Page 36 of Forbidden Passion

Chapter Sixteen

Dominik washed and conditioned her hair before going over her body. When he was done, he wrapped a towel around her torso and sat her on the toilet seat.

“Are you okay for a second?”

She gripped the top of the towel and nodded.

He dried himself off and pulled on some boxers before grabbing another towel and squeezing as much water out of it as he could.

“Do you have enough energy for me to dry your hair a bit?”

“Yes. I’m still groggy from the pain medicine, but it’s not horrible.”

He’d worked on her hair for five minutes before her eyelids closed. He turned off the dryer. “That’s good enough. Let’s get you into bed.”

He tucked her under the covers. “I’ll be right back. I’m going to make sure everything is locked up and get you a glass of water and pills if you need them later.”

She murmured something and turned on her side.

When he came back, he set everything on the nightstand and slid in behind her. He carefully arranged her against his chest.

Dominik pressed his lips against the back of her head, closed his eyes, and let his tears go. He couldn’t remember being so scared since the first time she got attacked. He had so many questions he wanted answered, like why she was alone and how that bastard was able to impersonate an orderly. He knew he’d have to wait for them, but it just made his frustration more pronounced and harder to hide. He was glad she was asleep and didn’t have to see his tears and fury.

She dozed off and on. He was able to get some toast in herand coerced her to take one of the stronger pills.

He was jerked from sleep hours later when she cried out and started to move as if fighting.

“Angel, shhh. It’s me, Dominik. Baby, wake up. You’re safe at home with me.” He kept talking until she finally awoke. She took one look at him, turned her face into his chest, and sobbed.

She had a few more bouts that night, and when the sun came up, they were both wrung out.

The next day, he made her lie on the sofa. It looked like she felt better and hadn’t cried since early morning. He poured some juice and soup down her, which made her feel better.

It was late the following day when he felt she was strong enough to answer all his questions.

He held her on his lap with her head tipped back so he could see her expression. Tessa didn’t know how the man got in, but she knew the hospital would investigate it. He wasn’t happy about her leaving her floor alone but understood her reasoning. She had done everything right or to the best of her ability, so he couldn’t fault her. It didn’t help with the residual fear in him but he knew with time he’d get over it.

One good thing was Pierce would spend the next twenty years in prison, and Tessa hadn’t been asked to go to court. The man had made a deal very quickly, knowing he could go away for a lot longer.

On the fourth day, she started complaining about wanting to go to work. Most of the damage done to her was gone, and she hadn’t had a headache for several hours. It was the fact that he wouldn’t be able to be with her that was driving him crazy. She had been attacked two times, and he hadn’t been able to prevent it.

“Dominik, I swear, I feel better.”

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He knewhe couldn’t keep her home any longer without it turning into a fight. “All right, but I want to take and pick you up.”

“But Pierce is in jail,” she said.

“I know, but it would make me feel better.”

He could tell she was a bit discouraged but nodded, giving him his way.

Things slowly got back to normal, and he was happy he could still protect her to and from the hospital, but he saw something in her eyes as the days came and went, and it was scaring the shit out of him.

The thought of her wanting to leave him kept popping into his head, and he got nauseous every time.

He tried everything he could think of, but it didn’t seem to help. He was at a loss on how to discuss it with her, so he had to wait for the other shoe to drop.

Chapter Seventeen

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