by V. F. Mason
However, once Sapphire escorted him out, I almost couldn't believe the happiness in my chest at the thought of seeing my brother again and knowing he was alive. All those memories of us together in the cell, the connection we shared, everything.
But the happiness was quickly gone as bitter resentment settled inside me. Dominic was alive all those years and couldn't even bother letting me know? Based on what I understood, he was the Pakhan of the Russian Mafia. So while I made my life's mission to avenge his death and kill all those who wronged us, he lived like royalty in fucking Russia.
Conflicted didn't even begin to cover what I felt all this week, but we were finally at the doorstep of Connor's house where we were all to meet.
We hadn't pressed the bell yet, and part of me dreaded it. I loved my baby brother, the one whose memories I held onto all those years. But I wasn't sure I'd want to shatter all this by getting to know the real grown-up version of him.
With a determined stare, I rang the doorbell, and in a second, Connor greeted us with a wide but tense smile. "Hi, guys, come on in." He waved toward the living room, and we followed him.
I stopped abruptly as I noticed Dominic near the couch, and we both stared at each other, his eyes scanning me as I did the same with him.
My mirror image before the accident, but still we shared the same face. He didn't say anything, and I didn't feel like starting the conversation either, so I placed Kristina on a small loveseat near the door and covered her with a blanket. I proceeded to the couch that he previously occupied, sat on it, and waited for his next move. After a beat, he settled too with only a few inches of distance separating us.
Connor came back, poured glasses of whiskey for everyone, and then gave them to each of us.
Sapphire
"They will rot in a fucking prison for everything they did," Connor said spitefully, taking a huge sip of his drink while Dominic's eyes narrowed on the nearby couch where Kristina slept soundly. He was making sure she didn't hear him curse, and his consideration warmed my heart.
It still seemed surreal to me that Dominic was alive and in front of us. No matter how much I tried, my eyes stayed glued to him, as I studied his features. When they sat next to each other, no one could deny they shared a womb once. Both exuded an aura of dominance and danger. They both shared tanned skin, amber eyes, black hair, and ripped bodies. However, that was where the similarities ended, and the differences began.
Dominic's hair was much longer than Damian's shaggy cut and both his arms had various tattoos on them, along with his neck, and I suspected his back too. His long, dark lashes looked almost out of place on his hard-as-granite face. His mouth stayed constantly in the same position. I didn't think he smiled much, but then what the hell did I know about his current life? Damian smiled only when he was in my or Kristina's presence. My eyes traveled back to my love, and I noticed his eyes stayed focused on me, and some dark and unexplained expression marred his face, but it was impossible to ask him about it now.
"Yeah." I didn't know what else to say when Connor spoke; at least he broke the silence. Since we had entered the house, both brothers stayed quiet and didn't utter a word to us or each other. Maybe it was time to start? I faced Dominic, and said softly, "Thank you for helping us. We couldn't have done it without you." Unfortunately, after my words, both of them tensed, and Connor raised his brow at me and shook his head. Damian's hand tightened on the glass he was holding, and anger flashed through his eyes. Why did thanking Dominic make him furious? I understood his anger toward them because of Kristina, but we both would've died if Dom hadn't shown up.
"No need," Dominic finally replied, his voice gruff and husky. Even his voice was void of any emotion, and I wondered if anything in this world awoke feelings inside him. This wasn't the warm reunion I expected ever since I'd learned the truth. Who wouldn't be happy to get such news, right?
Suddenly, Damian rose swiftly, threw the glass on the carpet so it wouldn't wake up Kristina, and directed his barely-contained fury at Dominic.
"All those years you were fucking alive and didn't bother to let me know?" His voice was biting, hoarse, and louder than usual. He shouldn't strain his voice like that, but calming him down now was impossible. "Years of me crying for you, grieving for you, avenging you, and you were fucking alive, living your life? Fuck you, Dominic. You won't hear a thank you from me," he finished.
Then Dominic rose quickly too, and they faced each other while my and Connor's heads were moving from one brother to the other.
"Really? You got everything, and I was left with nothing. While you were given our legacy, I had to live on the streets and beg for food. Until I stole from the crime lord and had to pay for it dearly. You don't steal from Bratva. Guess where? In fucking Russia. So, no, Damian, fuck you!" he shouted, and I ran to check on Kristina, who was still asleep. I covered her more firmly with a blanket so she wouldn't awaken from the screams.
"You could have come to me. You always had a choice!"
Dominic's bitter laughter echoed in the room, freezing my bones and making my heart ache for the small boy he used to be.
"Choice? What choice, Damian? Unfortunately, I didn't die from that knife wound, so they did a half-assed job of fixing me and then fucked me for one more year until they couldn't ignore my grown-up body anymore." Damian's head reeled back, his face stricken with the information, and I gasped. No! He stayed in that horrible place with my father? I swallowed the bile in my throat from the guilt. "Yeah, I was a whore a bit longer than you. Then they decided to kill me but imagine this: Tim took pity on me. He threw me away on the streets, thinking I'd die, and I probably would have if it weren't for a homeless man who shared his food and shelter with me. Then it was two long years on the streets. I stole and begged." Dominic breathed heavily, clearly reliving all the awful years he spent on the streets.
"Maybe we should leave you guys alone and—" I started, but Damian interrupted me.
"How did you end up in Russia?" he asked tensely, his jaw ticking and his anguished, amber eyes focused completely on his brother, oblivious to anything else in the room, including me.
"I went days without food and was starving. I noticed a man in an expensive suit who, for some odd reason, walked in the dark area of Austin. I quickly stole his wallet." He smirked at himself mockingly. "Only he discovered it quickly, and then several other men showed up. Turned out I stole from the crime lord of the Russian mafia family, and he didn't take it kindly. He would have killed me, but he was impressed with my skills, so he gave me a choice. I had to either go to Russia with him or be killed. Call me stupid, but even back then, I still wanted to live." He shrugged and then ran his hand over his head. "I learned the language, the skills, and the old man considered me a son. The rest is history." He finished and went to the bar and poured himself a vodka.
His back tensed at Damian's next question. "Are you a Russian mafia boss now?"
Dom spun around and chuckled without any humor. "Yeah, I operate the house there. I live in Russia and prefer for it to stay that way." He exhaled a breath. "I had no clue where you were until Vasya showed me." He didn't bother to explain who this Vasya man was. "And then it just seemed pointless. You decided to keep the idea of two brothers, and it was fine. Seemed like you had everything under control." He took a quick shot of his drink, grimaced, and then continued, "I wasn't the brother you used to know. Contacting you for a warm reunion appeared pointless." And for the first time, something besides indifference flashed over his face. Hard to name what, but at least it let me know that deep down in his heart, he wasn't as heartless or detached as he wanted to pretend in front of us.
Damian closed his eyes for a second, but then snapped them open and rushed to Dom's side.
"If I suspected or just thought there was a possibility of you being alive, I would have looked all this time. I mean it, Dom." They held each other's eyes for long moments, but before they could say anything else, the front door to Connor's house crashed loudly, and a
husky, annoyed female voice spoke.
"Connor, you freaking jerk! How could you have scared him away?" In a second, a young woman stormed into the room and breathed heavily with fury. "He broke up with me with a text! A freaking text, Connor!"
Despite my shock at her interruption, it didn't escape my notice how gorgeous the girl was. She had long, wavy, blonde hair that fell down her spine, green-as-emerald eyes, which sent daggers Connor's way, her pale, freckled skin blushed from her rage, and a tight, Hervé Léger dress hugged her perfect body. Victoria's Angels had nothing on her, seriously. Long legs, narrow waist, and firm, bigger than average-sized breasts. Even in six-inch high heels, she was a few inches shorter than Connor, and her perfect makeup emphasized her natural features.
On reflex, I tried to straighten my shirt and readjust my bun. Compared to her, I looked like a homeless addict, and no female on the planet wanted to look inferior to another. With all this turmoil and sleepless nights from Kristina's nightmares and Damian's medication, I hadn't really had time for myself.
The blonde poked her finger at Connor's chest, while continuing with her tirade, and she probably hadn't even noticed other people in the room. "I'm twenty-six years old, you jackass, and thanks to you, still single. I will die a nun if you keep scaring away every guy who is interested in me," she screamed the last part, waving her hands wildly and huffing in frustration. "Let me date, Connor!"
"Munchkin—" he started, but was harshly interrupted when she poked him again.
"No, don't call me that. You are my freaking twin, Connor! I'm not a munchkin! Stop treating me like a kid!" Connor's face darkened. He grabbed her finger in his fist, brought her body to his, and his raised brow stopped any protest the woman wanted to voice.
"Munchkin," he repeated, "I didn't scare that piece of shit away, just hinted what might happen to him if he treated you badly. Guess he didn't want to risk it after all, huh?"
"Connor—" Her eyes widened once they registered all of us in the room, and she took a step back from him. Her cheeks flushed a deep red, and she covered her eyes with one hand and groaned. "This is so embarrassing." Her eyes focused on me. She gave me a tentative, friendly smile and put out her hand for me to shake. "Hi, nice to meet you. I'm Frankie." She pointed at Connor. "This jerk's sister. I'm sorry you had to hear all that." So this was the infamous sister, the other twin who escaped on that fateful day. I shook her hand and instantly liked her.
"Sapphire. No problem, I understand the struggle." Going all those years with an overly protective brother probably sucked. How was a girl supposed to find her "happy ending," if it got scared away all the time, right?
Connor grabbed her by the elbow and again turned her around to face him. "I'm kind of in the middle of something here, so could you come another time?"
Frankie frowned, clearly not liking the suggestion. "No, I can't. It's important."
The door slammed open again, and Rosa burst into the room, breathing heavily. "Frankie, what the hell? You left me alone with them!" Frankie rolled her eyes.
"Please, I had to settle something with almighty Connor here. Plus, Orlando really likes you, and I think you two could hook up." My brows lifted at this bit of information. Considering Rosa barely left the house, maybe since S was captured, she could finally achieve all those dreams of sex she had. Rosa wore skinny jeans, black heels, and a navy blue shirt, which, combined with her looks, made it almost impossible to take one's eyes away from her.
"I don't want to hook up with anyone!" she exclaimed, and Frankie frowned in confusion.
"Since when? As long as I can remember, we've both wanted to get rid of your holy"—she made air quotes with her middle and index fingers for the word 'holy'—"virginity thing, and all of a sudden, you are picky?"
Rosa took a deep breath. "Yes, I am, okay?"
"Listen, if this is about the guy you have a crush on who recently burned his hands, then I suggest moving on," Frankie advised, as I blinked a few times.
Guy who burned his hands? As in….
Freaking hell. Rosa had a crush on Dominic? How did she even know him? Connor touched her arm softly. "I have to look out for you now too?"
Before she could say anything, all of us froze at Dom's lethal voice, crackling with tension, and a shiver ran through me, and not the best kind.
"Get your hands away from her."
My eyes widened when I noticed Dom's eyes light up with dominance and possessiveness while they were focused on Rosa, the look easily recognizable to me since Damian had the same in his eyes every single day.
Whatever Rosa did, wanted, or desired didn't matter anymore.
She belonged to Dominic from now on.
Dominic
Listen, if this is about the guy you have crush on who recently burned his hands, then I suggest moving on.
Rosa lied to me the other day in the hospital; she wasn't in love with my brother. Not caring about the audience we had, I said harshly, "You lied to me?" The cross on my neck burned my skin ever since she gave it back to me, because the only place it belonged was on her, and after tonight, she'd finally learn it.
She touched her hand to her chest, breathing heavily as her eyes widened in shock, and she groaned in mortification. "Why are you here?" She gave the room a long look, and the blush barely visible on her skin spread to her neck and cheeks, creating a rather cute picture. "I didn't lie to you," she answered defensively, while not meeting my eyes.
"I claimed you, and you started to talk bullshit about my brother and your crush on him!" Sapphire gasped while Damian quickly went to her side, as quickly as his cast leg allowed him at least, and wrapped his arm around her while frowning. They both watched Rosa closely, clearly wondering how they missed the signs of her being in love with him before.
"Are you out of your mind?" she asked in disbelief. "I never said I have a crush on him!" Her eyes focused on Damian. "And for the record, I don't, okay? That's the whole point." She gestured in frustration with her hands. "You guys have the same face. I have nothing but platonic feelings for you, but when I see him, I just—" She stopped talking and exhaled a heavy sigh. "I can't control that I want to sleep with him." She glared at me. "Happy now? I said it aloud, and I'm freaking proud."
"This is better than the soaps I watched in the dorms," Frankie commented excitedly, and for a moment, my attention shifted from my woman to Connor's sister as I tried to recognize in the gorgeous woman the small little girl who slept in my arms while I promised to save her.
"Beth?" What was all this Frankie shit anyway? At hearing her name, she froze, and the smile slowly died out. The amusement in her eyes faded and was replaced with confusion and uneasiness.
"Nobody calls me that anymore," she whispered. Then realization must have hit her as she let go of the bag in her hand, which gently hit the floor, and raced to me in record time, ending up with her arms wrapped around my neck, squeezing the life out of me. Her strong perfume didn't bother me, and I returned the hug, incredibly happy that her life turned out all right. "Dominic," she said, and buried her face in the crook of my neck, something no woman had done before. Although considering Beth a woman was laughable, she was like a kid sister I always had in the back of my mind. Her life had been saved, so she didn't have to go through the hideous things Damian and I did. "I thought I'd never see you again."
"Me too." My eyes searched for Rosa, and I narrowed them as Connor raised her chin up and caressed her cheek with his thumb. I didn't miss the pained expression cross her face. "Honey, I'm thrilled to see you, but I have something to take care of. Get my number from Connor and we'll meet." She nodded, and I pushed her aside, and in two short strides ended up next to Rosa. My hand removed Connor's hand, and I kneeled down and hoisted her over my shoulder while she squealed in surprise and then outrage as her small hands hit my back. Like her gentle touch could hurt me, what a laughable concept.
"Let go of me, you Neanderthal! Why don't you just take Frankie?" she said viciously. Was it jealousy I he
ard? Ignoring her words, I spun around, my stare meeting Damian's. His face didn't really give away what he thought, but I could see both amusement and anger underneath it all.
"She's mine now. No longer your concern." And how fucking nice it felt to finally say it. "I dealt with Don too."
This whole meeting was supposed to break the ice and to come up with a plan to hurt those fuckers, but not enough for them to die so they could still face retribution in prison. However, all this conflict was between my brother and me. And it had to be discussed only between us; otherwise, it'd turn into a circus like this meeting had.
"Let's meet in Houston in three days. At Mom and Dad's grave." He nodded, confirming my suspicion it was he all along who'd created such a beautiful area around there. With that, I left the room with Rosa's constant threats of harming my balls and dick if I didn't put her down.
Once we were outside, I slapped her ass hard, which finally silenced her, and I pushed her inside the car and slid in after her. "You don't have the right to decide!" Ignoring her outburst once again, I addressed my driver. "Home, Vlad." My finger pressed the button, and in a second, the black glass wall separated us from his inquisitive eyes.
"And if you think—" I grabbed her by the neck, leaned forward, and for the first time in my life kissed a woman properly, resembling nothing of the tame peck we had in the park. The act seemed too intimate to share it with any other woman before; not to mention, I'd never wanted to. She gasped in surprise, which allowed me to push my tongue inside and seek hers, and she gave it tentatively. The sounds and movements were sloppy, our teeth clashed, and we awkwardly angled our heads. Clearly, my Rosa had no fucking idea how to do it right either. That knowledge filled me with so much satisfaction and primal need I could have come right there. It wouldn't have mattered to me if she had a thousand men before me, but fuck if I wouldn't love to be her one and only lover.