Chapter 162
This is manageable.
This is strategy.
Not destiny. Not love.
Just a deal.
And I’ll get out just fine.
+30 Bonus
The drive to the prison is quiet.
I miss Sarah’s laugh already.
But now, all I can think about is my mother. How to make her believe this wasn’t all for her. That I wanted this because if she
found out otherwise…
Dominic keeps both hands on the wheel, eyes forward, like this is just another obligation to manage. He canceled his meetings after spotting me limping past his office window toward the gates.
I told him he didn’t need to come.
He didn’t even argue. He just grabbed his keys.
The building comes into view, all gray concrete and heavy gates, and my stomach tightens automatically. I have walked through those doors too many times already. The air always smells faintly metallic. And every time I leave, I have to pretend I am strong enough not to break outside of it.
But this time would be different.
Dominic pulls into a spot near the entrance.
“I’ll wait outside,” he says.
I nod, already reaching for the door handle. My fingers curl around it.
Then I pause.
The nausea has been creeping back up my throat for the last few minutes. It always does when I get anxious. The bond feels faintly stretched when we are apart too long, like a thin thread pulling tight in my chest. I know what I want to do, but these no way I’m asking.
“And you’re waiting…why??” he asks, one brow lifting slightly.
Heat creeps into my face. I keep my eyes on the door instead of him. “Can you just…do the thing?”
There is a small silence.
Then I hear the smile in his voice before I see it. “Do the…thing?”
I turn to glare at him, finding a smirk, which only makes it worse. “You know what! So I can have enough strength to go!”
He leans back slightly, studying me, clearly enjoying this more than he should.
“You could ask properly,” he says lightly.
I narrow my eyes. “Dominic.”
+30 Bonus
“I’m just saying, a please-”
“Dom! Kiss me-”
He reaches for me, one hand sliding behind my neck, pulling his lips to mine.
The noise that leaves me is part gasp, a heat surging through me just from his lips.
I just wanted a kiss on the cheek again. Not-
His tongue grazes my lip.
My eyes squeeze shut before I pull back. “Dom-” My voice sounds nothing like myself.
But his grip on my neck keeps me close. His lips trail just slightly, grazing the edge of my ear, giving the faintest nip.
1 yelp and finally find the sense to shove him back bu his shoulder. “AH! What is wrong with you?!”
He laughs under his breath. “You said ‘just do it.’ I did.”
I give him a glare but, the dizziness is gone. The anxious tightness in my chest has loosened into something warmer, heavier.
God’s, why him?
“Just, stay here,” I mutter, opening the door.
“Woof,” he replies, deadpanned.
I glance back with a shake of head, but I can’t help the smile fighting it’s way to my cheeks.
He’s in such an odd mood lately.
The visiting room is smaller then I remember. Or maybe we have a different cell this time.
Hard to tell. Everything looks the same. Sterile, grey. Ugly.
But this time, with Dominic’s name on the papers, no one questioned my requests.
When they bring my mother in, I almost do not recognize her. She has lost weight, but her eyes are still the same. Soft. Searching. Hopeful.
The second she sees me, she smiles.
And that nearly undoes me.
We collide in a hug that is tighter than usual, longer. I bury my face against her shoulder and let myself breathe her in. She smells like cheap soap and something faintly medicinal.
“I have news,” I whisper before I lose my nerve. “About your case.”
COIN BUNDLE: get more free bonus
P
Comments
Support
Share
GET IT
2
