Chapter 32

CHAPTERTHIRTY-TWO

ONCE AGAIN, LUCA had fucked up. That much was obvious as Dom walked back into the room with a scowl on his face, but Luca couldn’t bring himself to care. It wasn’t his fault that the Rossetti family dynamics meant shielding Caterina from what was really going on. All he’d done was tell the truth, and if Dom didn’t want her to hear it, that wasn’t Luca’s problem. She was such a spitfire that maybe, just maybe, it would occur to her to help Luca get out of there.

Then again, she didn’t seem to have much freedom to do whatever she wanted either.

“Couldn’t help yourself,” Dom said, leaning his hip against the island. “Could you?”

“No. She’s more perceptive than you give her credit for.”

Dom lifted his glass and downed the rest of his drink. “Ten minutes and you think you understand the complexities of our family.”

“I definitely wouldn’t say that. But she is your sister, and she deserves to know what’s going on.”

“It’s none of—”

“My business. I know. Message received.” Luca got to his feet and stalked out of the kitchen and into the living room. The sky had darkened considerably while they’d been upstairs, thick, angry clouds threatening an imminent downpour. It matched his sudden change in mood. All the drinking had made him feel so much lighter, not to mention horny as hell, and God had the aftermath been worth it. So fucking hot and filthy, just like he’d expected Dom to be.

But Caterina’s unexpected visit had only reminded him of what he was missing.

He sank into a couch and dropped his head into his hands. All the worry and stress were seeping back in, and unless he wanted to keep numbing himself with alcohol, he’d have to just ride out the feelings.

“You don’t need to worry about Caterina,” Dom said, taking one of the chairs closest to him.

“I’m not. She’ll be fine. You’ll all be fine. My life is in ruins, but don’t worry, at least the Rossettis are fine.”

“Ah. This is a feeling-sorry-for-yourself moment.”

Luca rubbed his face, his elbows on his knees. Nothing he said to Dom would make him understand. And Luca didn’t care enough to try. Whatever was happening between them, it apparently didn’t mean a thing. They were just two broken people using each other while the clock counted down.

“You don’t get it,” Luca said. “Someone like you will never understand.”

“Someone like me. I thought we were past insults.”

“Just stating the facts.”

“What don’t I understand?”

“Uh, any of this. You’ll never know what it’s like to be taken out of your life and thrown into someone else’s.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. I’m fully aware what could happen to me at any time in the wrong hands. That’s a risk I take every day.”

“But you choose this life. My choices have been taken away. Don’t you understand that? Now that I know the truth, you think I’d actually choose to be a part of it?”

Dom drummed his fingers along the arm of the chair and cocked his head. “Knowing what you do, you’d still choose your old life? Medical school? Fake parents?”

“They’re not fake. They may not be my biological parents, but they raised me away from all this. I can’t imagine who I’d be if I’d stayed. If I’d even be alive. So, yeah, my old life sounds pretty damn good right about now.”

“Well, you got out once. Maybe you can do it again.”

Luca shot Dom a glare. “Don’t be a jerk.”

Dom cracked a smile. “I wouldn’t know any other way to be.”

“If you’d grown up in my shoes, maybe a serious med school student. Or a zoologist. Social worker?”

“Highly unlikely. It’s not in my nature to be of service.”

“I don’t know, you were pretty good at servicing me earlier.” It wasn’t until the words were out of his mouth that Luca realized what he’d said. He’d meant “with alcohol,” but realized a naughty train of thought was accurate too. After all, his ass was still feeling the savageness of Dom’s huge dick—not that Luca was complaining. That had been the hottest fuck he’d ever had, and it was part of what was screwing with his head.

Dom wasn’t a good guy. The only time he’d ever treated Luca well had been back in his bedroom, and it wasn’t really a kindness. Still, Dom was sexy; there was no denying that. Even now, back in all black, looking every bit like the devil he was, there was an indisputable air of mystery and temptation that couldn’t help drawing someone in. A man like Dom always got what he wanted. And twice now, he’d wanted Luca.

“You’re blushing.”

Luca felt the heat in his face intensify. “No, I’m not.”

“You are. Why?”

“It’s probably just from all the drinks.”

“Or maybe you’re thinking of the way I fucked you.”

Luca opened his mouth to refute that, but it was no use. He could try to deny it all he wanted, but Dom saw right through him. “Yes.”

“You liked that.” Not a question. A statement from a man confident enough to know his power in the bedroom.

“I think I made it pretty obvious I liked it.”

“You did.” Rarely had Luca seen Dom without a permanent scowl, but in that moment, he could’ve sworn there was a hint of a smile.

And maybe there was still a little liquid courage left inside Luca, because he added, “And did you? Enjoy it?”

God, why had he asked that? If Dom said no, Luca would rather die right then and there.

“I enjoyed it too fucking much, so don’t make me regret it.”

Holy shit. Dom had actually admitted something that made him vulnerable? It wasn’t at all what Luca had expected, but it made him feel really fucking good, like floating-outside-of-his-body good. His emotions went to every extreme when it came to Dom, and that made all of this so confusing. There were so many layers to him that contradicted each other, and with every little bit Luca learned, he could see the cracks in the armor. Was Dom a vicious psychopath? Yes. Was that all he was? Luca didn’t think so.

And then there was what Dom said upstairs, and whether it was just something that came out in the heat of the moment or something he hadn’t meant for Luca to know, Luca wasn’t sure, but it was niggling in the back of his mind.

“I do have a question,” Luca said, bracing himself. “There was something you said earlier. About being…yours.”

“That’s not a question.”

“I mean, why did you say it? What do you mean, ‘yours’?”

Dom dropped his hand to the arm of the chair and stroked the soft leather. “I would think that’s obvious. You’re mine until I decide otherwise.”

“Otherwise meaning when I’m no longer breathing.”

“Your words, not mine.”

With a grunt of frustration, Luca threw himself back against the couch cushion. “I don’t understand you. Yes, I get it, there’s this badass side to you, but how does this work? How do you compartmentalize these things? I’m a human being. You know me. You’ve been inside me now. How do you just decide those things don’t matter anymore?”

“I do what I have to in order to ensure two things—my family’s safety and our place in this world. I won’t apologize for who I am, Luca. This is the life I chose, and if anyone gets in the way of that, I’ll clear the path in whatever way I need to.”

Luca fell silent. Around and around they went, the same argument, the same outcome, never changing, never compromising. If Dom didn’t see that Luca wasn’t a threat by now, nothing Luca did or said would change that.

He let his head drop back and closed his eyes. “At least you got to choose,” he said softly, the fight going out of him for the time being. “Even if I get out of here, I’m screwed.”

“Why?”

“You can’t just not show up for days on end and expect to still have a spot at Yale. Especially not without a good reason.”

“Kidnapping isn’t a good reason?”

He could hear the amusement in Dom’s voice, but it wasn’t funny. All that work, all gone.

The sting of tears pricked his eyes, and before he could stop it, one escaped. God, please let Dom not have seen that, he thought, wiping it away.

But if Dom did, he didn’t say anything. Luca could hear him shift in the chair and then begin to tap on his phone, and just like that, conversation over. It didn’t matter to Dom what happened to Luca, not when—

“Charlotte, I need you to get in touch with the dean at Yale Medical School,” Dom said.

Luca’s eyes flew open. “What are you doing?”

Dom held up a finger. “Yes, there’s a student there by the name of Luca Davis. He’s missed a few days due to a family emergency and won’t be available to return until things are settled… Yes, tomorrow’s fine. I appreciate it, Charlotte. Thank you.”

As Dom slid his phone back into his pocket, Luca’s jaw dropped. He couldn’t believe Dom had just called to give him an excuse…or that he’d even mentioned the possibility of Luca returning. He’d just said that, though, right? He didn’t mean it. Or did he?

As Luca stared at Dom, still gaping, Dom raised a brow. “What?”

“I can’t believe you did that.”

He shrugged and went to pick up his glass before realizing it was empty. “No big deal.”

“It is to me.”

There was no way Dom would’ve bothered calling if he was only going to get rid of Luca in the end. Dom might think it wasn’t a big deal, but that phone call just offered Luca a glimmer of hope that maybe, maybe he was somehow getting through to Dom. That there was a conscience in there somewhere.

After all, Luca was apparently his.