Chapter 15: END THINGS

DOMINIC

Nick freezes in the doorway, his eyes bouncing between me and Grace. I don’t know what he’s thinking, but it’s nothing good.

He finally steps fully inside. His attention locks on Grace first with no reaction. He doesn't greet her, he just gives her that cold stare of his, like he’s assessing something he doesn’t like.

“Grace, what the hell are you doing here?” His voice drops in shock. Grace is too stunned to even answer.

“I’m asking you a question. Answer me!” he snaps, shouting now.

I exhale sharply and move closer. Nick usually only yells at me, so if he’s directing that same energy at her, he’s already jumped to the worst conclusion.

“Nick—” I start, but he doesn’t even look at me.

“You told me you had something important tonight. You moved our dinner. And now you’re here? With him?” He throws a hand toward me like I’m the maincast to some twisted horror show. “This is what you called important?”

“Nick…” Grace finally whispers. Her voice is calm, but the nerves in it are obvious. “Can we talk outside? Please?” She reaches for him.

He jerks his arm away. “Outside? Why? Why can’t you answer me right here?”

“Please, just calm down Nick, I—”

“Don’t tell me to calm down,” he snaps. “You have no idea what’s going through my head right now. And you still haven’t answered me. What are you doing at Dominic’s place?”

Grace rubs her forehead tiredly. I should step in, but if I do too early, I’ll just make it worse for her. So I wait patiently.

“I didn’t know Dominic was the client I was meeting tonight,” she says quietly. “He reached out as a buyer. I didn’t even know he’s the owner—”

“Is this a joke?” Nick cuts in, laughing without humor. “You expect me to believe that? After everything we agreed on? After you asked for space, was this the space?”

“Nick,” I finally say, sharper this time. “Stop twisting everything. And listen to her.”

He whips his head toward me. “Why is this your fucking business? What are you now, her bodyguard? She’s my girlfriend, alright? I have every right to be mad that she might be screwing my damn brother!”

The words barely land before my fist does. I don’t think, I just move.

A single hit. A very clean and sharp one lands on his left cheek.

Nick crashes to the floor. A loud thud fills the room as he screeches across the floor, with just the sound of the impact.

Blood trails from the corner of his mouth, his lips already swollen.

Grace gasps and drops beside him immediately. “Are you okay, babe?” her voice shakes as she touches his arm carefully.

Nick doesn’t look at her, he pushes himself up and aims for me.

“So this is it?” Nick shouts, fighting against Grace’s hold as she tries to pull him back. “This is your way of stealing my woman again?”

“Nick, please,” she pleads, voice strained. “Let’s just go.”

But he shakes her off and staggers toward me again, his jaw clenched, eyes blazing with that old, stupid resentment he’s carried for long.

“You can’t steal Grace from me,” he spits. “You hear me? She loves me! And you…” he jabs a shaking finger toward my chest. “...you can keep taking everyone away from me but no one ever loves you, Dom. You only know how to steal them away!”

Grace reacts fast. Before he can say anything worse, she shoves him back and drags him toward the door. Her breath trembles as she yanks the door open.

Nick’s voice is still echoing when she slams it shut, cutting his words clean off.

Silence replaces the noise in the room.

I bite down on my lower lip hard, as tension settles under my skin like a tight knot. I try to convince myself to stay put, but hell, my mind keeps circling the same thought…

Is she safe with him like this?

I tell myself Nick wouldn’t lay a hand on her. He’s furious at me, at her, at the entire damn universe, but he still loves her.

Even in his worst state, he’s never crossed that line.

He wouldn’t start now… right?

I force myself to back away, to breathe. To trust that Grace can handle him, that she wants to handle him without me jumping into their mess.

But the worry eats at me anyway.

After a moment, I can’t sit still. I walk to the chair, try to settle for at least a second… then I’m already moving again.

I stop at the window and pull the curtain aside just enough to see outside.

My heart stutters a little.

Nick’s arms are flailing, his gestures sharp and frantic as he turns to Grace. He’s not touching her—thank God, but he’s furious, his whole body shouting even louder than his voice.

Grace keeps trying to calm him, stepping in close, then stepping back when he pushes the air too aggressively toward her.

I grit my teeth.

I don’t know if this is my cue to intervene and I don’t even know if stepping out there will make everything explode even more.

But watching her stand in the middle of his anger like that? It makes my hands curl slowly into fists.

GRACE

“This has nothing to do with whatever is going on between us, Nick!”

My voice rises, but it’s still steady and controlled. I refuse to break because of this.

“I can’t believe you said all that inside,” I continue, my breath trembling. “And I want to believe it was your anger talking because if it wasn’t, then you meant every word.”

Nick starts pacing, running a hand through his hair like the world is caving in on him. “This isn’t fair, Grace. You know it isn’t. You got jealous over Sam just because she hovered around me the last time, but I can’t even be jealous? Because you’ve been sneaking around my brother?” His voice sharpens. “Does that even make any sense to you at all?”

What?! Sneaking?

I blink at him, disbelief knotting in my chest. “I was never sneaking around him. Stop twisting things just to feel right.” My voice drops colder. “If you don’t trust me, then what exactly are we fighting for? And don’t you dare drag Sam into this.”

“You see?” he snaps. “Still jealous.”

I stare at him, exhausted. “Nick… I don’t even know what you’re talking about anymore. Is this about us, or is this about whatever unfinished business you still have with Dominic? Because nothing happened between us. He didn’t even know I was the person he was meeting tonight. So stop painting him like a villain and start focusing on the actual problem between us.”

He goes silent as his body goes still. Then he looks at me with a strange intensity, something sharp, almost suspicious.

“Why do I feel like you’re hiding something from me, Grace?” His voice lowers, too calm for someone who was yelling seconds ago.

Oh God. Not this again.

“No, Nick. I’m not hiding anything. But you never believe me. You never just… trust me.” My voice wavers, the frustration boiling over. “And if this is how it’s always going to be, this back and forth thing, and always this constant suspicion, then maybe we should just stop here.”

His eyes widen like I just stabbed him. “What do you mean, stop here?” His voice cracks.

That hurt so bad. I won’t lie, it hurts. But I can’t keep going on like this.

I rub my face, the weight of the night crashing hard. “I’m saying I can’t keep being the punching bag for you and Dominic’s issues. I can’t keep proving myself every time you're like this. I can’t do that, Nick.”

“So you’re ending our relationship over what’s clearly your fault?” His voice rises in disbelief. “You want to walk away because maybe you think you’ll get a chance to be with him?”

I freeze.

What? Is he serious right now? Has he gone insane?

For a moment I wait for logic to return, for him to hear what he just said and process it… But nothing comes.

He just stands there with that wild look in his eyes, waiting for me to defend myself again.

But, I’m done.

Instead, I turn and start walking toward the gate.

“Grace. Come back here, we’re not done!” he shouts behind me.

I don't stop. I keep walking.

“I love you, damn it! We can’t end like this!” His voice cracks again behind me.

But I’m already outside the compound. Already tired and shattered.

I call a cab and stand by the quiet road, stupidly hoping that he’ll run out, and call my name, and maybe apologize, just anything.

He doesn’t.

The cab pulls over. I get in. The streets blur past the window, and thirty minutes later, I reach my door, unlock the door to my apartment. The moment I step inside, I collapse onto the chair, every emotion finally catching up at once.

I don’t even notice when my hands climb up to my face. All I feel are the tears, hot, unstoppable as they trail down my cheeks.

God. Why are you crying? My brain spits the question like a slap.

I sniff hard and wipe my cheeks, but more tears slide down anyway, burning their way out even though I’m trying so damn hard to hold them in.

Just then, a sharp knock sounds on my door.

My heart nearly jumps.

Nick.

Of course it’s him. That's what I want to believe at this point.

And like an idiot, I leap to my feet. Some tiny piece of me hoping he came to apologize, fix things and perhaps, pull me close and say he didn’t mean any of it.

I walk to the door fast. And then pause to wipe my face with the back of my hand.

Then I twist the knob… Just like that I freeze.

My breath stops too.

What?

He stands there. Still as a statue, his eyes dragging over my face like he’s trying to figure out what happened… or if he should even say a word.

For a long second neither of us moves.

What is he doing here? How did he even find my place?

His presence hits me harder than the tears did.

I swallow, my voice barely coming out. “Elliot…?”