Page 129 of Aching for His Discretion

The only reason he didn’t kill me is because he was fucking working on himself and trying to do better for you. So he shot me in the leg and not the fucking head.

“That was a warning,” I replied, and he narrowed his eyes at me as I stepped closer, my heart racing as his eyes held a mix of emotions. “What did you do, Jacob?” I asked, and he remained silent for a short while before responding.

“It wasn’t anything you didn’t deserve,”he seethed, and I furrowed my eyebrows as he continued, “Why the fuck do you think I haven’t been working as many hours at the hospital! It’s because your fucking boyfriend is working withDr. Lombardito revoke my fucking medical license. After he fucking shot me! Oh, and I didn’t do myself any better by going to the police, because guess who the fucking devil has working on his side now permanently? That private investigator was the last officer ever to attempt to go after you or him,” he fumed.

I remained silent.

He scoffed as he tilted his head. “Oh, you didn’t know? Let me fill you in on how you’ve permanently fucked me over.He won’t let anyone touch you. He won’t let anyone hurt you. He won’t let anyone destroy the perfect little world he’s built for you.And like a fucking idiot, I tried to tell the police and the medical board, and look where the fuck I am now,” he finished off.

I simply stared at him. In the beginning, I could have only imagined the lengths to which Levi would go to protect me. He wasn’t the best at hiding how impulsive he was. Simply meeting Jacob would have sent the old Levi into a spiral. The new Levi had genuinely asked me if I wanted him to step in when Jacob was berating me in the parking garage. And now that my career, my livelihood was under threat, Levi was only fulfilling that promise.

“You’re so fucking lucky I’m in here. If I ever… and I meaneverget out of here,you’re fucking mine,”he seethed.

I didn’t say anything.

Though I didn’t want to admit it, I was slowly but surely accepting all that Levi had done for me to protect me. Sure, we had some issues with his communication, manipulative behavior, anger, possessiveness, temper, crude nature—

Teegan.

—but he did improve in those areas, and he did want to be a better person within our relationship. And to be better in our relationship, I guess I could understand his moral principles for wanting toeliminatethe people who could potentially jeopardize our happiness.

Staring at Jacob for a little while longer, I turned away reluctantly and walked toward the steps.

“Wait… Wait, where are you going?” he asked in a panic.

I paused for a moment as I kept my back toward him while I whispered, “Upstairs.”

“Are you not going to let me out?! You want me to fucking die down here!” he yelled, and I simply looked over my shoulder at him for a moment as I sighed.

“Well... you said it yourself.He won’t let anyone hurt me.Who am I to stop him from protecting me? And if I’m not mistaken… you just threatened me while simultaneously asking to be let out.Did you not?”I asked.

He paused for a moment before screeching horribly again as I turned back and walked up the stairs.

“You fucking heartless bitch! I am going to make you fucking pay, you little whore! DO YOU HEAR ME!!”

Ascending the steps, I did my best to block out the curses and threats he made and closed the door behind me reluctantly. Leaning the back of my head against it for a while, I breathed in deeply as I kept my eyes closed.

I could feel Levi’s presence in the room, and as I heard his footsteps approach, I opened my eyes slowly. As he stood in front of me, looking as dominating and as handsome as ever, I whispered, “Did you really go to therapy?”

He pushed my hair behind my ear. “I did, Tesoro,” he muttered.

“And are you still going to see your therapist?” I asked, and he ran his thumb over my cheeks as he towered over me slightly.

“I killed him. But he wasn’t a good man. He taught me how to control myself, but his redeemable qualities stopped at his degree.”

“What about Dr. Lombardi?” I asked, and his jaw clenched slightly as he spoke what was presumably the truth.

“He owed me a few favors and was previously my personal doctor to repay some of his debt. He fixed Nico up when he was shot a few years back, and I sent him to John Hopkins to keep an eye out on you and send me updates about you every hour of every day that you were in the hospital.”

“Really?” I asked him, my heart beating just a bit faster, and he nodded.

“I wouldn’t lie to you, Tesoro. Not anymore.”

“Why did you tell me you changed?” I asked, and he cupped my face in his hands as he leaned down.

“Because I did change, Tesoro. In the past, I was more reckless and unforgiving. I hurt those who wanted to hurt you without a second chance. I give second chances now. It’s up to them to make the decision on whether or not they want to take my chances for granted.”

I remained silent as he continued to caress the sides of my face.

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