Control

Title: Control
Chapter Nineteen
Author: Angelsdee
Rating: NC-17
Summary: Mikaela finds out that Dom saw her humiliation at Bill’s hands. Leon comes for a visit.

She slept for another hour under his watchful eyes. When she finally started to stir, he moved anxiously to the side of the bed and waited for her eyes to open.

*Calm down, dude. You’re going to give yourself an anxiety attack.*

‘I can’t help it! I need to know she’s ok. You know it just occurred to me, you use a lot of old slang. What’s up with that?’

*I died in the mid-eighties, asshole. Figure it out.*

‘She told me that she loves me, Rob.’

*I know.*

‘I hope she remembers and it wasn’t the fever talking.’

*It wasn’t the fever. She does love you. You and I both felt it. Although…the fever might have made her drop her guard.*

‘You’re a prick.’

*Heh. I know. I was fun at a party though.*

She slowly opened her eyes and blinked to focus her vision. She moved her sight around the room like she didn’t know where she was until his face came into view.

She just looked at him for a while. Then she swallowed with some difficulty and spoke with a hoarse voice that was music to his ears. “Dominic.”

“Yeah baby.” His eyes held his concern and love for her to see. She didn’t need to read him to know what he was feeling.

“I’m sorry.”

“For what, Mick?”

“I hurt you again.” She tried to clear her throat and started to cough.

“Hold on, baby. I’ll get you some water.” He got up and went into the bathroom. He returned to her side and helped her sit up. Then he put the glass to her lips and let her drink her fill.

Her throat feeling marginally better, she continued. “I heard you yell out in pain.”

“You did, huh?” He didn’t think she could possibly be aware of that when she was in the grip of the nightmare and fever.

“I never hurt Rob like that before. I am so sorry.” Tears fell from her eyes. “You should release me, Dominic. My baggage is too heavy and I refuse to continue to cause you pain.” Her body was shaking with her heavy sobs. “I can’t do that to you. Not you. Release me.”

“Mick, I’m going to tell you something so listen up. Don’t be sorry for what happened. It’s part of the bond. You never hurt Rob like that before because you hadn’t gone through all of this yet when you were bonded to him. I’m learning how to filter out your feelings from my own too. You took me by surprise but I believe I will be able to handle anything you can throw at me. And baby, the worst pain I could ever experience is to be without you.”

He took his fingertips and wiped her tears from her cheeks. “Why not me?”

“What?”

“You said you couldn’t do that to me, like me specifically.”

“You don’t have to fish for it, Dom. I remember singing ‘Serenity’ to you. I remember telling you that I love you.”

“Did you mean it?”

“You’ve been playing with the bond enough to know that I do.”

He gave a sigh of relief and then flashed her the happiest smile she had ever seen. “Thank you, baby.” He leaned forward and softly kissed her lips.

“Don’t thank me yet. You are in for a world of pain because of me. This shit does not stop! Ever! You say you won’t leave me but do you really think you can handle this insanity forever?”

“As long as I have you…yes.”

She looked at him with skepticism in her eyes. “We’ll see. You are a stubborn man.”

“Just like my woman. Now tell me again. I want to hear 4 words come out of your mouth.”

She smiled. “Fuck off, you shit.” She got the ‘don’t even try to defy me’ look again and amended her words. “I love you, Dominic.”

“That’s my girl. Now you want to hear some good news?”

“That would be a welcome relief.”

“Mia and Brian will be here by 4 PM.”

“That is good news! How do you feel about that? I was told there was some bad blood there.”

“I’m okay with it I guess. With your help we can probably avoid any loss of actual blood.” He joked but she could feel his tension.

“You’ll do fine, baby. If you don’t behave I’ll just be forced to kick your ass.”

“Nah. You’re weak as a kitten right now. I think I can take you.”

“Doubt it but I do love to wrestle with you so you’re welcome to try. Come to mama.”

He cradled her face in his hands and brushed a kiss over her lips. She surprised him by darting her tongue out to lick his lips. Then their mouths came together in a passionate kiss. His tongue followed hers into her mouth and glided over her tongue. After a minute of dueling for the upper hand in the kiss, they pulled away to breathe.

“I should feed you.” He said breathlessly. “I have to pick them up at the airstrip and I want you back on your feet at least partially by then.”

He picked her up and carried her downstairs. She tied her robe while he traversed the stairs. “I know I’m a little weak right now but you never seem to let me walk.”

“Like I said, indulge me. Can I use the car to pick them up?” He set her down at the kitchen table and the boys rushed to her side.

She kissed each of their heads in greeting. “Hello babies! Were you boys worried about mama?”

“They were wigging out. I thought they were going to bust down the doors to get to you. You didn’t answer me about the car.”

“You didn’t need to ask. What’s mine is yours.” She stroked Zeus’ head absently while answering his question.

“So I have a Ferrari now?” He was busy making her a light breakfast while engaging her in what passed for ‘couple’ conversation.

“You have a lot more than a Ferrari. I know all about your penchant for racing, Dom. I know you had cars that would smoke a Ferrari in a race but not mine. I told you I got the best. Nothing on four wheels can beat that beast. I made sure of it. Oh and one more thing, don’t even think about it! I’m the one that isn’t destined to die in a car.”

“Baby…”

“I said NO and I meant it! Now promise me!”

He could feel her panic and knew the reason. “I promise baby.”

She found herself unprepared for her outburst. The thought of losing someone else she loved in a twisted mess of metal and glass had her in a state of fright.

He remained quiet while he served her food and gave her the time she needed to work through her panic. “Here you go, baby. Eat up so you can get your strength back. Believe me, you’re going to need it. I crave you and I can’t go too long without you.”

She blushed at his sexual innuendo. “You can’t live without me for one day? That’s pathetic. I do believe you’re whipped.”

“That’s what Rob said.” His eyes clenched shut when he realized his mistake.

“Rob? What do you mean Rob? He’s gone. He left me.”

“Shit. He isn’t gone, Mick. He’s in my head.”

“He’s…in…your…head. Why?”

He knelt in front of her and looked at her shocked eyes. “He’s in here to help me.” He pointed at his temple as he spoke. “He is helping me with the bond so I can be a perfect mate to you. He’s not staying with me either, baby. He just wants to know we’re going to be okay before he goes.”

“Oh.” She actually didn’t have anything else to say about it. She strangely felt comforted to know he was still around. A wave of guilt flowed into her from Dom and she thought it was because of Rob. “Why do you feel guilty?”

‘Shit. I can’t hide a damn thing from her.’

*You have no idea. You can’t cheat on her. You can’t lie to her. She always knows. I kept telling her that we’d make a killing in Vegas.*

He sat on his legs at her feet trying to find the words to voice his guilt and they didn’t come easily. “I’m sorry for last night. It’s all my fault and I almost lost you.”

“What are you going on about?”

“I saw…what he did…to you. I felt all of it.” Her jaw clenched and humiliation shot through her entire being with his words. “I felt him break your nose, your jaw, your collarbone and…” He stopped to take a shaking breath and tried to focus past the pain he felt about the rest.

“I saw you in that room, tied to the bed, and him…raping you.” Angry, bitter tears rolled down his face and he continued. “I saw the knife…and I know you wanted to die.”

“Ok.” She forced herself to speak through her clenched teeth. “So you saw it. Why is it your fault? Why do you feel guilty?”

“The way I treated you. Tying you to the bed…”

“Stop!” His eyes shot up to hers at her sharp tone. “You listen to me! It wasn’t your fault! Okay, I might have been in the same…position in bed as I was in the past but it wasn’t your fault. These memories have hit me a billion times since then and no outside influence brought them on.”

“But…”

“Hush.” She lifted his chin with her fingertips and looked deep into his eyes. He saw the spark in her eyes and felt them merge. His entire being was warm and he was wrapped in her love. “Do you feel that?”

“Yes. I feel you all around me.”

“That is all you need to worry about.”

His eyes were closed and he was drowning in her. “Why would I worry about this?”

She broke the connection and his eyes opened. “Like I said before, you are in for a world of pain because of your love for me and mine for you. I don’t want you to feel guilty for anything because you have already saved me in every way imaginable.”

He rose to his knees and wrapped her in a tight embrace. He cursed inwardly at the doorbell ringing and kissed her on the top of her head. “You eat. I’ll get the door.”

When he got to front door, he wiped his face and took a moment to compose himself. Then he opened it and the bottom fell out.

“Leon?”

His back was turned when the door opened and his body froze when he heard the familiar voice. He turned with a shocked expression on his face. “Dom?”

“What are you doing here?” They both asked at the same time.

Mikaela heard the exchange between the 2 men from the kitchen. ‘Oh shit!’ And she struggled to get on her weakened legs.

Dom saw his car parked in Mikaela’s driveway and came to the conclusion that Leon didn’t go by his house first but came here to see her. The green-eyed monster reared his head and he responded in kind. “You’re here to see Mikaela? Why?”

Then he heard a strained voice answer from behind him. “Because I asked him to.”

When they both looked at her, she was holding herself up with every ounce of physical strength she could muster. She was leaning against the wall just inside of the room and then her legs buckled and she fell to the floor.

Both men reacted simultaneously and ran to her side. Dom gathered her close to him and reacted violently to Leon’s proximity to his mate. “Get the fuck away from her! If you touch her…”

“Dom!” He looked down at her but his eyes kept darting back to Leon. “Dom. Calm down. Please.”

His chest was heaving and his eyes were hard but he slowly brought himself under control. “Okay baby. Okay.”

“Will you get me off the floor?”

He lifted her up and moved towards the sofa. He placed her down gently and arranged her robe to cover her body as best as it could. Leon stood there with his jaw dropped. He closed his mouth when Mikaela addressed him.

“Leon, will you join us?” His eyes met Dom’s and he got the distinct impression that it wasn’t a good idea. “Leon, he won’t bite. I promise. Come here and sit down.” He went and sat on the far side of the sectional. “So. How are things?”

“Um. They’re getting there. We found a place in a small town just north of here.” He glanced at Dom for his reaction to the news that Letty decided to stay with him but all he saw was his friend’s concern for the woman next to him. ‘What happened here?’

“That’s good. I’m glad you ended up nearby. Is she getting better? From her injuries, I mean.”

Again he looked at Dom and this time he was looking at him but he had his arm wrapped snugly around her shoulders pulling her body up against his. “Yeah. Letty’s healed up pretty good in the past couple of days. She should be up to speed in a few more.”

He remembered how strong Mikaela looked when he first saw her the other night and now she couldn’t even stand. “Are you ok? Did you get into an accident or something?”

She smiled softly and it melted Leon’s concern. “No. I just got sick last night. Fever. It left me pretty drained. I’ll be fine in a few hours or so. As a matter of fact, it would probably help if I got in a workout.”

“Baby, don’t be ridiculous. You can’t even stand.”

She placed a hand on his cheek and he leaned into it. “Dominic, don’t mother me. I know my own body and it needs blood flow…and a Gatorade. I need to get my strength back.”

He placed a kiss on her palm and leaned his cheek back into her caress. “Why can’t you just let me take care of you until it comes back on its own?”

“I’m not built that way, love. I have to be in shape. Ready. I don’t want to be weak. So, if you would please grab me a couple of Gatorades from the fridge I will be eternally in your debt. I’m going to drag this tired body down the hall, change, and stretch. Then you both can join me in a few minutes when I’m decent.”

“Okay baby but take it slow.” He leaned in and kissed her then got up and went to the kitchen.

Leon was left speechless by the loving exchange between the 2 of them. Mikaela caught his expression and smiled. “I guess you can tell some things have happened while you were gone. All will be revealed later. I’ll see you in a few minutes.”

She forced herself to her feet and moved slowly to the hall. “Do you need help?” Leon asked as she walked on shaky legs.

“No thanks. I need to do this on my own. Boys!” He saw 3 pit bulls follow her down the hall.

Dom returned to the living room with 3 bottles of Gatorade for her and he looked at one of his best friends fidgeting on the couch. “You want something to drink?”

“No man. I’m good.”

The silence was uncomfortable so Dom decided to end it. “We’ll give her a couple of minutes to put some clothes on and then we can head in. When she’s on her game, she’s fucking amazing to watch.”

“I bet. So, are you two…together now?”

“Yeah. I know it’s sudden but we got together not long after you guys left.”

Leon felt a stab of guilt and had to get it out of his system. “Hey man, I’m sorry for splitting like that but I had some shit to work out and I couldn’t handle it here.”

“Leon, if there is anything that I learned from her in the past couple of days it’s that you have to deal with your pain anyway you can. I’m not angry. Don’t sweat it.”

“What about…Letty?” He tensed waiting for the axe to fall.

“You tell me. Are you together?”

“I want to be but she’s…she wants to take things slow.”

“That’s good, man. I hope things go good for you.”

He heard the sincerity in Dom’s words and a weight lifted. “You do? You’re not fucking pissed?”

“No. I’m not pissed. She and I weren’t right for each other. I never treated her the way she needed to be treated. She deserves to be happy. So do you.” He got up and motioned for Leon to do the same.

Leon walked over to Dom’s side and gave him a hug. “Thanks man. She must be a hell of a woman to tame the big dog.”

“She is. I love her, Leon. I feel like I’d die if anything ever happened to her or if I lost her. She’s special but there is this thing about her. One minute she’s all mine and the next she pulls away. It fucking hurts.”

“Damn Dom. I’ve never seen you like this before. I felt something about her when I met her. She’s got this way of making you feel like everything is going to be ok. I understand what you mean about special.” They started down the hall and Leon kept talking. “Shit. I thought you were going to kill me a little while ago when she fell.”

They stopped at the door to the dojo and as Dom reached out to open it, he turned to Leon and said, “If you touched her I would have. Come on.” Then he walked in with a wide-eyed Leon behind him.