Page 20 of Ink Deep Devotion

“Gentlemen,” Dom tenderly tucks my hair behind my ear,“If you wouldn’t mind, Mila needs her rest.” He reaches for my hand and takes it, holding it at an angle Dante and Nico can see.

I’m just Dom’s pawn. This isn’t love. It’s a game.

“A lot of people need to be put to rest,” Dante smirks.“Soon they will be.”

Dom only grins back.“I look forward to it. Tell Dash I said hello. Oh wait, you can’t.” He snorts amusingly.“You don’t even know if he’s alive.” His fingers grip mine tighter, and his eyes pin me down.“Did he tell you that or just more lies? He doesn’t know where Dash is or even if his heart still beats.”

“St.. stop,” I murmur, a pained cry that escapes Dom’s ears. He’s known all along, hasn’t he? He knew Dash was at this school fighting for his life.

“Stay out of her life, or I’ll make you,” Dom says to Dante.

Nico chuckles,“You hide behind your father, but one day, he will be dead and buried; remember that.”

“How’s that faring for you? You buried your father so long ago, but you’re still trapped and under a thumb.”

I gasp at Dom’s cruelty, trying to slip my hand free, but he snatches it back. Dante steps forward, parting his lips, but then his gaze snaps to mine, and whatever threat he was about to etch into stone vanishes as he dips his chin, sparing me.“Mila,” he acknowledges.“Until we meet again.”

“Or not,” Dom replies as they exit my room.

His cold smirk drops and flashes with a practiced concern.“Are you okay, baby?” He touches my cheek, causing me to cringe.“Don’t be scared. This is how you deal with men like them. An iron fist. They can’t touch me. If they did, every man who has worked for our fathers would be forced to hunt them down.”

“Who the hell are you?” I glance at the remote on my bed. The call button is directly in my sight, but the nurse can’t save me. No one can. Not even Dante, it seems.

Dom’s throat rolls.“I’m the man standing by your side, the person who is here every time you fall,” he looks at my cast. I hate to admit he’s right. He’s always here when I’m shattered.“I love you, but in order to protect you, sometimes I have to be ruthless. You know I’d never hurt you.” He touches my cheek again, watching me intently. He begins to smirk when I don’t flinch under his touch. I wanted to, but fear held me back.

“You’ve lied to me.”The question is, how much did you lie about?

“We’ll talk about moving to Europe later. How are you feeling?”

“I’m not moving to Europe!” I shout.I’m talking about Dash! You knew where he was this whole time!

His jaw clenches as he looks at my cast.“Well, not now, but eventually, we will be together. I have a plan,” he whispers gently.Why are you my goddamn lifeboat? Why not Dante?

“If you love me,” I begin,“tell me everything.”

Dom sits on the edge of my bed, but his presence feels like a mountain crushing me.“Some things are too harsh for your ears, my love, but I can tell you this. I know you hate it here. It’s anguished me to see you suffering.” His chest falls ashe continues this act.“I was planning on surprising you about moving to Europe. I just want you to be happy, and I thought moving away would be a fresh start for us.”

That…is what I wanted. To leave. Maybe my head is so fucked up that I see the heroes as villains in my story. Maybe Dom is just trying to protect me, and maybe the only way to do it is to be monstrous at times.

Do you believe that, Mila, or are you just trying to make the cage he's shoving you into a cozy home? Tell me, do those bars feel warm at night? Is the floor comfortable?

My forehead wrinkles.“But I have college; you knew we’d be apart until I graduated but didn’t tell me.”

“No, silly,” he laughs,“College is a waste of your time. Your father only put you at Empire University to squander time until you were old enough to marry.” The biggest blow is that it’s the truth. Women in my world are more like art pieces you hang up and admire.

“We love each other. We will make your father see that.” He nods confidently to himself.“I’ll make sure you’re my wife and no one else’s. I’d never let you be bartered away like so many other women in our world.” He softens his voice, trying to sound sincere.

I ask the most unimportant question in my situation:“But what about my classes?” What about the one thing I enjoy?

Dom rolls his eyes.“The art thing stressed you so terribly. I have multiple ballet companies in Europe lined up, and they all want you to audition for them. My plan was once I graduate, we’d relocate to Europe, and you could finally escape from here.” Dom keeps dangling the bait he knows I crave: freedom, even if it’s only another cage.

“While I worked and grew our father’s business, you could have been dancing. It was all going to be so perfect.” His eye twitches.“But don’t worry,” he taps my nose.“It still can be. Once I finish school, I’ll persuade your father that you can drop out, too. We’ll get married, move, and you rehab your ankle. You’ll be good enough to dance again one day.”

“Do you honestly believe that?”That one day, after you’ve molded me, I’ll finally be good enough for you?

My throat tightens, but somehow, I manage to shove the words out of my trembling lips.“Some things don’t fit into molds, Dom.” The room feels so sterile. The antiseptic scent claws at my stomach, and the fluorescent lights are a unsettling, tinged blue.

A cold bead of sweat drips down my temple as Dom’s smile slowly shrivels away. What comes next isn’t a flower trying to seduce me; it's a thorny bush ready to grab my ankles and drag me back to him.“If you break them, they will fit.” It’s a warning. He’s never letting me go.

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