Page 7 of Twisted Obsession

“Actually, that sounds perfect,” I agree, my appetite returning just a little. Either way, I know I need to keep my strength up. Who knows when I’ll get another meal.

What I don’t expect is for Dominic to get up, make his way to the kitchen nook, and start assembling ingredients.

“You’re cooking?” I ask, nonplussed.

He throws me a look that says he’s humoring me. “Believe it or not, I am house trained, and I got the fridge stocked last night,” he replies with a chuckle as he expertly cracks eggs into a bowl with one hand, while whisking with the other.

“Can I help?” I ask, even though my own cooking skills leave a lot to be desired. But hey, I can shred ham and snip spring onions with a pair of scissors like the best of them. I can even make toast.

Fifteen minutes later, we’re sitting at a two-person dining table in the bay window, and I’m surprised when Dominic fixes a plate for himself as well and joins me.

“So, about earlier,” he begins once we’ve finished. I tense at the reminder, but I also appreciate that he didn’t bring it up until after we finished eating.

“Nothing happened. Not really,” I reassure him, unable to look him in the eye.

“Nothing happened because I invented a reason for him to be called away,” Dominic states bluntly. “Just like the Viper invented a reason for me to be called away, so I wasn’t with you.”

If he’s trying to make me feel better, it’s not working.

My eyes widen as I process Dominic's words. "You… what? But won't he be angry when he finds out?"

Dominic's jaw tightens. "Let me worry about that. The important thing is keeping you safe."

I shake my head, anxiety churning in my stomach. "But why? Why risk so much for me? I'm nobody to you."

He's quiet for a long moment, his dark eyes studying me intently. "You're not nobody," he finally says, his voice low. "And I made a promise to protect you."

"I don’t understand what’s going on here," I tell him, bewildered.

Dominic looks away, his expression unreadable. "It’s complicated.”

Yeah right!

“Just know that there are those of us who want to avoid a war with the other factions. And that means keeping you out of harm's way until we can get you out of here.”

“Is that even possible?” I ask pointedly.

Dominic sighs, running a hand through his hair. “It’s not a foregone conclusion, you’re right. But there are... disagreements within the organization about how things should be run. Vito represents the old guard—brutal, ruthless. But there are those of us who see a different path forward."

“I have to ask, though…" He trails off, and for a man who's always appeared so formidable and together, seems remarkably uneasy.

But I know what he wants to find out. The question I have to ask myself is whether or not I’m compromising my own position by telling him the answer. I mull that over in my mind while I wait to see what he says.

Finally, he clenches his jaw and steels himself. “Vito’s fiancée, Maricela Escobar. Do you know anything about her?”

I look away, unable to meet his gaze the second he says her name. And from the way his eyes narrow and he growls deep inhis throat, I know I’ve given myself away, so Dominic already has his answer… in which case, I may as well come clean, and back it up with the reasoning.

“I know she’s a damn sight better off under the care of my brothers than she ever was in this place,” I all but spit at him, lifting my chin in defiance.

To my surprise, instead of the burst of anger I expect, Dominic, his elbows resting on the table between us, drops his head into his hands, then rubs them over his face. “Sadly, that doesn’t surprise me,” he concedes. And right there, the tension that had me wound tight ebbs away.

“Of course, to Vito, that simply justifies your abduction and means we’ll have a more difficult time finding reasonable grounds for your release. For him, this is just tit for tat.”

It might not be my most sensible move, but after the things the Viper said to me about Orla before Dominic charged to my rescue, his words fire my temper. “Really? Tit for tat?” I shout, exploding out of my seat and toppling it in the process.

“Tit for tat would be if my brothers raped, tortured, and murdered Maricela, and then hung her on your gates so that a tiny tattoo was the only way she could be identified because the rest of her body was so bloodied and bruised, she was unrecognizable. But you know what? They’re not doing that. They’ve treated her like a guest. She’s actually looking healthier than when she arrived. Her bruises have faded and she’s eating properly. Sucks to know the abductors you’re so angry with are treating her better than she was being treated here,” I repeat the same words I told my brothers as I power-pace across the floor in an attempt to quell the anger raging through me.

For a hard-boiled Mafia dude, Dominic’s eyes widen in surprise, and he looks flummoxed by my response, but I’m not finished with him. “So no, I am not ‘tit for tat’.” I whirl on him and words drip venomously off my tongue, complete with finger quotes. “I’m the second freaking sortie.”

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