Chapter 15 Annetta
ANNETTA
Today’s a good day.
But tears track down my face.
I woke up in bed with Dom by my side for the second night in a row, and for the second night in a row, I slept without any nightmares.
I lay there for a long time, tucked against his warm body, and watched the snow drift outside onto the sleeping city.
His steady breathing next to me was the only sound in the room until my need for the bathroom grew too pressing.
Fragile as a newly-hatched butterfly, I crawled out from under his arm and floated to the bathroom. So much tension had unwound from my body at Dom’s hands and talented mouth that I hadn’t even set a timer when I stepped into the shower.
The second the water pelted my face, a switch flipped, and I sobbed into my open palm so I wouldn’t wake him up.
The same old emotions coil around me. Fear for myself and shame that I could ever be worried about my life when I should be grateful that I have one at all. Everything is drowned out by the deep longing I have to talk to Serafina one more time.
She never cried. She didn’t like doing it in front of anyone, even me, even though I would’ve been there for her if she did.
If she’d been thrust into my life, to need to make the decisions I did, would that have broken through her emotional shell?
If she’d been haunted by the attempts on her life and the cold terror of Don Salvatore’s implied threat in his basement, would that have made her as unrecognizable as I’m becoming?
I can’t think about it.
My phone buzzes harshly against the bathroom counter, shocking me into the present. I rub the warm water out of my eyes and draw the shower curtains to one side. Valeria’s name flashes on the phone screen.
I hiss a curse and fumble with my towel before swiping several times against the glass screen with damp fingers.
“I’m heading up with your groceries in a few minutes,” she says.
I wince. She can’t wait for me all morning to finish crying. She’s got classes today.
“Okay,” I say, trying to cover the raw tone in my voice with a high-pitched enthusiasm. “I’m in the shower, but I’ll get dressed now.”
We hang up, and I rush to finish washing my hair and wrap myself in a fluffy towel.
I nearly run out until I catch a glimpse of myself in the bathroom mirror.
Puffy eyelids, blotchy skin, and a red nose.
I consider going into the bedroom anyway—what would Dom say?
—but I don’t want to ruin what we had last night.
I pat on a thin mask of concealer until I appear mostly normal.
When I swing open the bathroom door, the sight of him stops me in my tracks.
He’s awake now, sitting up against the pillows with the crisp, white bedsheets pooled along his waist—and he’s shirtless.
His hair hangs loose and a little messy over his shoulders.
A gold cross sits nestled in his chest hair, and I have to clamp my jaw shut to keep it from falling completely open at the sight of his broad chest and arm muscles eating up the width of the bed.
“Who was that?” He glances up from his phone in his palm, looking at me over the top of his sexy glasses.
“Sorry?” I fiddle with the edges of my towel, calculating how much time I have before Valeria gets here. Definitely not enough time to have sex, but maybe he’d finger me again and help me release all that stress from the shower…
“On the phone. Who called?”
“Valeria,” I exhale. I’m nearly on the verge of asking him to touch me again until I realize he’s been staring at my face for a little too long, and I break out in a quick smile instead.
I’m doing fine with my thirty-minute crying sessions. I don’t need to bother him with them, and I definitely don’t want to go back to him treating me with kid gloves. I’m moving forward with my life, no matter how much the past tries to drag me back.
I drop my towel to the ground, and interest lights up Dom’s face. He slings one arm over the top of the headboard as the outline of his dick grows long under the bedsheets.
“I have to meet with her to talk about the party stuff before she goes to her classes today. Will you be here when I get back?” I force myself to turn away from the beautiful man in my bed to rustle through the closet naked, pushing my ass out a little more than usual.
His voice drifts in through the shirts I’m filing through. “I’m yours for the rest of the day.”
“Really?” My heart lifts. “I should have hitmen come to the apartment more often.”
“Very funny. That reminds me. I want you to learn how to shoot a gun.”
“I can shoot a gun.” I tug on underwear and a pair of leggings before turning back to Dom and taking my sweet time to drag on a thick, chunky sweater while he watches.
I should probably blow-dry my hair, but Valeria will be here any second now, and I’d rather spend the time flirting with this brand new Dom.
“You get anywhere near the target?” He looks too relaxed in the bed, instead of tense and seconds away from ripping my clothes off like I’d prefer.
I lean back against the doorjamb of the closet, crossing my arms. “A few times.”
He scoffs, tapping lightly on his phone. “Eduardo will bring a few things I ordered later today. You train with me, and I’ll have you hitting the target every time.”
A strange thrill passes through me. “You want to train me? Like, to shoot?” I think back to the cold terror of Mikey pinning me against the car door. Of Don Salvatore looking at me in his basement. “Can you teach me to fight, too?”
He glances over at me. “Fight what, a flea? You weigh a hundred pounds soaking wet.”
I frown. “Yeah… I guess you’re right.” The elevator door faintly dings downstairs, and Valeria calls out a distant greeting as she steps inside the penthouse. “Valeria’s here.”
I’m strangely disappointed as I leave the room with Dom’s gaze burning my back. Why would he go through the effort of teaching me to shoot and not to fight? Is it really that big of a joke to teach me how to defend myself?
Valeria is digging through one of the two giant paper sacks of groceries and flowers when I enter the kitchen. Her eyes linger on my face just like Dom’s did.
“You doing okay?” she asks too casually as she pulls out a bag of leeks.
I pat under my eyes self-consciously. “I didn’t think it was that obvious.”
“It’s not.” Valeria turns to the fridge. “Would a hug help?”
For a few moments, I’m not sure if she’s joking or not, until she cracks a tiny smile.
Is she teasing me?
“Only if you promise not to blind me again,” I tease back.
Valeria measures me for a few seconds. I think I might’ve offended her, until she takes a bracing breath like she’s about to plunge into an ice bath and steps forward to hug me.
Her long limbs wrap around me with all the comfort of a stick bug, but I appreciate the sentiment as she awkwardly pats my back.
“You’ve been practicing,” I say.
“Shut up.”
When we finally release, a light blush lingers on her cheeks as we work together to get the rest of the groceries put away.
“I got the party invitations printed out.” She pulls a thick, book-sized package from her bag. “They look even better in person. Are you sure you can mail them all out? I can still do it.”
I snatch them from her. “I’ve seen your handwriting—trust me, everyone will thank you for delegating.
” I cast my gaze over the flowers we’ve laid out on the kitchen island, a few ideas already forming in the back of my mind.
“I’ll send you some pictures of the flowers later.
The chicken wire you brought over the other day should help.
Did you ever hear back from that pianist? ”
The pieces are starting to fall together for us.
If I can get my flower arrangements to look less “drunk”, and Valeria can get the pianist she paid last week to sign her event contract, we’ll be in a good place for the party.
I should be happy we’re figuring this all out, but mostly I wonder what I’ll do once this event’s over.
I like cooking, and I don’t mind cleaning, but being a housewife for Dom feels like falling into the same old song and dance.
Valeria’s gloomy face falls. “No. I keep meaning to stop by his house, but I haven’t had the time. If I don’t get him to agree to go, I’ll have to fight for the deposit. I might use some of my cash to hire someone else until we can get it back.”
“Deposit for what?”
Valeria and I turn as Dom comes down the stairs, dressed in a pair of soft dark brown pants rolled at his ankles and a black T-shirt that stretches across the heavy muscles of his chest. My stomach somersaults at the sight of him, and he flashes me a grin that makes my knees weak.
Despite his size, he’s completely silent as he walks barefoot from the stairs to the kitchen and kisses the top of my head.
Blushing furiously, I turn to Valeria—who’s completely stone-faced. Little by little, her expressions had been opening up, I realize, only to shut down again at Dom’s arrival. Dom, on the other hand, is completely unbothered as he opens the fridge and rustles through the interior.
“It’s no concern,” she says woodenly. “Just a few snags for the party. I’ll get it handled.”
“I can call him,” I say. “Cousin Joey’s kids used to be Girl Scouts, and I’ve helped run their cookie stands sometimes. I’m good with people.”
“Someone’s not coughing up their deposit?” Dom’s voice rumbles ominously behind me.
“Dom,” I say warningly and turn to Valeria. “I’ll call him today, okay? And maybe I’ll have Cousin Carmen draft up some legalese to scare him if that doesn’t work. We’ll have it back by the end of the week, promise.”
Valeria’s eyes flick up to Dom, before she meets my eye and nods. “Okay. Thank you.”
“Then unspend the money,” I snap at the meek nerd on the other side of the phone. I rub my temples.