Chapter Thirty-Two
Candice
It was so good to be back with Dominic again. I still had no idea what had really happened. One minute I was sitting at home, the next I was traveling with my mother to get him. My mother had a strange look on her face the whole time, as if she knew something I didn’t. She seemed to want to prove something to me too. I think she still felt bad about everything that had happened. I was just relieved that for the first time she was listening to me and doing the right thing and not just the thing that my father wanted her to do. I was proud of her. The moment we left the police station, we headed off to Dominic’s father’s house. We questioned him, but he said he didn’t want us to go to back to the college dorm yet. He said he wanted things to cool down and for Lionel to come forward and have his say. College was starting up again on Monday, and he wanted us to lay low until then. I didn’t mind. I didn’t actually care where we were as long as we were with each other.
Thankfully, Dominic’s father had turned Dominic’s room into a guest bedroom and had shifted all his things into the garage. The garage was separate from the house and offered us the opportunity to spend some time with each other without his father constantly around. I liked Dominic’s father a lot, but I was still feeling a little awkward about everything that had happened. I didn’t want him to blame me for getting Dominic in so much trouble. Even though it hadn't been my fault, it was still obvious that without me, none of this would’ve happened. And none of us knew what all of this still meant for Dominic’s future of football. It was something that we hadn’t bought up yet, but I was sure it lingered in his mind as much as it did in mine.
When we got back, we spent some time just holding each other and kissing. Then, Dominic said that he was going to go back into the house to take a shower.
“I desperately need to rub the smell of jail off me,” he said. “Will you be okay here?” he asked.
I nodded. “I’m good. Actually, I’m going to phone Lily if that’s okay. She’s back now, and I know she’s dying to find out what is happening.”
“Of course. I’ll bring us something to eat when I finish in the shower.”
“Thank you,” I said and smiled at him.
Lily picked up after the first ring, almost like she had been sitting by her phone just waiting for me to call her.
“Oh, thank goodness you called. I’ve been dying to know what is going on. Are you okay? Tell me everything! Hang on, I’m going to call you back. It’s too expensive for you to call here.”
I smiled as she cut the call. She could get into trouble with her father for the phone call but she was putting me first. Lily had I had gotten close when Dominic and I had broken up. I couldn’t wait for him to get to know him properly when we were back at school. As soon as she called back, I launched into the whole tale, telling her everything that had happened and being sure not to leave out a thing.
“So you’re at his dad’s house now?” she asked.
“Yeah, I’m sitting in his room. Well, the garage really. He’s inside taking a shower. I just had to let you know what was happening. Crazy, huh?”
“So crazy. What does this all mean though? What does your father say? Is he going to let the two of you stay together?”
I sighed. “Who knows? But whether he lets me or not it doesn’t change a thing. I’m old enough to decide who I want to be with, and I have no doubt in my mind that I want to be with Dominic. This has only just confirmed it for me.”
“Good. I think Dominic sounds perfect for you. Don’t let anyone get in your way.”
“I’m so glad I’m going to be seeing you next week. I think I’m going to need the support. There is no way that all of this is going to be kept quiet. I wouldn’t be surprised if everyone knows about it by the time we get back. Poor Dominic; they’re all going to be talking about the fact that he went to jail because of me.”
“You’ll be fine. I’m sure you’re used to scandals anyway. Isn’t that what politicians are known for?” she asked.
I laughed. “Yeah, but I’m not usually the one involved in the scandals.”
“That’s true. Don’t worry, people love rumors and scandals, but they just as easily forget about them.”
We talked a little bit more, and then when Dominic walked in carrying a tray of food, I told her I had to go. I ended the call and put the phone away, making sure that it was not on silent in case my mother called.
“You didn’t have to stop the call,” he said. He looked so handsome when he walked in, his messy dark hair washed and shiny.
“Nah, I would rather talk to you.”
He smiled and put down a tray of sandwiches, snacks, and drinks.
“This is amazing,” I said. “Thank you. I’m starving.”
“Yeah, so am I. This was all I could find to make in the fridge. I thought of ordering pizza, but I couldn’t wait that long. But maybe we can get pizza tonight.”
“That sound great. Thanks, Dominic. How was your shower?”
“Amazing. I’m so glad to be out of that place. And knowing that you were waiting for me in my room helped a lot. I’m glad that my father put all my stuff in the garage. At least we have some privacy now.”
We sat for a while, just eating and talking. I could tell that Dominic was worried, despite the relief of being out. Every now and again he just went completely quiet, like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. My heart went out to him. I didn’t know what to do. We were both obviously worried about my father, and what he was going to do. It didn’t sit well with us that he hadn’t contacted us yet. I think we both just wanted to know what was going to happen. It was hard to prepare yourself when you didn’t know what you were preparing yourself for. I hoped my mother would at least call me to let me know what was going on. I wondered if she was sitting at home now, arguing with him. There was only so much that she could do. There was even a chance that her standing up to him had made things worse in the long run. I was just about to say something to Dominic when his phone rang, and we both jumped up in surprise. He looked at it and sighed.
“It’s Axel. Ah, man, I really don’t feel like talking right now.”
“Want me to get it?”
“Okay, thanks,” he said and handed me the phone.
I told Axel that Dominic was in the shower, but that everything was fine. I assured him that we were both just exhausted and promised him that Dominic would call once things had settled down a bit more. Afterwards, I cut the call and handed the phone back to Dominic.
“Thank you,” he said. “I’m sorry, I just don’t feel like talking to anyone.”
“You’re worried, huh? About my father? So am I,” I admitted. “But we have each other, and that’s the main thing. We’re a strong force together, Dominic. We can’t let him win.”
He nodded and sighed. “I know, and I agree. I know I wasn’t in jail for a long time, but I did get a lot of time to myself to just think about everything. I promised myself that I would do anything to get you back and not to let anything stand in my way. But, now that I’m out, I’m starting to wonder if I’m doing the right thing.”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I just . . . I’m just so sorry. I’m wondering now if I’m just being selfish by being with you.”
“Selfish? Why would being with me make you selfish? It’s what we both want. Isn’t it?” I asked.
“Of course. It’s definitely what I want. But, we have so many odds against us. This is the second time that we’ve been pushed away from each other like this. And, Candice, I’m tearing your family apart. Things were fine with you and your father before I came along. I just don’t want to be the cause of all your unhappiness. I just love you too much. Too damn much! I hate the idea that I have caused such a rift in your family. Before I was here, you were living a good and happy life. Now you’re bailing me out of jail and fighting with your father. How can I do that to you? If I love you as much as I know I do, I shouldn’t let you go through all that. I should walk away and let you live your life.”
I shook my head. I had not gone through all of this just be alone all over again. No! I was going to fight for him.
“You’re wrong, Dominic. You’re so wrong. You are the only one that makes me happy. There’s no way I want you out of my life. Not after everything we’ve been through together.”
“But I can’t do this to you, Candy. I can’t. It’s not fair to you, and I don’t want to be the cause of your unhappiness. I need to do the right thing.”
“You are the only thing that makes me happy. If you want to do the right thing then you will stay with me and help me through this time. Don’t you dare leave me, Dominic Aarons. Not again. Not when I found you again after all this time. I can’t lose you again. A little time in jail is not going to change anything for me. In fact, I’m so proud of us for sticking up for each other and for going against my father. We can’t let him win. I know you think that things were fine before you got here, but that’s not true at all. I only got along with my father because I listened to what he had to say, regardless of whether I agreed with it or not. But that’s not how I want to live my life. I want to be with you and nothing or nobody is going to stop that from happening.”
“I love you, Candy.”
“Silly man. I love you, too. Now, I have a very important question for you,” I said.
“You do?”
“Yeah . . . does that garage door lock?”
He grinned at me. “Why yes, yes it does. Why do you ask?”
I laughed. “Because I’ve been away from you for too long and I’m going to go crazy if I don’t kiss you. Go and close the garage door.”
He got up and closed the door, and the two of us fell together on the bed. He kissed me and smiled. “Is kissing all you want to do?” he asked.
“There’s no way I’m stopping at kissing. I might have a lot of restraint in life, but when it comes to you, I have absolutely no control.”
“That’s exactly what I was hoping you’d say,” he said. “And you’re right; we have some serious making up to do.”
Dominic slowly took off my clothes and then pushed me down onto the bed. He got up, took off his own clothes, and lay on top of me. He kissed me gently on the mouth and smiled at me.
“I’ve missed you so much, Candy.”
“Don’t you dare give up on me,” I said.
He shook his head. “I won’t.”