Tim ignored me for the most part until I flat out said, "Why did you allow Roxy to follow Dominique home?"
"What are you talking about?" he asked.
"Roxy found Dominique's home last night. She obviously followed her home. I was there when she showed up. She followed my scent and realized I was on the roof. She waited a long time for me to come down but finally gave up. I can't protect Dominique during the day, but I already know you have slept with her, so it's obvious you can be there during the day."
"She doesn't want me, Nathaniel, and it's messed up that you are stalking her."
"Why do you say she doesn't want you? She slept with you, didn't she?"
Tim gripped the bar and almost broke it. I watched as he unfurled his hands and had to make his claws go back in. He looked at me, and I could tell he was furious and hurt.
"She regrets sleeping with me. I thought she was aware of what was happening, but she wasn't. She was too out of it from being drunk to realize what was happening was actually happening. Finally, she woke up and thought it was all a dream. Are you happy now? Does my pain make you happy?" Tim threw out his words at me.
"I'm not happy that you are hurt, Tim, but I am happy that she regrets her decision. It means I still have a chance. However, I still want to know why you didn't make sure Dominique wasn't followed from here last night. You said you would protect her. I wasn't here because I was angry, but you were here."
"I wasn't here last night. I had to call out. Jacob decided that I was going to be punished because I didn't stop you from injuring Roxy. He showed up with Roxy in tow and was waiting for me when I got home yesterday morning. She jumped on my back, and he beat me senseless. I had to heal before I could come in here. You can see that I haven't completely healed."
"I can see that, but you need to keep her away from Dominique, or there will be a problem."
"Roxy isn't going to go against Jacob. There was some reason why she was there, and I'm pretty sure it has to do with the fact that she has been seen with you. Roxy will be punished if not killed if she does anything against Dominique. Jacob wants her for some reason."
"Then we need to find out what that reason is," I said as I stood up and walked away.
I left for the night. I couldn't go back over to where Dominique was. Even if she did regret sleeping with Tim, she had officially let him back in. I could see the indecision in her eyes when she talked about him. She wanted me, yes, but she clearly still had feelings for him, too.
*****
I awoke and instantly felt Dominique's distress, so I headed straight to the club. I went straight to the bar. She had tried calling me earlier, and she never called me. She hadn't left a voicemail. That couldn't have been a good sign.
"Tim, what's going on? Where is Dominique? She's hurting. I can feel it."
"Not now. We'll talk later when everyone is gone. Dominique is in her office. She's fine for now."
"What do you mean for now?" I asked.
Tim sighed. I could see Tim's indecision on his face. He didn't want me near Dominique, but something was happening. He obviously didn't want anything to look out of place, so he was at the bar.
"Go check on her. I can't right now. She will tell you if she wants you to know what's happening."
I walked into Dominique's office and saw a desk and chair, but Dominique wasn't there. A couch was off to the side and a door near the back. I closed the door to her office and locked it. I didn't want anyone else coming in. I needed to know what was going on with Dominique. I walked over to the door in the back and listened. I heard Dominique crying. I knocked on the door, but she didn't answer. I tried to open the door, but it was locked.
"Dominique, it's Nathaniel. Please open the door. I saw where you tried to call me earlier. I'm sorry I didn't answer. I can hear you crying. Please let me in," I said softly.
"Please, go away. I don't want to talk to anyone. If you had been there for me earlier, you would know what's wrong. I just want to be left alone."
"Dominique, please. I know I was not there for you when you needed me. I can only ask for your forgiveness. But, I would like to be here for you now. Please open the door," I said, desperation evident in my voice.
When she didn't answer, I said, "I'm going to stand here until you open the door."
After a few minutes, I finally heard the door unlock. Dominique was standing there with bloodshot eyes. I wanted to hold her, but she jerked away. I moved back from the door. She went out around me and sat down in her chair. She wouldn't even look at me.
"The first person I think of to call when something goes wrong is you. And you are never there for me when I really need you. If we are friends, then why is that so?" Dominique asked.
I felt guilt go through me as I said, "I can not be around all of the time, Dominique. I do my best, but it seems as though that is not good enough for you."
"No, it isn't good enough. Your work is more important than anything else. You absolutely refuse even to take a day off. You say you're jealous of Tim, but Tim is the one who has been there for me lately. I was in danger today. He dropped everything and came running even though I hurt him really badly. He keeps telling me he loves me, and I keep blowing him off. But today? Today, he came for me. He thought that crazy bitch had killed me!" Dominique yelled.
"What happened today, Dominique?" I asked, feeling my rage taking over.
"That crazy woman that came in the other night came to my house and attacked me. She broke into my house by beating my door down, literally. I tried to call you. But like always, you didn't answer. But Tim answered. He remembered I had my dad's gun and told me to grab it. That crazy bitch rushed me, and I shot her twice. I honestly don't know if she's alive or not," Dominique said, looking at her hands as they started shaking.
I tried to hug her, but she stiffened. I sighed and hugged her anyway. If she only knew why I couldn't be there for her today. If she only knew that I had been with her every night and had protected her last night even though she hadn't known she was in danger. How could I make her see that?
"Dominique, did you call the police?"
"No. Tim told me not to. I'm a criminal, and I covered it up. What if she died?"
"Don't think about that now, Dominique. You did what you had to do. Tim had a reason for having you not call the police. I understand it. I agree with it. All will be explained to you eventually."
I held her tight and felt her begin to cry again. She finally relaxed into my arms and let me hold her. I picked her up and carried her over to the couch. I sat down and held her against me, stroking her hair. She laid her head on my shoulder, and after a few minutes, she passed out in my arms.
I kept stroking her hair as I thought about what I would do to that bitch when I got a hold of her. Why was she after Dominique? As far as I knew, Dominique had done nothing to the woman. Of course, I wanted to protect her at all costs, but how could I do that without her knowing who I truly was? I couldn't tell her just yet. That would push her away as she didn't love me yet. That had been the problem in the past when I tried this. I hadn't given the women enough time to come to love me and want to live forever with me.
I moved and laid back on the couch. I moved Dominique, so she lay between my legs and leaned against my chest. If Tim hadn't come back into the picture, I wouldn't have this problem right now. I had been Dominique's friend, and I knew she was coming around. I know she felt that pull to me that I felt to her. The one I had felt for years. She was my soulmate. I always felt it when the soul was born.
We were destined to be together, but every time I had tried, the women had run. I just couldn't give them an everyday life. I just had not given her enough time to come to love me and want to be with me. Things with Dominique felt different. Had she gone through enough in her life to finally move on and give up everyday life for me? She'd had a lot of tragedy already. I had to stop thinking and just enjoy being here with Dominique in my arms.