Chapter 27

I woke up and felt Dominique's sadness. I got up and got dressed. The club would be opening shortly, so I would head there. What could have happened between last night and today to make her feel so sad? I drove to the club and walked in just as Melissa slapped Tim. I got to the bar right as she threatened to kill him. What was going on? Post had come out from the back and was now yanking a struggling Melissa into the kitchen. Her anger was overwhelming. However, it was Dominique's sadness that I felt the most. Now, I knew something had happened between Dominique and Tim. It had to be for Melissa to get that riled up.

"What did you do to Dominique? From the feel of her sadness, I can only assume she is the one Melissa is talking about you hurting." I said to Tim.

Tim looked at me, and I saw anger, pain, and regret in his eyes. Tim's hands balled into fists, but he kept them by his sides. I raised an eyebrow, waiting on him to make a move. His anger felt more like rage to me, and it burned. I waited for him to answer, but his answer pissed me off.

"I slept with Dominique today," Tim said as he smiled.

My rage was boiling over, and I had to reel it back in. How could she sleep with me and then go back to Tim? I knew she was indecisive, but this was getting ridiculous. I wasn't going to give Tim what he wanted. He wanted a fight, and I wouldn't give in to it.

"That wouldn't hurt Dominique," I said in a low, controlled voice, even though it was hard for me to keep it that way.

I was ready to kill Tim. Tim moved, and I saw the light glint off a necklace. I realized quickly that it was the one Dominique always wore. Why did he have it?

"What did you do to Dominique? Furthermore, why do you have her necklace? Did you steal it from her?"

"No. I walked away from her today. I made her choice easier. She no longer has to be confused. You won. Are you happy now? She's moving on with her life and leaving her past behind. That includes our daughter and me, so she gave me the necklace," Tim whispered.

I was surprised, to say the least. I could feel the pain radiating from Tim. I didn't think Tim would bow out. Moreover, in doing that, he hurt Dominique. Did I even stand a chance with her now that she was hurting? I wasn't about to push the issue. I would simply give her time to come to me. If she ever decided to do that now that Tim had made the situation even worse than it was.

"I can't say I'm sorry that you are out of the picture, but I do not wish for Dominique to be hurt. I was not going to push the issue as I wanted her to choose, and I did not wish to hurt her or make her feel sadness by leaving her life."

"Yeah, I know, I'm a bastard. But I love her and want her to be happy."

"How can you say you love her and hurt her like you have today? I know you can feel her sadness. Why would you not let her figure out on her own what she truly wants?"

"Because I know what she truly wants. She's confused because she feels a love for me that she had before, but as I told her today, I'm not that guy anymore. And then there's you, whom she has apparently also fallen in love with. However, you haven't done half of the shit I've done to her. I already know she's going to choose you in the end by the way she keeps bringing you up and saying she doesn't want to lose one of us. I'll be her friend if she will have me as that. Although, after today, I'm not so sure she even wants that from me," Tim sighed.

"How do you know she loves me?" I asked.

"She had no problem telling me that today. She knew it hurt me, but she was being honest. We were being honest with each other. Furthermore, I can't have Jacob going after her, so I'm going to do the one thing I never wanted to do."

"And what is that?" I asked.

"I'm going to protect Dominique at all costs. I'm not only protecting her life but her heart as well. I'm going to challenge Jacob. With him out of the picture, you will be safe, and Dominique will be truly happy even if I'm not," Tim said as he walked away to help a customer.

I knew what it meant for Tim to challenge Jacob. If he won, the pack was his. If he lost, he would die. Did Tim want to lead the pack? I could not help him with that one as the pack's business was their own. However, I also did not want to be the cause of Tim's death. I knew that would hurt Dominique more than Tim just leaving her be. There was nothing more I could do with that situation but leave it be.

I shook my head and walked toward Dominique's office. She had sent me a message saying she needed to see me. Now I was wondering if she would tell me about what happened today. Had she finally decided to choose to be with me? Tim's words echoed in my head that she loved me. If that was true, I could move forward with my plan to reveal myself to her. I had waited for this go-round because I had to get it right this time. It was my last chance. I knocked on Dominique's door and heard her say to come in. When I opened the door, I saw her sitting at her desk, her hand on her neck. I closed the door and sat down across from her.

"Good evening, Dominique."

"Hey," Dominique said as she pushed the envelope on her desk towards me.

I picked it up and opened it, realizing it was the contract I had brought her. She had signed them and decided to go into business with me. I couldn't help but smile as I looked at her. She smiled back, but it didn't reach her eyes. It wasn't a truly happy one. I stood up, came around the desk, leaned down, and hugged her.

"I'm sorry, Dominique. I know what happened today because Melissa sort of attacked and threatened Tim. So, I asked about it."

"Well, that's just great. Why would you ask about it? For that matter, who did you ask?"

"I asked Tim about it. He basically told me I won. I told you before that I would not push you, Dominique. I am here no matter what you decide."

"Well, I guess it doesn't really matter now because Tim bowed out. I, I gave him my necklace. I have to put the past behind me. I told him I couldn't do that if I kept hanging on to it, so I gave him my necklace to remind him. I really thought after the talk we had today that things were different. But I guess all it really did was upset him more, but he finally opened up to me today."

"Oh? What did he tell you?" I asked, wondering if Tim had told her what he truly was.

"Well, he basically told me why he did the things he did before. He wouldn't talk much about what happened with him and Jacob, but he told me he had done things he wasn't proud of. He's still keeping that part of his life secret, but I guess I can understand since he doesn't want me mixed up in it. But he also told me that Jacob told him either he could bring me in or I would be in danger. He said they are after you for some reason that I still don't understand."

"What do you mean he told you that he had to bring you in?" I asked, growing concerned.

"Well, Tim told Jacob I belonged to him, and Jacob told him to bring me into the gang. I guess every guy in a gang has a woman somewhere along the lines. This sounds like a biker gang, but I don't really know what that means."

I knew from that that Tim had not told her everything about himself. It was not my place to tell Dominique about Tim. However, her words had me thinking about what Jacob had offered Tim. It would mean protection for Dominique from the whole pack. But Tim obviously hadn't wanted to offer that choice to Dominique. Was that why he was backing out? I needed to keep a closer eye on Tim. Why would he all of a sudden now back down and go after Jacob? Or was this just what he was telling Dominique to make her feel sorry for him and come running back to him?