Chapter 6 - The UnravelingThe kiss was explosive. All the built-up tension, terror, and unspoken desire of the past four days erupted between us. Dominic groaned into my mouth, his hands tangling in my hair, pulling me closer until there was no space left between us. He lifted me effortlessly, setting me down on the edge of the large mahogany desk, his massive frame pressing between my thighs.
His lips moved down my neck, sending electric shocks straight to my core. “Tell me to stop, Nora,” he rasped against my skin, his hand sliding up my thigh, pushing up the fabric of my dress. “Tell me right now, or I swear to God I won't be able to.”
“Don't stop,” I gasped, clutching his shoulders. “Don't ever stop.”
That night, in the quiet luxury of the Bedford estate, I surrendered completely to Dominic Bellardi. He made love to me not with the wild aggression of a mobster, but with a reverent, possessive devotion that left me breathless and undone. Every touch was deliberate, every kiss a promise. He mapped every inch of my body as if I were the most precious treasure he had ever claimed.
When morning light broke through the library blinds, I woke up wrapped in his arms, resting my head against his broad, bare chest. His steady heartbeat echoed under my cheek.
“What are you thinking about?” Dominic’s deep morning voice rumbled in his chest, his fingers gently tracing patterns on my bare shoulder.
“I’m thinking about how insane this is,” I admitted, a soft smile touching my lips. “A week ago, I was planning a white picket fence wedding with a man who hated me. Now I’m lying in the arms of the most feared man in New York.”
Dominic chuckled, a warm, rich sound that vibrated against me. “Life has a strange way of correcting mistakes.”
However, our peace was short-lived.
At 10:00 AM, a sudden commotion echoed from the main gates of the estate. The sound of shouting and screeching tires cut through the quiet morning. Dominic instantly sat up, his muscle memory kicking in as he reached for the hand gun resting on the nightstand beside the bed.
“Stay here,” he commanded, slipping into his trousers and shirt.
“Dominic, wait!” I pulled on a silk robe and followed him down the long marble hallway.
When we reached the front foyer, the heavy oak doors were open. Standing on the driveway, surrounded by four of Dominic’s armed guards, was my stepmother, Victoria.
She looked ghastly. Her hair was unkempt, her expensive clothes wrinkled, and her eyes were wild with desperation.
“Nora!” she shrieked the moment she saw me standing in the doorway. “Nora, help us! You have to stop them!”
I stepped out onto the porch, Dominic standing like an immovable wall of iron right behind me. “Victoria? How did you even find this place?”
“Nathan’s lawyers... they told us where you were!” Victoria wept, dropping to her knees on the gravel driveway. “The bank took the house, Nora! They took everything! Emily and I have nowhere to go! They’re seizing our bank accounts!”
I looked at her, feeling a strange mix of pity and profound disgust. “You stood in the boardroom three days ago and called me insane. You defended the man who cheated on me with your daughter. You helped them try to steal my father’s legacy.”
“We were desperate!” Victoria sobbed, holding out her hands pleadingly. “Nathan promised us security! Emily didn't know what she was doing—she’s just a child!”
“Emily is twenty-three years old, Victoria,” I said, my voice hardening into steel. “She knew exactly what she was doing when she laid in that service hallway with my fiancé.”
Emily stepped out from behind a parked car, her face pale, her lip trembling. She didn't look like the arrogant, smirking girl from the gala anymore. She looked small, defeated, and terrified.
“Nora... please,” Emily whispered, tears pouring down her cheeks. “I’m sorry. I was jealous of you... you always had Dad’s love, you had the company... I just wanted what you had. Please don't throw us into the street.”
I looked at my half-sister. For years, I had bent over backward to accommodate her, to share my life with her, to earn her affection. And she had repaid me by trying to destroy my life.
I felt a large, warm hand rest on my shoulder. Dominic was standing beside me, offering no words, leaving the choice entirely to me. I wasn't the weak, desperate girl who had grabbed his sleeve at the gala anymore. I was CEO of Blake Global. I was a woman who knew her worth.
“I won't let you starve,” I said, my voice echoing clearly across the driveway. “I will set up a modest trust fund that will pay for a small two-bedroom apartment in upstate New York and basic living expenses. But under one condition.”
Victoria looked up, hope flashing in her eyes. “Anything! What condition?”
“You never contact me again,” I said coldly. “You cut all ties with Blake Global. If either of you ever steps foot near my company, my home, or my husband’s estate... the trust fund vanishes instantly.”
Emily flinched at the word husband, but Victoria rapidly nodded her head. “Yes! Yes, we agree! Thank you, Nora... thank you!”
“Get them out of here,” Dominic ordered the guards calmly.
May you like
As the guards escorted the two weeping women down the driveway, Dominic turned to me, a small, proud smile playing on his lips. “Husband, hmf?”
I flushed slightly, looking up at him. “Well... it had a nice ring to it.”
