he doesn’t.
Instead, he maintains the small distance, respecting the wall I put between us. “Healing takes time. It’s not a straight line. There are going to be setbacks, moments when it feels like you’re right back where you started. But you’re not. You’re stronger now. Stronger than him.”
His words settle into my bones, and for a moment, I let myself believe them. Let myself imagine a world where Louie’s hold on me is nothing more than a distant memory.
But hurt doesn’t always disappear. Sometimes it just lies dormant, a landmine waiting to be triggered back to the forefront of the mind. Look at what happened when I met Dominic again. I thought I’d moved past the pain he caused me, but when I saw him again, it was like it happened yesterday.
But he was a child, pressured by his peers and his pack. Was what he did wrong? Yes. But he had broken away from that toxicity when given the chance. Louie, on the other hand, was an adult when he first preyed on me.
“You’ve changed,” I say, the words slipping out before I can stop them. “Misty Pines… It’s been good for you.”
It’s the truth. The Dominic beside me now is not the same child I knew all those years ago. There’s a calmness to him, a steadiness that wasn’t there before. As if he’s finally found his place in the world.
His breath catches, and when our eyes meet, my heart aches at the vulnerability I see there. “I’m trying. Every day, I’m trying to be better. To be someone… someone worthy of…”
He trails off, but I hear the unspoken words hanging in the air between us. Someone worthy of you. The thought sends a shiver through me, and I lean closer, drawn to the warmth of his presence like a moth to a flame.
For a moment, the world narrows to the two of us, and all I can focus on is the way Dominic regards me. Like I’m something precious. Something worth fighting for.
Then Quinn’s shriek of laughter jars me from the moment, and I pull back, cheeks flushing hot with embarrassment. I stand abruptly, nearly knocking over my forgotten coffee. “I should… I should go see if Holden’s found anything on the laptop.”
The excuse sounds flimsy even to my own ears, but Dominic accepts it without question, masking his disappointment. “Sure. I’ll stay out here until Quinn tires herself out.”
As I head inside, his stare burns between my shoulder blades, heavy with a longing that matches the ache in my chest. But I don’t turn around. I can’t.
Because deep down, I know that if I do, I might not find the strength to walk away again.
I step back into the house, and the front door clicks shut behind me, leaving me in unnatural stillness. No laughter, no conversation, not even the clang and rattle of Holden in the kitchen.
My heart pounds, the flush in my cheeks spreading lower. Dominic’s scent lingers in my lungs, on my skin, the citrus and musk blending with my floral notes in a way that is both new and achingly familiar.
I lean against the door for support as I struggle to catch my breath. My fingers brush my lips, which tingle for the want of his kiss. If Quinn hadn’t been there, what would have happened?
As much as I keep denying it, a part of me remembers the way we used to be and still craves Dominic’s touch.
I draw in a shaky breath and push myself off the door, heading toward the kitchen. The smell of coffee and bacon still lingers in the air, and I regret leaving my mug outside. But I’m not willing to go fetch it now.
As I pass the row of French doors that run the length of the dining room, I glance outside. Dominic still sits on the porch steps, his lean silhouette outlined by the rising sun, his long hair fluttering.
His gaze is distant as he watches Quinn and Sprinkles play in the yard, and for a moment, I let myself imagine a different life, one where Dominic and I went through with the bonding our family planned.
Would we have already welcomed our first pup into this world? Would they have been happy?
Would we?