Las Vegas Sidewinders: Dominic (2 page)

“You need to just walk
away,” the man said. “This is between my wife and me.”

“She needs medical attention,”
Dom said, taking a step closer.

“She needs her ass beat so
she learns to listen when her husband tells her not to leave the house!”

Dom had to force himself not
to react to such an idiotic comment. “She’s not a child or a dog,” he heard
himself saying. “And whatever it is she did, it’s still
illegal
to hit
her.”

“Do you understand who I
am?” The man pulled his jacket aside and revealed a holster with a gun.

“I’ve got 911 dialed into
the phone,” Cody said. “And I’ve been recording this whole conversation. You
need to find somewhere to cool down.”

The men stared each other
down, the policeman looking from Dom to Cody and then back again. “You messed
with the wrong cop,” he spat. “And you’re going to be sorrier than she is.”

“I think you misunderstood
the part where I don’t give a fuck
who
you are,” Dom said in a voice
that would have scared any other man. “Now step away from the lady and get out
of here.”

“If this shows up on the
internet,” the man to his wife, “you’ll regret ever meeting me!”

“I already do,” she
whispered before doubling over in pain.

“Bitch!” He went to kick her
again but Dom moved so fast the man never had a chance. Grabbing the man by the
scruff of the neck, he growled, “You don’t know how lucky you are. On any other
day, I’d break you in half. Today, however, I have a boss to impress and can’t
afford to go to jail. Now get out of here!” He shoved the other man, hard, in
the opposite direction. The two men stared each other down for a moment before
the policeman turned and jogged away.

“What can we do for you,
miss? You need to go to a hospital and—” Dom knelt before the crying woman.

“No!” Though one eye was now
swollen shut, the other one, which was bright green, widened in horror. “He
knows everyone at the hospitals. He’ll find a way to make it look like this was
my fault!  Please, just leave. I can find a way home later, after he cools
down.”

“You’re bleeding, one eye is
swollen shut and you might have some broken ribs.” Dom spoke gently. “We play
for the new NHL team that’s coming to Las Vegas—we’re not going to hurt you. We
can help.”

For a moment their gaze
locked, her one good thick-lashed green eye and his dark brown ones, and Dom
felt something deep in his gut. There was something about her that made his
whole body yearn to hold her tightly and make all her pain go away.

Finally, she spoke in a tiny
voice. “There's no one who can help me—he’ll hurt anyone who tries. It’s better
for you to just let me be. He has a lot of friends on the force—helping me will
bring nothing but trouble to your life.”

For the first time in weeks,
Dominic laughed. “Sweetheart, that tiny little man has no idea what trouble is
if he thinks I’m going to leave you here or let a cop torment his wife.” He
reached out his hand. “Come with Cody and me—I’m Dominic, by the way.”

“Molly,” she said
automatically. When someone introduced themselves to you, you told them your
name too, even though it seemed kind of ridiculous under the current
circumstances.

“Let us help you.”

“It won’t matter,” she said
after a long moment. “He’ll find me, and I have nowhere to go. I can’t go to my
friends because he’ll cause trouble for them, and the longer I stay gone, the
more he’ll beat me when I get back.”

“So don’t go back,” Dom said
simply.

“I have nowhere else to go.
No money, no savings, no family. I’m all alone.”

Dom and Cody looked at each
other. There was no way they could leave her here, but where could they take
her? Finally, Dom reached out both his hands.

“Come with me. I just moved
here—literally today—and I have a big apartment all to myself. You can lock
yourself in my guest room and never see anyone. He’ll never be able to find
you, and in the meantime, we can figure out a way to help you.”

Cody was gaping at him and
Molly just stared at him with her one beautiful green eye. “Why would you do
that for me?” she asked at last. “You don’t even know me.”

He sighed and looked away.
For a long time, there was silence. Then he said, “Because once upon a time I
knew someone who needed to be saved, and I couldn’t save him. I’m not letting
it happen again.”

While Cody ran to get his
SUV, Dom sat beside Molly and gently asked her questions about where she could
go or if she needed medical attention. She said very little, grimacing from the
pain in her abdomen where Tim had hit her. He’d been hitting her for so long,
she couldn’t even remember a time when there was no pain. Usually there was a
big blowup about once every month or so, but today had been bad. There was a
chance she was pregnant, and Tim had forbidden her to leave the house because
she’d had so many miscarriages. He insisted that if she stayed home she might
actually carry this child to term, but they'd needed groceries. He expected
dinner on the table when he got home, no matter what, so she’d gone to the store.
Apparently he’d put a tracking app on her phone and he could see where she was,
so he'd found her at the bakery up the street, dragged her out and pulled her
into this parking garage where he threatened to kill her, like he always did.
Except this time, she was done; this time, she was tired of him hurting her.

Then along came two knights
in shining armor, with their broad shoulders and bulging biceps, saving her
from Tim and, if she was honest, from herself. She wasn’t listening to what Dom
was saying anymore; his voice was so soothing, she found herself just resting
up against the wall, half falling asleep. He had the most beautiful voice, deep
and slightly gravelly, like a television announcer, but sexier.

“Come on,” Dom was gently
reaching for her. “We’re going to put you in the car and drive you over to my
place. He won’t be able to see you in the back seat, and he won’t know where
you went.”

“He has a tracker in my
phone,” she whispered.

“Give it to me.” Dom held
out his hand and she pulled it out of her pocket, handing it to him. It
occurred to her that this was probably the stupidest thing she’d ever done, but
honestly, what could they possibly do to her that hadn’t already been done?
She’d almost been ready to die half an hour ago—surely these guys couldn’t beat
her worse than Tim did, and God knew getting attacked by someone as gorgeous as
Dom or his blond friend had to be better than any sex she’d ever had with her
husband. Though she felt a tiny prickle of fear, she was already resigned to whatever
happened.

She watched him take a small
chip out of her phone and put it in his pocket before handing the phone back to
her.

“The tracker won’t work
now,” he said with a smile. “And Cody will toss it out the window on his way
home.”

“Okay.” She let him lift her
into the back seat of a massive SUV and she melted into the soft leather as he
shut the door.

“Do you know what you’re
doing?” Cody asked Dom.

“What choice do I have?”

Cody shook his head. “You
can’t afford to get into more trouble, Dom.”

“How can I get into trouble
by helping someone? Don’t worry about me. I got this.”

“
That’s
what I’m
worried about!”

Molly normally would have
been awed by the big, beautiful condo with the fabulous windows, sleek décor
and gourmet kitchen. But right now she just wanted to curl up somewhere and
succumb to the sleep she so desperately needed. Tim kept her up half the night
wanting sex, food, or to beat her. She rarely slept through the night because
she was so accustomed to being awakened, but right now she couldn’t think about
anything else.

She couldn’t hear what Cody
and Dom were saying, but Cody gave her a short nod before leaving. 

Dom approached her slowly.
“Look, I just moved in, hours ago, so I don’t know where anything is. There’s a
bathroom in there, by the guest room. I can give you one of my t-shirts and
some shorts to sleep in. They’ll be a little big, but they’re clean.”

“That’s okay. I just want to
sleep.”

“Good. I won’t bother you.
I’ll be in my room, and then I’ll be out early in the morning. I have an 8:30
meeting with my new boss.”

“Thank you,” she said after
a moment. She limped into the guest room, closing and locking the door behind
her. She took a deep breath. No matter what happened, she reminded herself, it
had to be better than life with Tim. Besides, Dom was gorgeous and looked to be
in his twenties. She was almost forty, overweight and a complete mess. It’s not
like he would be interested in her. She just wanted to be left alone.

Her door was still closed in
the morning when Dom arose, and he didn’t disturb her. He left a note to tell
her there were muffins on the counter and some coffee she could warm up in the
microwave, and scrawled his cell phone number at the bottom in case she needed
anything. Hopefully he would be home by early afternoon and they could talk. He
had no idea what he was going to do with her, but he knew he had to get her
away from her husband.

Cody was waiting downstairs.
“Morning. Ready to face the music?”

Dom rolled his eyes. “Not
really, but let’s get this over with.”

“So what happened with
Molly?”

Dom shrugged. “She locked
herself in the guest room and I haven’t seen her since. Sounded like she was
still asleep, but I didn’t bother her.”

“She’s not a stray puppy,
Dom. I mean, you can’t just
keep
her.”

“I know that!” Dom scowled.
“But seriously, should we have just left her there to cops who probably weren’t
going to help her, and a man who’s obviously been abusing her a long time?”

“No, but you’re setting
yourself up for a world of trouble if he figures out where she is and tries to
get to her.”

“Look, I’m going to talk to
her and see what she wants to do. If she really wants to go back, I have to let
her. I just want to give her the chance to escape. If she chooses not to take
my help, well, at least I tried.”

“Most abused women go back.
Suze and I looked up some information last night. There are shelters and
programs, but without a family, and him being a local cop, I don’t think those
would work for her.”

“Me either. But right now
I’ve got to get my head in the game and think about what I’m going to say to
Coach.”

Coach’s new office was a far
cry from the one he’d had as a college coach. This one was upscale and
beautiful: professionally decorated with plush leather furniture and
expensive-looking artwork. The colors were warm and inviting, and Dom had a
feeling Andra had something to do with that—she’d always insisted that their
places be made to feel inviting, even their tiny dorm rooms. It felt like such
a long time since he’d seen Andra, and he'd missed her. His own mother had died
when he was a teenager, and had been an alcoholic for years before that, so
Andra had given him his only real experience of having a mother.

“Dominic!” Brad Barnett came
into the room, grinning broadly. The two men embraced with genuine affection.
“You look good, son! I’m glad you’re here.”

“I’m glad too, Coach.” Dom
forced a smile.

“Don’t bullshit me,” Brad
laughed, sinking into the chair behind his big desk. “You hate being here and
you think Vegas is a dumbass place to have a hockey team.”

“It is—but that doesn’t mean
I’m not grateful to have a chance to play for you again.”

“There is that, I suppose.”
Brad looked at his protégé and couldn’t help but shake his head. The kid was so
damn good. An offensive defenseman who could play forward or defense, he could
also fight, rack up the penalty minutes, score goals and, when he wasn’t in an
anger-infused haze, had the potential to be a great team captain. But Dom had
never recovered from his best friend’s murder—Brian had been Brad’s son—and
nothing any of them had done could get Dom to comprehend that it wasn’t his
fault. Brad probably should have had this talk with Dom a few years ago, but
he’d been busy with his own career and his own grief.

“Coach, why did you bring me
here?” Dom never beat around the bush. “We had a close relationship in college,
but I’ve totally dropped the ball since Brian died. Why am I here? If this is
pity—”

“It’s
not
pity.” Brad
made sure the younger man was looking at him. “It’s a favor, it’s almost
nepotism, but it’s not
pity
. Listen to me. As a man, as a human being,
as a father, I owe you everything for what you tried to do for Brian the night
he died. You had his back—even though he died anyway, you were there. As his
father, I can’t ever thank you enough for jumping in while knowing you could
have been killed too. You stepped in front of those thugs and protected him—”

“I didn’t protect him!” Dom
felt his heart thudding in his chest as he pictured his friend’s body lying in
that alley. “He
died
!
”

“That’s not your fault! He
was dead before you got there, son! You couldn’t save him, but you didn’t know
that and you put yourself in the line of fire in case he was still alive.
Nothing I'll ever do can repay you for that—and besides all that, you were my
shining star! Better than the rest of the team put together, better than my own
son—God, you are one of the finest hockey players to ever come into the NHL.
You could be another Gretzky if you didn’t keep playing dirty. You’re the only
one who doesn’t believe it. That’s why you’re here—because I believe you’re
better than what people see. I know the real Dominic Gianni, and I’ll be damned
if I'll let you continue down the path you’re on.

“You’re on my team, but this
isn’t college anymore. I won’t coddle you; I expect you to do everything the
NHL has mandated in your probation, and I expect you to fucking score goals and
legally
knock the living shit out of every team we play. Do you
understand me?”

“Yes, sir.”

“I also expect you to go out
of your way to coddle my wife.” His arched an eyebrow. “Technically, I can’t
enforce this rule, but I’m asking you as someone who thinks of you as a son, to
spend some time with her. Brian was our only son, and when we lost him we lost
all of you. You and Cody went off to the NHL, Sergei went back to Russia, and
even Suze dropped out of sight, as though sleeping with Cody the night of
Brian’s funeral was going to make us hate her.”

“That’s what she thinks.”

“I know that, but she won’t
take any of the olive branches Andra’s offered. I know it’s a burden for a
single guy like you, but she needs something to do, and I’ve moved her so many
times the last few years, she’s all alone.”

“It’s never been a burden to
spend time with Andra,” Dom muttered, trying to figure out why he was choked
up. “I just feel like I let her down. Brian…” His voice trailed off. “I know
she expected me to save him.”

“Andra and I had the police
reports and medical reports independently examined. Brian’s heart was still
beating, but he was brain-dead before you got there. The men who jumped him are
still in jail, and Andra plans to be at every one of their probation hearings.
Trust me—she doesn’t blame you. The only one who blames you is
you
.
”

“Okay.” Dom cleared his
throat, trying to regain his composure. “So now what?”

“You have anger management
classes twice a week for ten weeks, as well as the shrink they want you to see.
Cody said he lined up a special trainer for you guys to work out with five days
a week, and I expect you to help me prepare for when the rest of the team
arrives. Cody’s the unofficial captain right now, because it’s a new team and
we’re going to need leadership over the summer while guys get settled, and
you’re going to be part of that process. We'll probably have a couple of
rookies, so they’re not going to have any experience with you, none of them
have a personal beef with you, and you’re going to make it clear to them that
you've got their backs.”

“Got it.”

“All right. We’re done.”
Brad paused. “Dinner tonight?”

“Sure.”

“Dinner’s at 7, but come
early.”

“Okay.”

“See you tonight.” Brad
turned, put on his reading glasses and picked up a stack of papers. Dom figured
that was his cue and slipped out.

Cody was in the hall texting
someone, a faint smile on his face.

“You look like you’re
texting your girlfriend,” said Dom.

Cody jumped, his eyes
narrowing slightly. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Just what I said. You had a
kind of wistful look on your face, and that used to mean a girl.”

“I’m married, so there are
no girls.” Cody stuck the phone back in his pocket.

“Dude, I saw you at the
hotel in Boston with that redhead a few years back. I know there are
girls
,
even if they’re one-night-stands.”

Cody clenched his jaw.
“Look, we’ve been friends a long time, but you need to butt out of this.”

“Suze deserves better.”

“Suze doesn’t sleep in my
bed!” Cody spat back before he could stop himself.

“Because you cheated? Or do
you cheat now because she stopped sleeping with you?”

“I don’t know,” Cody admitted.
“All I know is she won’t sleep with me. I mean, we tried for a while, but Brian
was somehow always between us. Then one night I lost my temper and accused her
of still pining for him, and she told me I was right. Then she moved into the
guest room. These days, she’s back in our room and we share a bed because CJ is
old enough to notice, but we live separate lives.”

“Do you still love her?”

Cody's eyes met Dom’s sadly.

“You always loved her,” Dom
said, “from the first time you saw her, but she never had eyes for anyone but
Brian. Sergei and I figured out how you felt, but I don’t think Brian ever
did.”

“Yeah, I’ve always loved
her. But she doesn’t love me, and she knows there have been other women, so now
she never will. I’m not going anywhere because—well, you know why.”

“Yeah.” Dom shook his head.
“And everyone thinks
I’m
the hot mess?”

Dom didn’t see Molly when he
got home that afternoon from car shopping; the guest room door was still
closed, but the food was gone and the cups and plates washed, so he knew she’d
been out. He left her another note, telling her to order some Chinese food or
pizza for dinner because he had somewhere to go, and left a credit card next to
it. That was probably the dumbest thing he’d ever done, but he just couldn’t picture
the timid, frightened woman going online and charging thousands of dollars of
clothes or jewelry on his credit card. Something inside him told him he could
trust her, even though he had nothing to base it on.

He dressed in pressed slacks
and a button-down shirt, picked up a bottle of wine he’d bought earlier, and
went downstairs to wait for Cody. Waiting for someone to drive him places was
getting old fast, and he needed to buy a car sooner rather than later. Maybe
tonight he could coax Molly out of her room, show her the brochures he’d picked
up for the cars he’d seen today and get her opinion. A woman’s opinion was
always good, even if he already had a good idea what he wanted. It would also
be a safe topic to get them talking, because at some point they were going to
have to.

He was happy to see Suze in
the car when Cody pulled up. She jumped out and hugged him tightly.
“
It
’
s
so
good to see you,
”
she exclaimed.

“You too, gorgeous.” He
shook his head. “Damn if you don’t look good enough to eat.”

“You’re still a pig,
Gianni!” she teased.

“Hey! That’s my wife!” Cody
yelled.

Dom and Suze had always had
a playfully flirtatious relationship, and they fell back into the routine now
as though no time had passed. Suze did look good, though. Her naturally blond hair
was still long and straight, but she’d curled it a little tonight and it fell
almost to her waist in soft, sexy waves. Her bright blue eyes had long lashes,
and her lips were full and pink. In a slinky turquoise halter dress and
matching low-heeled sandals, there was no sign that she’d ever had a baby.
Everything about her was almost the same, and he felt a wave of nostalgia as
they headed towards the interstate.