Chapter 18 PROTECTING MR.
Ava's POV
When he finally responded, he said;
"My business dealings aren't always legal or clean. I've made enemies over the years in both the human world and..." He stopped himself.
"And elsewhere. Powerful enemies who would see hurting you as the best way to hurt me." He continued.
"Then maybe I should just go. Maybe this whole arrangement was a mistake from the beginning." The words hurt coming out but I forced them anyway. "
If being with you puts me in danger..."
His hands tightened on my shoulders, not painfully but firm enough that I couldn't pull away.
"Don't say that, don't even think it." The intensity in his eyes was almost frightening.
"I'll protect you. I swear on everything I have that I will protect you with my life if necessary. But you need to trust me. Can you do that?"
I wanted to say yes, wanted to believe him and let him handle everything, but those messages kept echoing in my head.
"You don't know what he is."
"Okay," I finally said, even though doubt was eating at me.
"I'll stay here tonight. But tomorrow I need to see my mom. I need to make sure she's okay."
"Tomorrow I'll go with you to the hospital. And Adrian will be with us the entire time." He pulled me against his chest and I let myself sink into his warmth, trying to ignore the fear that was slowly crawling up my spine.
Later that night I lay awake staring at the ceiling while Dominic slept beside me, one arm thrown across my waist even in sleep.
My phone was on the nightstand and I couldn't stop thinking about those messages and about who had sent them and what they knew about Dominic that I didn't.
Finally I gave in and picked it up as carefully as possible, trying not to wake him, and scrolled back to the unknown number.
My fingers hovered over the keyboard for a long moment before I typed out a response.
Who are you?
The answer came back almost immediately, like they'd been waiting for me to respond.
"Someone who knows the truth about what Dominic Hayes really is. Meet me tomorrow at noon. Coffee shop on Fifth and Main, the one you always go to. Come alone or you'll never know what you're really dealing with." The person responded
My heart was pounding so hard I was sure it would wake Dominic up, but he just shifted slightly and pulled me closer in his sleep.
I should tell him right now, but something held me back, some need to know the truth for myself.
What if whoever was texting me was right? What if there was something about Dominic I desperately needed to understand, something dangerous that he was keeping from me?
I deleted the message thread with shaking hands and put my phone back on the nightstand.
Tomorrow at noon I'd find out the truth, whatever it was.
Even if that truth destroyed everything I was starting to feel for him.
I must have finally fallen asleep from sheer exhaustion because the next thing I knew was when the sun came on my face and made me to wake up . Dominic was already up and dressed in a full suit, looking like he'd been awake for hours.
"Good, you're finally awake," he said, sitting on the edge of the bed and brushing hair back from my face.
"I have to go into the office for a few hours to handle some things, but Adrian will stay here with you. Don't leave the penthouse for any reason."
"What if I need to go somewhere? What if the hospital calls about my mom?" I asked.
"Then Adrian goes with you, everywhere. No exceptions." His voice was firm as he leaned down to kiss me, and I could taste coffee on his lips.
"I'm serious, Ava. Until we know who's behind those messages, you don't go anywhere alone."
He kissed me harder before standing up, and I heard him talking to Adrian in low voices in the hallway before the front door closed with a heavy click.
I waited a full ten minutes to make sure he was really gone and not coming back for something he forgot, then got up and got dressed in yesterday's clothes as quietly as possible.
Adrian was in the kitchen making coffee when I came out, and he looked up, he smiled.
"Sleep well?" he asked, not quite meeting my gaze directly, and I knew we were both thinking about what had almost happened between us last night.
We hadn't talked about it, about that charged moment before Dominic came home and everything went sideways.
"Fine. Listen, I need to run to my apartment and grab some things. More clothes, my laptop, stuff like that." The lie came easier than it should have.
"I'll drive you wherever you need to go." He said as calm as he could.
"Actually, I was hoping to just take a cab by myself. You know, clear my head, have some time alone to process everything." I softened my voice and tried to look vulnerable.
"Please, Adrian. I feel like I can't breathe with everyone watching me constantly."
His gray eyes studied me carefully for a long moment.
"Mr. Hayes specifically said you weren't to go anywhere alone. He was very clear about that." He replied.
"I know what he said. But I'm not a prisoner here, am I?" I said and made some cute face, hoping that would work.
"I'm just asking for one hour by myself. I'll be back before Dominic even knows I left. Please." I added
He was quiet for so long I thought he was going to refuse, then he sighed and ran a hand through his dark hair.
"One hour. That's it, and you call me immediately if anything feels off or wrong, anything at all." He finally agreed and I almost shouted in victory.
"I will. Thank you, Adrian. Really."
I said as I grabbed my bag and headed for the elevator before he could change his mind.
I wasn't going to my apartment to grab clothes, I was going to that coffee shop on Fifth and Main to find out whatever that person had to say about him.