Page 30 of Worth the Vow

Oh God. I want to be bad with him. So bad.

Before I can speak, my cell phone rings, jarring me as I jump back from Dominic. I avert my eyes, knowing his are laser-focused on me and probably look like pools of the most exquisite, melted milk chocolate I’ve ever seen, and he could reel me in like a fish that hasn’t eaten in days. Weeks.

Or, in my case, close to a year.

The lake has been dry in my area.

And right now, Dominic is looking at me like he’s a shark and I’m the first bit of bait he’s seen. I bet it would be phenomenal to be eaten by him.

Looking at my screen, I groan when I see it’s Arianna calling. “It’s your sister.”

“Ari?” Dominic asks, and I nod. “You’d better answer. She’ll just keep calling until you do.”

All of these Santo kids have stubbornness built into their personalities. Sometimes it’s cute how steadfast and cantankerous they can be. Other times, it’s aggravating.

Answering the call, I say, “Hey, girl. Can I call you back? I just got home.”

“No, you can’t call me back, Mrs. Santo,” she snaps. “What the actual fuck did you do?”

Great. I take a deep breath as I calculate how to explain myself to one of my closest friends, who had no idea I would be marrying her brother.

“Did you read the article, or talk to your mom?” I ask.

“Both.”

“Then why are you asking me questions? You already got the story.”

“I was giving you an opportunity to come clean! You’re one of my best friends, and you didn’t tell me you were going to marry my brother! That’s really messed up,” she pouts.

I sigh. “I didn’t tell anyone, Arianna.”

“Why? Were you trying to hide it? You know gossip never stays hidden in Eternity Springs.”

“I wasn’t trying to hide it, but it is a little humiliating.” Dominic’s eyes narrow as he stares at me. “Dammit. I can’t handle one Santo on the phone and another one staring at me all menacingly. Dominic, go inside or something.”

“Not until I hear why you’re humiliated to be married to me,” he responds. His eyes have dulled a bit, and I can see a smidgeon of hurt in his gaze.

“I didn’t mean it that way. I’m humiliated that it’s come to this. That I had to basically contract out a husband so I could get medical coverage. That I have no fucking idea what I want to do with my life, so I’m working all these odd jobs, and nannying the kids, and I’m barely scraping by, and I’m the worst twenty-eight-year-old I know!” I wail, not even sure when I began crying.

Dominic sighs as he pulls me into his arms. Taking the phone from my hand, he tells his sister that I’ll call her back before ending the call and placing the phone in his pocket. I sob against his shoulder for a few minutes as I attempt to process the last few months of my life. How did it all come to this?

“You’re not the worst twenty-eight-year-old out there,” Dominic murmurs against my hair as he softly strokes his fingers up and down my spine. The movement is soothing as he keeps a consistent pace, never deviating from the spine.

“I’m the worst one that I know,” I mumble. “Do you know any who have four part-time jobs trying to make ends meet?”

“Not personally, no. But I’m sure there are others in the same set of circumstances as you. And there are some in worse situations. You could be homeless. Or without a support system or family.”

“I don’t have a family!” I cry.

“Yes, you do. My family is yours, raggio di sole.”

“What?” I ask, unsure of what he just said. I assume it’s Italian. What did he call me?

“Nothing,” he chuckles painfully. “You have a support system and a family, Katharine. Don’t forget that. I need to go check on the kids and get dinner started. Call Arianna back.”

As he releases me from his grasp, he pulls my phone from his pocket and hands it to me. I feel the heat from his embrace pull away from me … and I miss it. It’s the oddest sensation. I don’t know how to process that as I prepare to call Arianna, but a text comes through simultaneously.

Arianna: Did you see what my sister-in-law did?

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