Chapter 45
Samantha’s POV
The knock at the door came just as I finished tucking Diana into bed for her afternoon nap. My heart immediately sank to my stomach. I knew it was him. Dominic.
I hesitated, my hand hovering over the doorknob as I tried to calm myself. Last night, I hated that he stayed with Olivia, that he was with her, it reminded me of the past, that I had been working so hard to forget, but every time I saw them together, it all came rushing back. I did not know what happened to them that night, nor did I want to know what they did. That should be none of my business already, but it never left my mind since this morning. Dominic had been relentless in pursuing me, wanting me back in his life, but I could not shake the fact that Olivia was still hanging around him, and I did not want that because it made me question his loyalty. I could not fully trust him.
I opened the door, and there he was, standing tall, broad, and imposing with his hands shoved deep into his pockets, as though he was restraining himself from reaching out. The sunlight caught in his dark hair, and for a brief moment, I was reminded of the man I had once fallen in love with, the man who had been both my greatest joy and my deepest pain.
He was not wearing the intimidating mask of an Alpha this time, though. Instead, he looked... tired, regretful even.
“Samantha,” he uttered, like a whisper that only we could hear.
“Dominic,” I replied, gripping the edge of the door tighter than I needed to. “What do you want?”
He let out a slow breath, his gaze flicking to the side before coming back to me. “Can we talk? Just us.”
I did not want to let him in. Every instinct screamed at me to protect myself, to protect the fragile peace I had built in the years since I had left him. But there was something in his eyes, a vulnerability I was not used to seeing. Against my better judgment, I stepped aside.
“Make it quick,” I said, closing the door behind him as he entered.