Author's note: Please take caution. Sensitive topics are discussed in this chapter, as are other parts of the story from this point on. Reader discretion is advised.

✧

DOMINIC

Claudia slept in the guest room after another day of silence. Dominic didn't need to look surprised, and he wasn't. She had no reason to sleep alongside him after he mistreated her, and their contract was over.

Oh, how he missed it. Her comfortable body lying so close to him. After their fight, he realized what he had. Claudia was in his home, but not as he wanted. He couldn't say he wanted her back. He would never tell her how much he wanted to be with her. He avoided that.

He wanted to blame Alessandro and Giovanni, who had suggested she be let go for her own benefit. After the bear attack, jewelry shop shooting, the fake engagement, and the altercation at his hideaway house, Dominic was cautious. He wanted to stop hurting her emotionally.

He had to be careful with her and with himself. He needed courage and morality. Dominic tried but couldn't do all those things with Claudia and be a typical couple. Didn't that matter at all? Doesn't integrity matter?

Claudia broke stuff whenever they ran into each other, so it didn't look like it. She would enter a room by going barefoot and quietly closing the door. Her routine had never stopped. When two people didn't interact, they destroyed things. They weren't necessarily housemates, but he felt that way. He reasoned that she was staying around the house to ensure that none of his enemies were still pursuing them, but he wasn't sure. Giving her space was what kept him going.

He realized all of this on Thursday morning. Dominic focused on Claudia's well-being, and not the chaos. He should have focused more on his enemies. He should have reconciled with everyone else and ended this madness. He should have focused on retribution instead of bowing to an angry mafia family since he didn't want to marry Irene Guarini.

How ridiculous, he thought.

He determined it was the silliest perspective after careful deliberation. Still, people were risking their lives in an uproar over this. Why not? Did the other families feel like he'd tricked them? Did he offend everybody? That was a major leap. Why can't he marry someone he loves?

The answer was staring him in the face. He loved Claudia with all his heart. One day he hoped to tie the knot with her. This proclamation had the potential to put an end to the conflict for good. But at this point, nobody would believe a word he said. No one, including her. Their relationship would be put to the test. Everyone would think he was protecting himself now. Can he show them they are wrong? Maybe create a family with her? He might get into trouble for marrying her just to avoid controversy.

He lay in bed, considering his options. His mentality mirrored that of a speeding car traveling down the freeway. He fought. Who could blame him?

Dominic considered Claudia's needs today. He knew she wouldn't be happy about the brief meeting he had set up in the kitchen. It was necessary. He had to go on with his life. When she went on her joy ride, he became furious. If she was shot through the windshield, he'd lose another person he loved. Just once, he'd like to be able to say that to her without feeling awkward. Or, more specifically, a manipulator, which wasn't who he was. He had never been that way, and he didn't want her to remember him that way.

He went to the bathroom to wash his face and trim his facial hair after getting out of bed. He heard her guest room shower. Oh, how he wished they could talk right now. The hole he had created for himself was deep. Heavily layered. He caused this predicament. Everything would have been genuine without that silly contract. No deception would happen. But everything had an end. The only thing he could do was accept his fate. Claudia didn't want anything to do with him anymore.

Dominic had a slow morning and couldn't talk to her until she was ready. He wore white button-ups and gray trousers to please her, knowing she'd look at him. His groin showed through his clothing, and he wanted to flirt despite the tensions. Thoughts of her wanting his touch as she dried herself came to him, but he ignored them. He waited five minutes before checking on her.

Claudia prepared food for herself, and he believed she probably wanted to eat alone again. They had previously eaten together but things had changed recently. Silence can bother some couples, but when they find out the worst-case scenario isn't true, they continue to think about it and carry on. He would hate to lose her. Both sides must communicate.

"Dia?"

She didn't look at him and continued what she was doing. "Yes?" she said. "What can I do for you today? Do you need help around the office, or do you have more documents for me to sign?"

When she was done talking, Dominic let out a sigh. She had all of a sudden turned into someone he didn't recognize.

"Oh, you know what? Maybe I'll sign a contract that declares I'm your best friend. Or maybe your mom. That would be entertaining. Or would you rather I dress up like a clown and act like I'm having fun at a kid's birthday party? You need another signature?"

Dominic grunted. He tried his best to keep his voice neutral. Despite Claudia's rocky beginning, he wanted to stay serious. "Look. I know I deserve that, but there is something we need to discuss. Dr. Harris had called me this morning."

"Oh?"

"Our lab results showed that there was no poison in either of our bodies, so whoever sprinkled something into your food probably gave you food poisoning."

Claudia blinked as she took it all in. "This explains why I vomited on your dick."

He nodded slightly, placed his hands on his hips, and then continued. "The second thing I need to discuss is that I'm going to have a few guards around today since I'm monitoring one of my men. From the outside, they can see if anything is out of the ordinary and will act accordingly. You can't leave without being noticed."

She put the spatula down and turned off the stove after preparing her pancakes. He could see her shoulders and chest tensing up. She was about to say something explosive. No surprise there. He prepared himself for anything.

Her stare was almost deadly. "Are you insane for telling me what the hell I'm allowed to do? Who do you think you are? My husband? Oh, that's right. We only acted as lovers. I almost forgot."

Again, Dominic had to make some effort to keep his tone in check. "There is no need for that kind of reaction, Claudia. I wasn't trying to offend you."

"Well, you did. It just comes naturally to you. I'm in this mess now, and there's no way out. I can't even go home because your rivals are trying to kill me."

Dominic was hurt to hear that. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her. His feelings were the opposite. He only wanted to please Claudia. He had the resources to provide her with whatever she wanted in life, but he created this red tape. It was all around him. His circumstances had bound him. His ego and pride were holding him back.

"I don't want you to die, Dia. If I didn't care about you, I wouldn't be doing this. Believe me, I don't like what's happening between us. This isn't what I wanted for you, and I certainly didn't want us to act like strangers inside my own damn house since our contract became public."

She shook her head. Dominic couldn't figure out what part of that she didn't agree with. Then again, he was a complete moron when it came to these things, especially with emotional aspects. He looked like a monkey. At that, a deformed monkey.

"You don't understand. You can't hear yourself breathe. You expressed your emotions for me, Dominic. But have you considered my wishes? Since signing this contract, it's about you. Been about your needs. You paid me to do this with you, but it was never about the money."

"We deposited the funds into your bank account so you could pay your apartment bills while you're living here. This is an unprecedented situation, but if you need another check, I could..."

Claudia huffed and rolled her eyes, stopping him. "Dominic, I appreciate that, but I'm not interested in the money. I haven't used your money to pay my bills. I've been spending the money I had left over from my last employment."

"Why did you leave your previous job?"

"What?" Her voice broke. "That is ancient history. It's over."

Dominic walked toward her, placing a hand on the counter next to hers. "It's important, Dia. Why did you decide to leave? You were earning more than five thousand dollars a month as an assistant to a news channel executive. There must have been a reason you quit a job like that. Especially in New York."

Claudia stared and let out a big breath. "Don't worry about it. Please."

"I just can't do that. I want to know what happened," he continued, keeping his eyes on hers. "Tell me. It's okay."

"You really want to know why I left?"

"I do, Dia."

"The man threw himself on me, and I had to quit," Claudia explained as small tears started to form under her eyes. "He sexually assaulted me one afternoon while I was doing his paperwork. It didn't matter if I said no. So now you understand why I never wanted to sleep with my boss and begged you to take me off of your employee list. Are you happy now?"

He swallowed his spit and clenched his fists, preparing to find and punish the jerk who had assaulted this incredible woman. She discussed some of the jobs she had in the past. Claudia quit her previous job which paid well because her supervisor was disgusting. Some guys didn't know when to stop when a woman said "no." Dominic just wanted to console her. He could tell that she didn't want to talk about what happened. So, until she spoke more about it, he stepped back.

"Dominic, money is money. It can't buy happiness. Yeah, that's cliche, but it's not my goal in life. Though you grew up with money, you won't fully understand how I feel until you work hard to achieve your goals and lose everything for something unavoidable."

Claudia grabbed a tissue. He wanted to support her but had to wait for her permission out of respect.

"What happened to me doesn't stop me from wanting to achieve my goals," she said, looking into his eyes. "I want to move up in my career and start my own business. Doing what? I don't know. Maybe open a restaurant. I want young women and girls to understand they can be anyone, even if they've been assaulted like me. With my testimony and video evidence to back up my claims, I had him arrested so that he couldn't harm anyone else, especially women."

"Claudia, I..." Dominic tried to speak, but he didn't know what to say to comfort her. He didn't blame her for being angry about being taken advantage of. She was more resilient than he imagined. He liked her determination. Claudia amazed him.

"Don't worry about it, Dominic. You don't have to say anything."

"But I need to," he said. "Baby, you're strong. Very strong. And you're a survivor. You stood your ground and did what was right."

"It's just that I've never cared about money. From day one..." she paused. He recognized her intention despite her hesitation. It was awful to take in. Facing it was harder. Claudia did care about him. Even if it was cheesy in his head, he had to learn to love again and let her love him.

"I understand, Dia. I understand that our circumstances are tumultuous and that you are still navigating through your past experiences. My sole intention is to keep you safe. I'm simply attempting to prevent any further deterioration within the mafia. Call it damage control. Call it whatever you want. Understand my perspective. I've made mistakes. I'm trying not to make any more right now. That is why I am having my men keep an eye on you."

Claudia took a deep breath and crossed her arms. "My friend Kayla says that I can become too dark sometimes. I think about my past and stay on guard when I need to."

"I'm the same way," Dominic replied as he placed his hand on the counter. "My father claims I have a tainted heart. I use guilt to gain what I want."

"Then you and I are alike. We both have tainted hearts," she agreed, looking into his eyes.

"It seems that way." He just stood there and wished he could do something to make her feel comfortable. Anything to show her he noticed her so they could breathe. Then he remembered something about her that, for the first time, made sense. Something that he should have known sooner. "Now I understand why you have a teal ribbon on your keychain. It's to raise awareness about sexual assault."

She nodded, turned her gaze to the clock, and quivered next to him.

"Are you... cold? Should I increase the temperature?" Dominic asked, and Claudia shook her head.

"Your home can feel cool at certain moments. I noticed it for the first time that night on the staircase," she said, turning to face him. "It felt like a ghost was in the hallway."

"Ah." He furrowed his brow and exhaled lightly. "My home defense generator turned on. It does this when the power goes out. It's intended to prevent intruders from entering and robbing my property."

"Because people would think twice about entering a house that feels like the Antarctic," she concluded.

He nodded and met her gaze. "It has been acting up since that night, so I will have someone come by and check it out."

"That could be helpful to you." She then turned and began putting her breakfast away.

"Claudia, what are you doing?"

She continued to put everything up without looking him in the eye. "I should stay with my friend. I no longer need to be here, Dominic. I don't care about our argument anymore, and I think we should both move on. We shouldn't make things any harder than they already are."

This was the most difficult period of their relationship, from pretending they were together in front of his family to gunfights and everything else. Her remarks broke his heart. His mind was a total mess. He had lost her. Completely. That was it. They were unlikely to recover from this.

How could he regain Claudia's trust again without talking to her? He could only give them space.

"Of course. If you wish to do that, it would be wise to choose a place where you feel more secure. I'm not going to hold you back."

"Thank you," she said, shifting her weight near the counter. "I'll leave tomorrow. It will take most of the day for me to pack my things."

Dominic nodded, frowning and pursing his lips. "Sure. Take your time. I'll arrange a ride for you when you're ready."

"That would help me a lot. I will also send you a check with your money later," she said.

"Dia, no. Don't give it back. I want you to have it. That's $75,000. The money could help you."

Tears covered her eyelashes. "Dominic, I can't. I just can't. Please understand where I am coming from."

Dominic nodded and took a deep breath. He then left the room like a child. Did he do something to make her leave him? He was distraught and heartbroken. And he wasn't sure how to fix this.

No matter how devastating, this was all part of his repercussions, and he had to live with them.

Fuck!

✧

If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic or sexual abuse, help is available. Call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or text START to 88788.