Page 91 of Dominance

I’ve been a fool for holding back from her lately.

Oh well.

Dom holds up a finger for me to wait, makes a call, standing and taking a lap. He’s gone a few minutes, rambling on to someone for a while before hanging up and plopping back down, a grin on his face.

“Flight’s being booked as we speak. Go home, get your shit, and be at the airport in an hour.”

“Really? Uh, okay.” Suddenly I don’t feel so good about his good mood. My mind races through the tight time frame I’m left with. What I’ll need, who I need to talk to before I go.

Leave it to Dom to throw me a curveball.

And then another.

“So. When you fly into Rome…”

There it is.

The real reason he’s allowing me to go.

“There’ll be a bag waiting for you, a car too. Usual protocol for spotting the drop. Head to Terni. A friend of mine will send instructions on where to go. Then you can go see yournonna.”

“Will do. Any hints on what I’ll be doing near Terni?” I ask, trying to hide the snide tone in my voice.

“Call it loose ends, like you said. Get it all out of your system.”

Dom’s mood shifts, subtly.

With a sharp wave, he dismisses me.

“Oh, and Adriano? Havefun.”

17

GLORIA

“Gloria, call me back. Now.” Dom’s message is insistent.

So were his last five and getting worse.

With any luck, my path through the city was erratic enough to keep him guessing for a while. Because it’s all I have, along with a half-decent disguise and a paper trail of credit card purchases that will lead him in the wrong direction.

It’s a half-assed plan.

It’s all I could manage on short notice. Because I have to leave.

I have to check on my sister and make sure she’s safe. And then I need to get her somewhere he can’t find her. Then I can come back here and accept the consequences of my actions.

I only wish I could have told Adriano. He deserves better than all of this. Than me. We both do.

But I’m desperate. Out of options.

I sat on the bed, staring at his back for nearly half an hour, the early morning blue shadowing everything in our room. He stirred once, mumbling my name in his sleep.

It almost broke me.

Every day this week I have almost told him.

Almost said the words.

---