by A. P. Jensen
“I’m sorry, maybe I should leave.” He didn’t need this and she was a mess.
Juliet started towards the bedroom for her things, but she didn’t make it. Dominick grabbed her arm and towed her towards the couch. He sat and tugged her down on his lap. When she tried to twist away, he cupped the back of her neck.
“I don’t want to be touched,” she snapped.
“Too bad. Look at me,” he ordered.
Surprised, she stilled and looked up. Dominick didn’t look uncomfortable with the tears shining in her eyes or her precarious mood. He was completely focused on her.
“Talk to me.”
It had been so long since someone asked her to do such a thing and tonight, she needed it. Everything about him conveyed to her that he could handle it.
“It was awful. She was covered in blood and bruises. For a second I thought…” She flexed her hand deliberately. The pain stopped her from bursting into tears. “I cleaned her up. She refused to let me call the cops or an ambulance. I was so scared. I didn’t know what to do. She didn’t want to leave. She thought Brent and Scarlet wouldn’t support her, that Freddy held all the cards since he worked at the company. I promised to stay and take care of her if she left him. I got her settled at Maile’s. I tried to call Lee, but he didn’t answer. I decided to see if Callie was right about Brent and Scarlet. On the way there, I saw Freddy’s car at Hunter’s Bar. I confronted him. He didn’t know who I was and when I told him, he said…” Juliet trailed off as anger burned in her gut. She tried to get off Dominick’s lap, but he wrapped his arms around her hips, keeping her anchored to him.
“So, you beat the shit out of him.”
“I got in a couple of cracks before Hunter pulled me off him. I left there and went to the Grant estate. I told Brent and Scarlet what happened. They came back to Maile’s with me. Brent took Callie. He’s going to take care of her.”
“And after all that, you were sitting on the steps and that’s when I came,” Dominick said. “Are you okay?”
Juliet stared at him. She wasn’t sure how she felt.
“You did the right thing,” he said.
“Beating Freddy?”
Dominick’s face hardened into implacable lines. He held up her hand and kissed her knuckles. “I’d rather I or your brothers did it, but I can’t blame you. Going to Brent and Scarlet was the right thing to do. I assume Brent’s going to take care of Freddy?”
She wiped the tears away and nodded. “Fired from Grant Shipping and a quickie divorce.”
“Have you told Lee?”
“He’s on his honeymoon. I don’t want to bother him with this,” she said shakily. “Brent has her now and… I’m glad they didn’t disappoint Callie.”
“And you.”
She shrugged. “This isn’t about me.”
“But you would’ve done whatever it took if they didn’t do the right thing.”
“That’s what family does.”
He cocked his head to the side. “It seems that you’re the only one that knows the meaning of that word.”
Silenced stretched between them.
“Eat and then you can go to sleep.”
Dominick brushed his lips over her brow before he led her back to the island where the food was. She used her left hand to eat while Dominick grabbed a bag of frozen vegetables, wrapped it in a dishcloth and placed it on her aching right hand. She didn’t know how to deal with a man who treated her with more kindness than her own family.
“How was your day?” she asked, making a stab at civil dinner conversation.
Dominick shot her an amused look. “Not half as exciting as yours.”
Juliet grimaced and shifted her hand under the dish towel. “I got a client today.”
He raised a brow. “Client for what?”
“Apparently, I’m a bookkeeper.”
“You ever done that before?”
“Yes. It’s not a big deal.” She had been doing it on a small scale ever since she started at Grant Shipping in her teens.
“Sounds like you’re settling in.”
Juliet froze with her fork inches from her lips. “No.”
“No?”
“I’m not settling in. I’m supposed to stay until the baby is born, but that’s it.” She stared down at her battered hand. Now that she was thinking clearly, she had to wonder what the hell she was still doing here after the confrontation with Brent and now Freddy. “Maybe I should just go back to Seattle.”
“I vote for you to stay.”
“Why? You must think I’m a lunatic. Look at me.”
“Juliet, you made an entrance at the biggest wedding of the year, saved Callie from an abusive marriage, you’re helping Maile with her business and you beat the hell out of Freddy. You’re making waves in the town and through the family that runs it. They need that. What’s waiting for you in Seattle?”
“A life without drama.”
Dominick snorted. “Apparently, you were born for this.”
She tensed. “Making trouble?”
“Bringing things to light.”
Juliet flinched and lowered her eyes. If she hadn’t brought certain things to life, Annie would still be here and the Grant family wouldn’t be so messed up. Some things were meant to stay buried.
They finished their meal and when Juliet tried to clean up, he shushed her away. Juliet retreated to the couch, cuddled with an oversized pillow and stared at the wall. She listened to the sound of Dominick moving around the kitchen. He turned on the TV, settled beside her on the couch and tipped her against his side. Juliet closed her eyes and relaxed as his hand moved up and down her back.
“Life hasn’t been easy for you, has it?” he murmured.
“That’s life,” she said quietly.
“Well, things are about to change.”
She wanted to believe him, but she couldn’t see light at the end of the tunnel that was her life. A tear slipped from the corner of her eye as she lay against him, absorbing his calm, steady heartbeat. She was drifting off to sleep when his cell rang.
“Hey, Lee,” Dominick said.
Juliet roused slightly, but the hand on her hip tightened, urging her to sleep. Juliet did the unthinkable and let Dominick talk to her brother because she wasn’t capable of handling one more thing today.
“That bastard!” Lee shouted. “He better be gone by the time I get back. He thought we’d ignore the fact that he’s beating Callie? What the fuck? How’s Juliet?”
“Asleep.”
A startled pause. “With you?”
Dominick looked down at Juliet tucked against him. “Against me, actually.”
“When I told you to look after her, I meant just at the wedding,” Lee said carefully.
“I know.”
Lee sighed. “I love her, but you gotta know. Juliet… She’s…”
“I know.” He knew Juliet was trouble. It was written all over her, but he didn’t care.
“Can’t say that I’m not relieved to know she’s safe with you. Brent called to tell me about Callie. I don’t have Juliet’s number so I tried Maile, but she didn’t answer.”
“She’s busy doing Bennie,” Dominick said.
“Fuck. She snared him?”
“Looks like it.”
Lee cursed.
“Don’t worry about Juliet or what’s happening here. We got it. Enjoy your honeymoon,” Dominick said.
“You let me know if anything else happens?”
Dominick looked down at Juliet. “Yeah.”
“Okay.”
They hung up. Dominick rested his feet on the coffee table and enjoyed Juliet’s weight pressed against him. He sank his hand into her hair and sifted the soft strands through his fingers. She smelled like his shampoo and wore his shirt. Neither should have been appealing, but it was. Nearly everything about her appealed to him. Too much.
He examined her hand. The swelling had gone down, but the bruising spread. She wouldn't be able to use that hand tomorr
ow. The thought of Juliet confronting Freddy and wailing on him made his blood run cold. There were rumors about Freddy harassing women at the bar. If any of them went to the police, the charges were dropped soon after. Freddy outweighed Juliet by a good hundred pounds, but that didn't stop her. Dominick had a suspicion that once Juliet fixed on something, nothing could derail her.
Dominick had known the Grants for years and never heard a whisper of Juliet until Lee’s wedding. The Grants were a wealthy family with an untarnished reputation. He didn’t know Annie Grant committed suicide until that night. All of the Grants were polite and intelligent, but where did Juliet fit in? Nowhere, apparently. He watched her confront Brent without batting an eyelash. Dominick witnessed the confrontation between Juliet and Gray. It wasn’t hard to read the tension between father and daughter. The way she shoved him away spoke volumes. Juliet wasn’t averse to making a scene and Dominick wasn’t sure why that made him like her even more. Her presence broke through the Grant family’s polite veneer and brought out their true selves.
Dominick shut off the TV and carefully lifted Juliet. She didn’t stir. He carried her into the master bedroom and lay her on the bed. Juliet’s mixed heritage made her stand out in the crowd. The mesmerizing green eyes paired with the dark hair and tanned skin… She was gorgeous, no doubt about it. He watched Juliet dance at the wedding, her movements uninhibited and sensual. She drew every man’s eye without effort, but it wasn’t her looks that kept him riveted. It was the passion in her, the emotions so close to the surface. She grabbed life by the horns. She didn’t worry about consequences. She leapt and through her own guts and resourcefulness, survived. There was ice and fire in her and lots and lots of pain. He had been stunned by her revelations this morning about her family, but decided before he left her at the beach that neither she nor her family would chase him off. Juliet Grant or St. John (whatever she wanted to call herself) sparked something in him.
Dominick undressed and put on a pair of sweatpants in deference to her presence before he got into bed. He didn’t consider sleeping elsewhere. The night they met, she tested the limits of his self-control. Last night, he had been seconds away from taking her in the cab of his truck. Tonight, he intended to take her to a nice dinner, but he sensed that she was in a strange mood and brought her home instead. He assumed it had to do with Brent’s threat the night before, which niggled at the back of his mind all day. Who the hell did Brent think he was to dictate who Juliet could talk to? He and Brent would have words at some point, but he wanted to make sure Juliet felt safe and that Brent didn’t manage to scare her off. He shouldn’t have worried. Juliet had nerves of steel. But tonight, as she told him about Callie, he saw a crack in her shield. Finding Callie in that state had shaken her. He hadn’t been able to suppress the urge to hold her. There was wariness and confusion in her eyes when she looked at him as if she didn’t understand why he was being nice to her. After what she revealed today, it was no wonder. Everyone turned their backs on her. Her family treated her like a leper and her fiancé gave her up for cash. Yet, that didn’t stop her from helping Callie or going to Brent even after he tried to blackmail her. Juliet didn’t realize the significance of that, but he did. She believed her family would do what was right. The ties between the siblings wasn’t completely severed. Juliet wouldn’t be able to rouse such hate in Brent or Gray if they hadn’t loved her just as strongly once. Everything revolved around Annie Grant’s suicide. Juliet carried that burden. He could see that nothing he said would absolve her of that guilt. It didn’t help that the Grants blamed her as well. He wanted to know what happened, but she would tell him when she was ready, he just had to be patient.
Dominick turned on his side and pulled her against him. To his surprise, she tucked her head under his chin and snuggled close. It should have felt odd to have a woman in his bed, but it didn’t. Dominick checked his desire. She needed comfort, not seduction. They would have time for that. He would make sure of it.
Juliet let him in tonight. She allowed him to care for her and confided in him. That hadn’t been natural for her, but she’d done it. She was starting to trust him. Early in life he knew what he wanted and went after it. When it all fell apart, he decided to let fate lead. It had worked thus far. It brought him to Hawaii where he started a successful business, found friends and peace. Now, he let things come to him. There was no getting around the fact that Juliet had been put directly in his path. From Lee asking him to watch her during the wedding, having her drunkenly demand that he take her home, walking into Hunter’s Bar last night as she tried to brain Freddy and then finding her at the beach this morning… There was no getting around it. Juliet had gotten under his skin quicker than any woman ever had and she wasn't even trying. On the contrary, she kept warning him away and kept trying to leave the island. He knew from experience that her maneuvers wouldn't work. It was obvious to him that she was meant to be here. She just had to come to terms with it. He would help her get there. They had time.
Chapter Eight
“Hey.”
The bed shifted beneath her. Juliet opened one eye and saw Dominick sitting beside her with a mug in one hand. He was dressed in his normal jeans and worn shirt. He looked great. Unfair, when she felt like crap and probably looked like it too. Juliet hugged the pillow against her chest and closed her eyes.
“I have to go to work,” he said.
Her eyes shot open and she sat up abruptly. “Oh, I’m so sorry. Let me just—”
“I have to go to work,” he repeated calmly and held out the cup of coffee. “I just wanted to let you know.”
Juliet took the mug and blinked at him blearily. “You wanted to let me know you’re going to work?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll get dressed and get out of your hair.”
Dominick shrugged. “I don’t mind if you stay. I think you’re safer here than at Maile’s.”
He didn’t mind if she stayed alone in his fabulous house? Seriously, what the hell was wrong with this guy? “Dominick, that’s really nice but—”
“My bookkeeper just had her fourth kid. If you’re interested in more business, you can look at my paperwork.”
Juliet nearly dropped the mug. “What?”
“Come. I’ll show you.”
Dominick dragged her out of bed with a hand on her wrist. He took her down the hall to a back bedroom he used as an office. There was a large desk that looked out at endless pastures with a computer, rolled up blueprints and other paperwork in neat stacks.
“Are you familiar with this program?” Dominick asked, gesturing to the screen.
Juliet nodded mutely, unable to comprehend what was happening.
“Take a look. She hasn’t touched it in a month and I had a hell of a time cutting checks yesterday.”
“Uh, I’ll look into it,” Juliet said slowly.
He cradled her hand and held it up to the light. “Take it easy on your hand today. I have Advil on the counter. Help yourself to whatever’s in the fridge.”
Juliet took a big gulp of coffee to jump start her brain. This man that she had known for four days allowed her to sleep here two nights, took care of her when she was an emotional wreck and was giving her access to his finances, which were obviously healthy if his house and Brent’s worry were any indication.
“Do you have my cell number?” he asked.
“I-I don’t think so.”
He wrote it down on a notepad and gave her a quick, sexless kiss on the mouth. “I’ll see you later.”
Juliet watched him walk out of the office and listened to him walk downstairs. She heard the roar of the truck and the garage door open and close. Juliet stood there for long minutes, wondering what the hell was going on here. Did they go into the friend zone last night? Maybe he didn’t want her anymore. Well, that’s what she wanted, right? Juliet shook her head and walked into the kitchen. She found her cell on the counter and saw that she had four missed calls from Callie, one from Chad and two from unkn
own numbers. Juliet shook out two pills, downed them with coffee and saw packets of instant oatmeal. While she warmed up oatmeal, trying not to think about all things Dominick, she called Callie’s cell.
“Hello?” a male voice answered.
Juliet froze, heart thumping like crazy. “Who is this?”
“It’s Brent Grant. Who is this?”
“It’s me, jackass,” she snapped, irritated by his imperious tone and the fact that he had nearly given her a heart attack.
A pause and then, “What do you want?”
“I want to know how she is, of course.”
“She’s doing better.”
“What does that mean?”
“A doctor came out last night, said the baby isn’t in danger. Callie’s blood pressure is dangerously high, but with bed rest, she should be fine. My wife is tending to her.”
“Any word from Freddy?”
“He paid me a visit last night.”
Her stomach knotted. “What happened?”
“I fired him and told him to wait for the divorce papers,” Brent said, ice in his voice.
“And what did he do?”
“He walked away.”
So, the coward wouldn’t stand up to Brent, but he’d slap her and Callie around. She hesitated and then asked, “What did Gray say?”
“You mean Dad?” Brent growled.
“I’m adopted, remember?” Juliet said sarcastically.
A beat of silence and then, “Dad didn’t argue with my decision to fire Freddy or get a divorce attorney.”
Juliet closed her eyes in relief. Callie would be safe at Brent’s house, even with Gray there. Maybe Gray was getting soft in his old age and didn’t care as much about his image… Or, since Scarlet and Brent were in on it, Gray wouldn’t try to stop something already in motion.
“Well, I’m glad. If she wants to call me, she can reach me on my cell,” Juliet said.
“Wait.”
“What?”
Brent cleared his throat. “Freddy’s gonna look for someone to blame. Callie’s safe here, but I didn’t think about you.”
The microwave chimed. As she pulled the bowl out she looked through several drawers until she found a spoon. “What about me?”