Chapter 19

I sat there holding Dominique for a few hours before she started to stir. She jerked upright, and I let go of her as I could feel her fear and hear her heart hammering. She looked wildly around and finally realized she was in her office. She moved so she could look behind her. I didn't move for fear she may react badly to me still being here, holding her. Finally, she sighed and slowly laid back on me. I didn't touch her at first, but she took my hands and pulled them around her. I pulled her close and kissed the top of her head.

Her voice sounded hoarse as she said, "I was hoping that was one nightmare that wasn't true. However, if you are actually here, that means I did shoot someone. You weren't there when I actually needed you, but you are here now. Thank you for staying with me. You didn't have to."

"I will never leave you, Dominique. I will offer you every part of me if you would only take it. I know you don't understand why I can't be with you all the time or why I do the things I do, but I promise you will one day."

"Yeah, yeah. I've heard that before. You and Tim are both so damn secretive, and it drives me nuts. Why can't you just tell me already? It's not like I'm going to tell you to stay the hell away from me. I care about you," Dominique said as she moved so she could turn around and look at me.

I looked at her for a moment and then pulled her into my lap. I kissed her softly. At first, she didn't respond, but then she kissed me back. I moved my hands over her back. Dominique snuggled into me as she pushed her fingers through my hair. I moved my hands under her shirt as I deepened the kiss. I cupped her breasts. Dominique gasped into my mouth as I squeezed them.

Dominique broke the kiss and jerked back away from me when someone started banging on the door. I cursed under my breath. That was the furthest I had been able to get with Dominique in real life. I knew who it was before Dominique ever opened the door. I could smell him. I continued to sit on the couch as Tim looked at Dominique and then at me. I watched him as he took a big breath. His eyes narrowed as he looked back at Dominique. She was blushing, and I was grinning.

"I just came to check on you and ensure everything was okay. You haven't come out in hours," Tim said.

"Yeah, I kind of fell asleep. Nathaniel stayed with me. I'm fine, Tim. Thank you for checking up on me."

"It's almost closing time. Did you want to come out and make sure everything was okay or not? I can get Melissa to do it if you want."

"No, it's fine. I'll be out in a few minutes."

"Okay," Tim said as he looked at me with hatred in his eyes.

I couldn't help but smile even more. I felt the same way about what Tim had done with Dominique. No love was lost between us, but I appreciated that Tim had protected Dominique. Perhaps I should try a truce? No. That wouldn't work as long as we were both after Dominique. She would ultimately have to choose one of us, and only that would end this feud. I couldn't bring up her choosing one of us, though, as that would just push her away from both of us.

Dominique closed the door to the office and turned towards me. Her face turned red again. I waited to see if she would come back over, but she didn't. Instead, she went to her bathroom and turned the water on. I heard her splashing water on her face and felt disappointed that she didn't come back. Damn Tim, for messing things up. She had never let me touch her like that before. Dominique finally came back out and looked better than she had, but you could still tell she had been crying. She left the office, and I stayed in it so I could be there once everything was closed up.

After everything was closed down, Tim came into Dominique's office. Tim saw me still in the office, and he sat down in the chair opposite Dominique.

"We need to talk about where you are going to stay for a while," he said.

"I'm going home, Tim. I can't run away from everything because this happened. Do you really think she is going to come back?" Dominique asked.

"Yes. I don't think you killed her. You definitely wounded her, but I don't think it was fatal. Jacob would have called me by now. You can't stay with me because they know where I live. I would feel better if I knew you were safe. Moreover, I can't keep you safe at my home, so it's either you stay with me at a hotel, or you stay..." Tim stopped as he looked at her.

"She will not be safe at a hotel either, and you know it," I piped up.

"And what was the alternative you were about to suggest, Tim?" Dominique asked.

Tim looked at me and then back at Dominique. Dominique looked at me. I made sure my face showed nothing. I had already figured out that Tim would suggest she stay with me but didn't actually want to say it. She swung her head back around to stare at Tim.

"I'm not staying with either one of you if that is what you are suggesting. I'm not going to tuck tail and run either. I want to stay in my own home. I'll get the door fixed first thing in the morning. But I honestly don't see that crazy bitch coming back for me tonight at least."

"If you are going to stay at your house, then I am staying with you. You don't know these people, Dominique. I do. They won't stop until they get what they want."

"And what is it they want, Tim? I haven't done a damn thing to any of them!"

He looked at her and then at me. I already knew they'd had sex, so it wouldn't be a surprise if he said it, but Dominique didn't know I knew. I just watched Dominique to see her reaction if Tim did mention it. I had to know what she was feeling about it.

"You and I slept together, Dominique. Roxy thinks I am her property even though I haven't been with her for a long time. She knows I want you, and that pisses her off. She figured out what we had done because she and Jacob were waiting for me to get home. Jacob decided to give me a good old-fashioned beat down. That's why I didn't come to work. Are you happy knowing now? Do you understand why I don't want to leave you alone?"

Dominique looked at me out of the corner of her eye. I tried to school my face to be blank, but I know it showed the anger I was feeling. Knowing about it didn't make it any better when talked about. Dominique sighed and leaned back in her chair. She closed her eyes. It seemed she was more worried about what I thought of it than actually having Tim mention it in the first place. She ran her hand over her face and opened her eyes. She looked at me and then at Tim. Finally, she stood up and began to pace around her office, and I could feel her agitation.

"Look, I know you're confused. I'm not asking you to give up your life. I'm just asking that you stay with me or let me stay with you for a while. At least until Roxy makes another move or this blows over, whichever one comes first," Tim said.

"And what if I don't want to stay with you? Or have you staying with me?" Dominique asked.

"Then stay with me," I offered.

I was sure that wasn't a good idea because she may find out about me, but I couldn't let her be in danger either. I had to ensure she was safe, and they didn't know where I lived. They knew where both Dominique and Tim lived. So that was probably the first place they would look.

Dominique looked at me and asked, "And what if I don't want to stay with you either? What if I just want to be alone to handle this on my own?"

"You can't handle this on your own, Dom. I know you like to think you're a badass, but you just don't know these people. They are ruthless and will stop at nothing to get revenge. Even though it was Roxy's fault that she got shot, they won't look at it that way. They will only see that you injured one of their own, and they don't stand for that. Plus, Roxy is sleeping with Jacob."