Chapter 3 - The Fortress
I was still shaking when Dominic’s armored SUV pulled through the towering iron gates of the Russo estate thirty minutes later.
I hadn't spoken a word since we left the clinic. Dominic had simply wrapped me in his heavy wool overcoat, lifted me off the examination table, and carried me to his car as if I were made of spun glass.
When the heavy front doors of the mansion closed behind us, cutting off the rest of the world, I finally found my voice.
"I didn't ask for you to ruin him, Dominic," I said, pulling the coat tighter around myself. "And I didn't ask you to bring me here. I have my own apartment. I have a life."
Dominic stopped in the grand foyer. He turned to me, the sheer, overwhelming gravity of his presence filling the space.
"Your apartment has a broken security lock on the front lobby door," Dominic stated calmly. "You live on the third floor, which means anyone with a ladder and bad intentions could reach your fire escape. You work twelve-hour shifts organizing events for people who don't appreciate you, and you've been doing it all while carrying my heir."
My breath hitched. "How do you know about my lock?"
"Because I've had men watching your building for four months, Chloe," he admitted, stepping closer. The exhaustion in his eyes was replaced by a fierce, burning possessiveness. "When you disappeared from the hotel that morning, I tore this city apart looking for you. When my men finally found you a week ago, I stayed away because I thought my world was too dangerous for you. I thought I was protecting you by keeping my distance."
He reached out, his warm hands gently cupping my face.
"Then my men reported that you went to an obstetric clinic," he whispered, his voice cracking with an emotion I never thought a mafia boss was capable of feeling. "I have never been terrified in my entire life, Chloe. Not until today. Not until I realized I almost missed this."
"I was going to tell you," I breathed, tears finally spilling over my eyelashes. "But you're a king in this city. I'm just an event coordinator. I didn't think you would want a child with me."
May you like
Dominic’s eyes darkened.
"You are the only woman who has ever looked at me and seen a man instead of a monster," he vowed, his thumbs gently wiping away my tears. "You stood by my side in that hotel while bullets were flying, and you didn't break. You aren't just a coordinator, Chloe. You are the strongest woman I have ever met."
