Page 44 of A Seed Of Peril

My stomach started rolling with nerves, like I was about to receive bad news.

“Bellissima… Fuck.” He rubbed his face and let his arms fall, staring up at the ceiling. “Just spare me the yelling until after, alright?”

“This requires yelling?” I quipped. Finding humor, he let his arms fall, slowly turning his head to look at me.

“Deliso and Scioli lied to you on my orders.”

It was as if I were punched in the gut.How could he lie to me? Did he think he was protecting me?In the past with Vincent and Fabio, he tended to wait to bring me into the loop, but outright lie to me? Causing me to wonder what was, in fact, reality and what wasn’t?Dominic was quite fucking correct; I did want to yell at him. I wanted to fucking scream. I poked my tongue against my cheek, closing my eyes. The look on Dominic’s face told me he knew I was pissed. I opened my eyes, making a fist with my free hand, and forced a breath through my nose, mentally counting to ten. I should’ve called him out sooner. Releasing my fist, I slowly made a fist again and then released it, doing that until I felt it safe enough to calmly say something.

“Why?” I flatly asked him.

“There’s a connection between what happened to you at that store and at the park, but we don’t know exactly how just yet or who orchestrated it. I wanted all the dots connected first.”

“Bullshit. You didn’t want to stress me out, right? You think because I’m pregnant I can’t handle it!?” I whisper-yelled, careful not to startle and wake Katrina. “Am I pretty fucking close? Because I sure as shit handled my fucking emotions when you ran off at the hospital and left me to fend for my fucking self. So don’t you sit there and think I can’tfuckinghandle this!”

Immediate regret for my outburst hit me when I watched Dominic’s shoulders sag with the same outward defeat as heard in his breath. My chest and throat tightened. Tears threatened my eyes. I had a right to be angry, but I felt I had gone too far. My tears spilled over, trickling down my cheeks. My bottom lip and chin quivered.

“I’m sorry,” I apologized.

Dominic looked at me, staring for a moment before he talked.

“Don’t be. I underestimated you—again.” His smile was slight, but it was loving. Warm. “I know I should’ve told you. It’s just…” Letting his thoughts trail off, he sighed and focused on the lamp at his bedside.

I extended my arm, resting what I could of it on the mattress and wiggled my fingers like I wanted him to hold it. All I wanted was his touch, even if it were only his fingertips.

“Dominic,” I strained, swallowing in hopes to vanquish what I felt were a fresh round of tears threatening me.

He turned off his lamp and laid on the bed, pulling the sheets and comforter over him. He brought himself closer to me, taking hold of my hand. I squeezed my eyes shut, forcing out tears. Quietly, I inhaled a sharp breath of air, blowing it out.

“Bellissima, please don’t cry. It’s okay.”

Shaking my head, I said, “I hurt you.”

“You’re wrong. I knew you would be angry. I didn’t want to scare you; that’s why I hid what’s going on.”

I nearly choked on my tears on my next breath, wishing time travel was real so I could erase my outburst. He gave my hand a squeeze, moving the pad of his thumb back and forth along the skin of my hand between my finger and thumb.

“When I got the phone call telling me about the shooting, my heart stopped beating. All I could think about was you, our unborn—everyone. I couldn’t drive fast enough. When I heard your voice, the world started spinning again. Life beat back into my heart.

“We will find out who did this, and when we do, I’ll personally gut and filet every one of them.”

I sniffed. “And you said you weren’t a romantic.”

Our chuckles were hushed but lighthearted. I held his hand tightly.

Was he still holding back regarding the shooting?I had a gut feeling, although I wasn’t upset. In my heart, Dominic wouldn’t intentionally hurt me. He was constantly protecting me and acting on what he thought was in my best interest. It was frustrating, but with how Dominic was raised and what he endured in his life, he was the way he was, and I had to remember to understand that.

“You didn’t findanything?”

“All we know is thataLadaoriginates from Russia. I called Andre, and he’s on the case. I’ve also involved Guido. It’s a waiting game until all of us touch base again.”

My stomach knotted, a sort of dread creeping in. Russia. That car came from Russia. It was all I processed. All I repeated in my head as panic found me.

“Relax,” Dominic said. “People drive foreign cars all the time. Don’t read too much into it. Just breathe, please.”

But Ididread too much into it.Russia? We had enemies in fucking Russia?Well, the mafia was everywhere… But Russia?My stomach wrung tighter with anxiety. Dominiccould’vebeen right; maybe the make of that car was a coincidence. Then again, we both scoffed at coincidences.

Dominic deeply inhaled and then slowly let it out. I copied him, knowing that was what he wanted me to do—breathe with him. We breathed again. And again. And again until I calmed down.

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