Dirty Dom: Valetti Crime Family (A Bad Boy Mafia Romance) (16 page)

T
he dishes
in the large steel sink crash together and it draws my eyes up to the bus boy. He’s new. His arms are skinny as twigs. His eyes dart to mine and then back to the dishes.

“Break any?” I ask light heartedly to put him at ease. I try to muster up a smile, but I can’t.

“Don’t think so.” He pulls them out carefully, one by one.

At least it wasn’t at the bar. That would’ve been a pain in the ass. Like yesterday. I close my eyes and breathe in deep. I wish I still had Vicky here. She was one of the managers Dom put in charge while I was “recovering from a fall.” I roll my eyes and rub my shoulder as I walk out of the kitchen to the back room. I had to dump her though. I didn’t trust her or the others. I felt like they were always watching me. Like they were going to report back to him.

Just thinking about him has my chest tightening with pain. I haven’t heard a word. Nothing. Tears prick my eyes. I know I didn’t want it, well I didn’t want to want it. But fuck I do want
him
. I shake my head and try to calm myself down. My throat seems to close up every time I think about him. It physically hurts me. I can’t explain it. It wasn’t supposed to be this way. I lean against the wall of my office and lay my head against the wall. I can’t fucking breathe in here.

After a moment I push open the door to go outside. It groans and the bright light makes my eyes squint. But at least it’s fresh air. Or as fresh as it can be for a tiny ass alley between my restaurant and the gallery next door. I prop the door open with a brick and take a seat on the crates a few feet down, closer to the empty street and away from the dumpsters.

I wish I was over this by now. Over him. Everything seems so much harder since I left him. Exhaustion weighs down on me. But it’s not just physical, I’m emotionally overwhelmed.

“You alright, doll?” My body jumps at the sound of a deep, masculine voice in the silent alley. A small scream of shock forces its way out of my mouth and my hands fly up to hold it in.
Dom.
He walks towards me down the alley with a sexy ass smirk on his face.

My heart swells in my chest and the tears flow. I can’t hold them back. Fuck my hormones. Fuck my emotions. I don’t care.

He takes another step towards me and I fall into his embrace. My body feels weak; my wretched heart hurts. “Don’t cry, doll.” His strong arms hold me tight and I want to pretend I can have this forever. Just the thought combined with his masculine smell and his soothing strokes on my back has my heart beating calmly and my body relaxing. It feels so right, so natural.

This is what I’ve needed.

“What’s wrong?” He pulls back slightly to look down at me. I don’t even lift my head; I keep my chin firmly against his chest and just breathe. My fingers dig into his back, holding him to me, but also fearing he’s going to leave. I’ve never felt so weak and vulnerable. I don’t know why I can’t stop, but I just don’t want to let go.

I shake my head against his chest and press my lips together. After a long moment, I answer, “You shouldn’t be here.”

“I want you, Becca.” I finally pull away and stare into his eyes. I want him too, but I can’t.

“You know I can’t.” I whisper the words. I know he understands. He has to understand.

“But you want to. I can make it right, doll. I’m just asking for a chance.”

I want to. He’s right about that. My breathing shallows. I open my mouth, but nothing comes out. A chance. Just one chance. Could I risk that?

“Let’s make a bet.” He says with a grin.

I snort, “I’m not stupid; you’re a bookie.”

“It can be anything you want babe.” His smile softens and he kisses my lips tenderly. “Just bet me.” His lips barely touch mine.

“What do you get if you win?” I ask him with clear hesitation in my voice.

His hand travels to my ass and squeezes, “you know what I want.” I repress my moan and try to ignore how my core heats at his playful touch. I shake my head and bite down on my bottom lip to restrain my smile.

“Well what do I get if I win?” I finally ask, looking up at him through my thick lashes.

My voice is breathy and I wish it wasn’t. I wish I wasn’t so desperate for his comfort, but I am.

Dom’s hand cups my chin and his thumb runs along my bottom lip. His body brushes against mine as he takes a step forward, backing me into the brick wall. “Exactly what you want.” My hands go to his chest and I push him back slightly.

“Not here.” I whisper into his mouth as his hands push my blouse up my waist. The cool air feels so wrong against my heated skin.

“You don’t want me to fuck you against this wall doll?” My pussy clenches with need and moisture gathers in my core. Fuck yes I want it. “I need you babe; it’s been too long since I’ve had my dirty girl.”

“I can’t.” I tilt my neck farther as he kisses down my throat to my shoulder. This is so bad; so wrong. But I want it. His breath, his kisses, his touch; it’s everything I want. I want him to take me however he wants whenever he wants. I want my back to scrape against the hard brick as he pounds into me. I can picture it so clearly. His hips keep me pinned with his hard-as-steel erection digging into my belly.

And then he stops. I nearly fall over from the loss of his touch. My body tilts forward and I stumble in my heels and barely catch my footing. I hear Dom’s hard steps on the pavement, his body slamming into something. Another man. I hear them barrel into the wall and fall hard on the ground. Fuck! Someone saw us! Shit, shit, shit.

I adjust my shirt and try to see what’s going on. What the fuck is going on? I try to catch my breath.

“Dom stop!” I yell out as I watch him push the man down on his stomach and twists his arm to the back. I don’t know him. No one fucking comes out here. My body heats with anxiety.

Dom grips his arm and shoves it in an unnatural way. The man’s face distorts with pain. Holy fuck! Fuck he’s really hurting him. “Stop!” I screech with a hoarse voice. My hands cover my mouth when I spot the gun falling from the stranger’s grasp. Then I see what he’s wearing, leather gloves, all black.
A gun complete with a silencer.
My heart drops to my gut. He was going to shoot Dom. My body goes cold and numb.

My feet naturally take a step back and my body bumps into the brick wall. I can’t turn away. I can’t stop watching. I feel paralyzed as Dom relentlessly smashes the man’s face into the concrete. The crushing sound of his bones crashing against the unforgiving ground makes me sick to my stomach. Oh my god. My breathing comes in short, shallow pants. I can’t. I can’t watch this.

“Not you! Wasn’t you!” The man tries to speak. His face is distorted, covered in dark red with more blood bubbling from his busted lips.

“Who. Tell me who.” Dom speaks hard and low into the man’s ears, but I hear it as though he screamed it.

“The girl.”
The girl.
Me.

“Who hired you?” Dom asks. My head goes dizzy watching the scene play out.

“Jack.” The man’s head sways and then he takes in a hiss of breath as Dom pulls his arm back further. And then, not a bang, not anything violent, Dom lifts the gun to the back of his head and the man falls forward, the raw bullet hole open and spilling blood onto the pavement.

My vision flashes before my eyes over and over again. No sound. No warning. He was alive and now he’s dead.

My eyes widen as I watch Dom shove the man behind the dumpster. There’s blood everywhere. Holy fuck. Holy fuck. Holy fuck. Time passes in slow motion. It doesn’t feel real. This can’t be real.

The bang of the thin metal walls of the dumpster brings me back from the haze.

He’s dead. I stare at the limp body. He was going to kill me. But Dom killed him first.

My throat closes and I struggle to breathe. “What are we going to do?” My voice croaks. He’s dead. Dom just shot him. “It was in self-defense.” My voice raises, “you were only defending me!”

“Hush, doll.” Dom walks to me with ease, gripping both of my arms at my side. “You don’t have to worry about anything. The next person who comes down this alley will be my clean up crew. I already sent them a message.”

What the fuck? I’m shaken and on edge. My body shivers as though I’m freezing. This is why we can’t be together.
But if he hadn’t been there.
My shaking hands cover my mouth. I would’ve died. I cry into my hands and barely realize Dom’s dragging me away.

T
hat mother fucker
! He’s dead. And if they knew. If any of them knew. They’re all fucking dead. I should’ve known better. My heart’s still beating frantically in my chest. My blood’s pumping with rage, but more than that, fear.

What if I hadn’t been there? I was going to wait till she was done with work, till she’d put Jax to bed. I didn’t want to risk her getting so damn worked up over me until she was alone. But then I saw her. I just had to go to her.

She was going through the motions; that’s all. Her beautiful plump lips never turned up into her gorgeous smile. Every time her head fell in the slightest I swore she was crying. How could I not go to her knowing how hurt she was?

And it’s a good fucking thing I did.

My hands grip the steering wheel, making my knuckles turn white. He was going to kill her. He didn’t even fucking know her. A kill for pay. I saw him over her shoulder. Waiting. I fucking know who that bastard is, JD. He never asks questions, just gets the job done. He’s not family; he’s a hire out.

Well now he’s fucking dead.

My body tingles and then heats. I need to beat the piss out of something. Like I did De Luca and his crew. I need to do that to Jack. He’s probably at the bistro with my father.

Sitting together. Maybe my father knew. My heart crumples in agony and I shake my head slightly in denial. My eyes peek at Becca, she didn’t notice. I don’t want her to know how fucked up I am over this. That’s not the way it’s supposed to work.

My poor doll is staring out of the window wide eyed. She hasn’t fucking moved. Hasn’t said a word. I wish she hadn’t heard that, that she was the one he was supposed to kill. I wish she didn’t know. It fucking kills me.

I grab my phone and dial my father. I can’t wait to ask. I need to know. I have to know right fucking now. The thought that he’d do that kills me. I just saw him yesterday. I don’t understand why he’d do this to me. I shake my head again harder as the phone rings and this time she sees. Her eyes are wide with worry.

“It’s gonna be alright babe.” I breathe in deep and give her a forced smile. Her eyes fall and she rests her head against the head rest, seeming to stare at nothing. Her lack of a response worries me.

“Dom. What’s going on?” Pops answers like it’s a normal call.

“You alone?” I want to make sure there’s no one around to hear. Just in case. I don’t want Jack to know I’m coming.

Pops talks over the phone to someone and the line is muffled for a moment and then he comes back on, “All clear, Dom. What’s going on?”

I swallow the lump in my throat and push the words through, “did you know?” That’s really what it comes down to. It’s what I need to know.

I hear Pops move on the other line and then he speaks lower. “Dom, what’s wrong? Where are you?” I stay silent for a moment and take in another deep breath. “You alright Dom? You need something?”

“Did you know about the time on her?” Time is code for hit. The code varies, but right now that’s what it means. His questions and his tone make me believe he didn’t, but I want to hear him say it. I look at Becca with sad eyes, she’s confused for a moment and then tears fall down her cheeks and she quickly wipes them away. I know she understands.

“On your girl?” The sadness in his voice is mixed with disbelief. Then his anger comes through. “We’ll find them Dom.”

“I know who.” The callous words leave my lips with out permission. I grind my teeth waiting for him to ask.

“Who? We’ll collect now.” There’s a moment of silence. “Is-” Silence follows for a moment. “Is she alright Dom?”

“Yeah. I was there.”

“She’s good?” The hope in his voice relaxes every doubt I had.

“Yeah, I got her.”

“Thank fuck. Dom, you are one lucky son of a bitch. You know that?” I can hear the relief in his voice, but still there’s pain.

“You all at the bistro now?” I ask.

“We’re here Dom. We’ll get em.”

“It was Jack.” My father’s silent. It fucking kills me to say it. We grew up with him. He was always there. The last few years, not so much. But growing up, he was like a second father. Tears prick at my eyes. I feel so fucking betrayed.

“Are you sure?” Pop’s voice is deadly and low.

“That’s what the fucker said. It was him.” I straighten in my seat and brush it off as best I can. It’s not the first time someone in the family did some stupid shit. But it’s the first time it’s been directed at me.

“Jack’s here. I’ll question him and take care of it.” I shake my head. That’s not good enough.

“I wanna see him. I wanna look him in the eyes and know why.”

“You know why Dom; she knows a lot of shit.” Before I can respond, he adds. “Doesn’t make it right in the least. He had his orders. He’ll pay the price. I can’t guarantee I’m gonna wait for you Dom.”

“I gotta get her home first.” I can’t bring her there.

“I know. You go take care of her.”

“I wanna be there.” I say one more time. I feel like he’s not going to listen. Like he’s gonna take him out himself.

“I understand. But I can’t give you that right now Dom. Just get her home and safe and then call me. If I can, I’ll come over.”

I nod, “alright,” and hang up and try to relax somewhat. But I can’t. I can’t relax. A kill is a kill. It fucking sucks and I’ve seen it over and over again. This one is different. This one’s personal. That fucker was going to kill my girl. And Jack paid for it.

A long moment passes with silence. Jack’s a dead man. And my Becca’s safe. That’s what matters.

“Babe we’re going to get through this.” I reach across the console and grab her hand. I rub soothing circles on her soft skin. She keeps looking between me and out the window. I can tell she’s scared, but other than that I have no idea what’s going on in her head.

“The piece of shit that called the hit had no right.” I try to keep her gaze, but she doesn’t hold it. “Babe, you’re safe. No one’s ever going to hurt you again.”

“You said that before.” She barely speaks her words and it shreds me. Cause it’s true.

I wanted to go there and win her heart back with the promise of safety. And look what fucking happened. “It’s over. I promise, everything will be fine, doll.” Raising her small hand to my lips, I plant a small kiss on her tender wrist.

Her beautiful hazel eyes find mine, but all I can see in them is disbelief.