48. Chapter Forty-Seven
Chapter Forty-Seven
Alicia
Kaleb practically skips down the stairs, a cunning smile on his face, his eyes alight with joy, and his body more relaxed than before he went up there earlier.
"He's creepy when he's happy," Rory whispers beside me as we watch him move around the room towards Sophia.
He leans down, placing a kiss against her forehead and pressing his hand against her stomach.
"I'm popping out for a bit. Have an errand to run," he says, kissing her again before standing up straight and strolling across the room. "I'll be back in an hour."
He walks out of the room, stepping back into the doorway a moment later, a thoughtful look on his face.
"Actually, maybe two hours."
Winking at Sophia, he disappears again, and shortly after, the elevator spurs to life.
I glance over at Sophia, who's also sitting there looking bewildered.
"What was that about?" Jess asks from beside me.
Sophia frowns and shakes her head.
"I don't know, but that was weird," she says. "Very weird… he has hardly left my side throughout this whole pregnancy. Not without a good reason, anyway."
A creak on the stairs sounds from behind us, and we all turn around to face Dom. He slowly makes his way down the steps, his murky eyes locked onto mine.
The look on his face has me shooting to my feet, moving around the sofa, and walking over to meet him at the bottom of the stairs.
"What's wrong?"
His hands cup my jaw, thumbs stroking my cheeks.
"We need to talk," he says, eyes still locked onto mine.
"What's going on, Dom?" Sophia calls from over my shoulder.
He glances past me, shakes his head at his sister, and then moves his focus back to mine.
"Can we go upstairs and talk?"
"Did you find him?" I ask, eyes darting between his, holding my breath as I wait for his answer.
His lips twitch, his gaze moves away from mine, and his thumbs stop their gentle movements as he sighs.
"Not exactly," he says, creasing forming around his eyes.
I raise my brow in question, lifting my hands to cover his, pulling them away from my face.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It's his way of stalling," Jess states from behind me.
"It means he's got something to tell you," Sophia adds. "Something he doesn't want to tell you because he's unsure of your reaction."
Dom's eyes slice over to the women on the sofa, and he shakes his head again.
"Will you two butt out?"
Glancing over at them, they both wear matching amused smirks on their face as they nod.
"Maybe we should give them a minute," Rory suggests timidly, nervously glancing at Dom.
"No. You can stay," I tell her, waving my hand. "Dom can tell me whatever he wants to with you all here."
He swallows roughly, his hands squeezing mine.
"Kaleb's gone to find your brother," he states, his eyes hesitantly darting back to mine.
Sophia sighs from across the room, muttering something under her breath, but I'm unsure of what, because I'm distracted by the words Dom just spoke.
Squinting my eyes and tilting my head, I look up at him, brows drawn down.
"Is that it?" I ask.
The tension falls from his face and shoulders immediately, and his eyes widen slightly.
"It doesn't bother you?"
Squashing my lips together to keep myself from laughing, I shake my head.
"You thought it would bother me?"
He nods, and that does make me laugh.
He releases my hands, steps back, and takes a seat on the stairs as he sighs, dropping his head into his hands.
I crouch down in front of him, a smile still on my face as I duck my head low until his eyes meet mine.
"He has terrorised me my whole life, Dom. Ever since I was a child. He's the bad apple. Everyone knows it. All he's ever caused in life is trouble, and after trying to kill me and hurting Percy, he deserves everything he has coming his way."
His hands clamp around my jaw, and he drags my face to his, pressing our foreheads together as he closes his eyes.
"Thank god for that. I was worried you'd hate me."
"Well, it wouldn't be the first time," I retort, chuckling.
Almost two hours later, Kaleb returns to the apartment, simply nods at Dom, and then ushers the girls out of the apartment, leaving Dom and I alone. We're sitting in the living room, Jellybean on my lap with each of our hands stroking through her fur.
Dom plays with the little pink bow placed between her ears with one hand, while his other rests on my stomach beneath my top, rubbing small circles along my skin.
His chest is against my back, his legs either side of my hips, and a blanket lain over both of our bodies.
My eyes are on the windows opposite us, staring at the tall building surrounding ours, watching as the sun slowly begins to sink from the sky.
"Are you okay?" he asks, his warm breath tickling my ear.
I nod, turning to face him.
"It's strange," I admit, resting my head against his collarbone, reaching up to stroke my fingers along his beard as I talk. "I'm glad he's gone. It's like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders, knowing I no longer have to be on high alert, worried that someone is going to come after me."
"But?" he prompts.
"But my chest still aches."
Moving his hand from Jellybean's head, he wraps both of his arms securely around my body, pulling us closer together.
"I knew you'd be conflicted." Pressing a gentle kiss against my forehead, he sighs. "It's natural to feel that way, I think. He may have been cruel, and you may have hated him, but he was still your brother. He was still family."
We sit in silence for a few moments, snuggled up beneath the blanket, eyes locked onto each other, and small smiles tugging at our lips.
"It's crazy how we've got here, don't you think?"
I nod, chuckling as I rest my head against his shoulder.
"Just a few weeks ago, we were complete strangers, thrust into an arrangement none of us wanted to be a part of, clawing at each other's throats every chance we got.
And now, here we are, making googly eyes at each other, cuddled up on the sofa with our little fur baby, who you used to refer to as a rat—which was highly offensive by the way. But we're happy, aren't we?"
Smiling down at me, he nods, squeezing his arms tighter around my midsection.
"Happier than I think I've ever been," he tells me, dipping down to capture my lips with his.