Dominic (Made Men 8)

His eyes grew wide. “Uh … You’re not going to tell Dom, are you?”

Maria gave him a stern look. “That depends. Are you going to keep doing it?”

Cassius answered without a blink of his eye, “No.”

She didn’t doubt the Luciano could easily lie. Rolling her eyes, she scolded him, “Smoking kills, you know? And you could at least try to hide it. How dumb can you be to do it right outside of your brother’s window without even trying to hide the evidence?” Taking the butt of the stick, she shoved it in his pocket for him to throw away later, “And don’t litter, that’s not cool, either.”

“Thanks.” He gave her an appreciative look that she wouldn’t tell on him. “I promise I don’t do it often.”

“That’s how it starts, though,” she continued her mothering rant. “My brother smokes, and it was only a cigarette every on—” Suddenly, Maria stopped, staring at Cassius with a scrutinizing gaze. It all suddenly clicked. “You talk to Lucca, don’t you?”

“Yes.” Again, he didn’t deny it, but Maria didn’t miss the little flex in his jaw.

“That’s how you knew I used to wander around when I was a little girl.” Maria continued to stare at him strangely. “How long have you been talking to him?”

“A long time ….” His voice turned from nothingness to holding the littlest bit of anger. “I thought he was my friend.”

“What happened?”

Cassius’s brows furrowed deeply, looking out at the falling sun. “I didn’t know who he was, and he used information I gave him against us.”

“Katarina,” Maria whispered, the last piece falling in place.

He didn’t even have to nod his head. “He betrayed me.”

“He betrayed me too,” she told him, seeing how hurt he was. It was like looking in a mirror.

“He did?” Cassius asked, looking back to her.

“Yes.”

“Are you going to forgive him?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” she answered honestly, looking away from the sunset to him. “Are you?”

Cassius shook his head confidently, but Maria saw how he had to think about it first. “But you should, though,” he finally admitted. “He’s your brother, and he cares about you.”

“Really?” Maria smiled. “What else has he told you about me?”

“Well, he told me your name was Mia,” he huffed before dropping his anger to slightly tilt his lips. “But he also said you were evil, spent too much money, but that you were also pretty cool.”

Maria couldn’t help but laugh. “Well, that’s awfully accurate.”

“I think so too,” Cassius agreed with another smile that showed his little hint of a dimple.

Ugh. As much as this family made her pull her hair out, the more she came over here, the more attached she started to feel.

Maria always thought she just wanted to be alone, but now she’d had her alone time—finally—and with only Leo living with her, it turned out she was kind of missing her brothers and how they were always in each other’s faces, even though it used to annoy the piss out of her.

“Are you going to marry Dom?” Cassius bluntly asked her.

Maria thought for several shocking moments until she finally knew what to say. “I—”

The window creaking behind them had Maria and Cassius turning their heads.

“Maria?”

Staring at a confused Dominic, she slightly melted upon seeing his handsome face. Maria hadn’t known until this moment how much she had missed him these past few days.

“Well, I’ll see you later.” Cassius slightly raised his eyebrows at her before getting up to go back through the window to leave them alone.

Looking at the hand he held out to her, she grabbed it as she stood on the shaky ground and carefully made her way to the window.

Grabbing her waist tightly, he lifted her down in one swift, light motion until her stilettos reached safe ground once again.

Maria stared helplessly up at him. The act he had just done made her stomach flutter, and when he let her waist go, she could see that the time she spent apart from Dominic had affected him as well. He seemed sad when he had left her place, and now he appeared even more so.

Dominic avoided her eyes, taking a seat on the edge of his bed. He looked tired as he rubbed his eyes.

Taking a step toward him, she could see that he hardly slept, making that hole in her chest that much deeper. Maria stretched out her hand, spreading her fingers through his hair.

At her touch, Dom suddenly opened his eyes and was even more surprised when he found her arms wrapping around his neck.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered into his ear as she hugged him.

Wrapping his arms around her waist, he sat her down on his leg. “For what, princess?”

“For not understanding, listening, judging you, not coming to see you sooner—” She stopped, not wanting to make herself look worse.

“It’s okay,” he murmured, letting his thumb smooth back and forth over her exposed thigh that he held.