OWNED by Dominic (Possessed #1) (20 page)

“You son of a bitch!” She went to run at him but Dom caught her around the waist before she could get more than a foot away.

“Not yet, Princess,” he uttered into her ear.

Hearing sirens in the distance, Bradshaw and his bodyguards looked startled and slightly worried, so he asked, “You got permits for those weapons?”

“You’re gonna be someone’s prison bitch, Englishman!” Case sang.

Fucking meds.

“So crass. We’ll be leaving now,” Bradshaw announced.

“Good idea,” Dom told him.

“I’ll be in touch about just what you owe me, Deidre. This is far from over,” was his parting shot. They loaded up and left before the county sheriff could get there and question them or arrest them on whatever Dom could have thought up to make stick.

“Oh, shit,” they heard Casey mumble as he fell over right after the SUV took off. “That hurt,” he grumbled from the ground.

Fucking meds.

Nineteen

Her heart was
still racing out of control three hours after Bradshaw left, and an hour after the sheriff had gone. She was confused and angry all at once, wanting to be done with everything and move on. But it felt like things were going to get worse before finally getting better.

They’d gotten Casey settled in the guest room for the night, not long after everything calmed down. Dom was currently tending to the animals, and she sat on the living room sofa obsessing over what Bradshaw could possibly think she owed him. It was driving her nuts.

Intent on talking to her mam, she had to know if she was safe and if she knew what was going on here. Did something happen to her? Was she even alive? The questions were burning a hole in her gut the size of Texas. For every answer about something she seemed to figure out, she had fifteen more questions.

“Arrr!” she yelled into the empty room. “Where are you Mam?”

It seemed as if her question echoed around the room for the same amount of time it bounced around in her head. She had to know everything, yet she was terrified to hear the answers.

Deciding to give her brain a break from the constant back and forth, she went out to the barn in the hopes that Dom hadn’t tended to the horses yet. She adored Honey and Goldie. They were the sweetest creatures she’d ever encountered.

Raine still scared the crap out of her, but that had more to do with his size than his personality. He had a really sweet disposition when it came to her and Jaxson. Dom seemed amazed every time she was near the black beast. He would watch them with such a ferocious intensity that she often thought she was doing something wrong, but he always had this light in his eyes. Satisfaction, contentment. That she could make such a brutal and fearless man feel those things left her experiencing the same amazement.

Never did she think she would be able to say Bradshaw had brought something good into her life, but where Dominic was concerned, he’d done her a huge favor. She wasn’t naïve enough to believe that what they felt for one another was an ordinary occurrence to the rest of the world.

What they had was special. A once in a lifetime love that would leave such a deep searing mark on their souls that nothing and no one could ever replace. She only hoped that whatever Bradshaw had in store for them didn’t ruin everything they’d been working so hard towards.

*****

He was still
reeling from everything that had taken place over the past few days. Case being shot. Dee running away. Then Bradshaw showing up unexpectedly. So much new information was being tossed at them, and he hated not being sure what was going to happen next. For a man of his caliber, it was a hard pill to swallow. He needed to be in control, to know how everything was going to work out.

Working in the barn, caring for the animals helped ease his need to take action. If it weren’t for the fact that he would be leaving Dee completely vulnerable, he’d go find Bradshaw and end it all. But with Case out of action for a while, his options were limited, and they were all playing a waiting game.

Making that deal all those years ago, he would never have imagined the kind of chaos that was playing out in their lives now. He didn’t regret for anything trading Deidre’s life for Bradshaw’s, but he should have known even then that the situation would get complicated. He took for granted the amount of resources he had compared to Bradshaw.

Raine had been entirely too restless since he’d come to the barn. Finishing up with brushing Honey, he moved towards the giant of a horse, grabbing an apple from the bin on his way between stalls.

“Hey, big guy,” he murmured, offering the apple for him to chomp on. Dom often had to treat Raine like he would child, soothing his fits so he didn’t act out. But he figured the horse knew something was in the air. That change was coming.

“You wanna go for a ride?” he asked, grabbing the halter from the hook beside his stall. “We have to make it quick and stay in the yard, though,” Dom explained as he prepared him.

A few minutes later, he had the creature settled and ready to run. Hopping on his back, Dom sat tall running his hands through the horse’s mane. Bending forward, he told him, “Let’s go,” and they shot out of the barn like a rocket.

Raine was a smart horse. Had been since Dom found him abused and neglected after an assignment just before Jaxson had been dropped on his doorstep over three years ago. He’d found him in Alberta, Canada after being sent to find a group of missing teenagers. They’d been fine, went to some weekend-long concert instead of camping like they’d told their parents. He’d been pissed as hell at the spoiled ungrateful kids at first. As he was lacing into them about respect and honesty and lecturing them for some unfounded reason, he’d spotted Raine in the distance.

As far away from the animal as he’d been, Dom could see he was severely undernourished. His hips lacked such a severe amount of muscle that he could see the bones. His ribs were showing, and he his tail and mane hair were slowly thinning out.

From the minute he saw the horse, he’d felt a kindred spirit in the animal; the first time he’d connected to someone since leaving Deedee. The pull to Raine had been immediate. Helping the animal hadn’t been a question; how to do it became a huge one.

He’d had Goldie for years by that time and already knew how to handle a horse. But his experience was nothing when it came to abused animals. So he’d done what any determined person would do. He set up camp so he didn’t lose the animal and stayed out there for nearly three weeks before the horse would come close enough to accept the smallest amount of food from him.

Raine left the first night but had come back the following day. His curiosity obviously needing to know what Dom was about. After that, Raine watched him from a distance.

He met with the local RCMP detachment when he’d come looking for the kids and remained in contact with them again about the horse, and together they found out Raine was abused and threatened to be taken from a local farmer. Instead of surrendering the animal, the man had set him free to fend for himself.

As far as authorities were concerned, Dominic could take the horse back to Maryland so long as he cared for him and got him healthy, then found a veterinarian that would approve the animal was able to travel to another country safely. So he’d spent the following three months gaining Raine’s trust and getting him fit enough to bring home.

It wasn’t until shortly after Brooke had dropped Jaxson in his lap that Raine had even allowed Dom to ride him. For the first time in he couldn’t even remember how long, he’d been watching the horse in the paddock on a sunny day just playing. It seemed weird to think of a horse in those terms, but he had been playful. He used to kick beach balls around the paddock, buck around for no reason. And it suddenly hit him that day that he was doing it for Jaxson.

Jax had been only a couple weeks old and wasn’t quite laughing yet, but somehow watching Raine run around the paddocks always calmed his son like nothing else could. On that day, Dom had been at his most vulnerable—worried that he couldn’t give Jaxson the life he deserved. He knew nothing about babies, let alone how to be a single dad. He remembered crying that day from just the thought of failing such a tiny person. He’d only spent a short time raising him so far, and already he felt like he’d somehow failed him.

As he’d bent over the fence to hide his tears from God and everyone, Raine galloped over to him, nudging his shoulder relentlessly until he’d looked up into his big brown eyes. Eyes that somehow held everything in them that he, himself, had been feeling.

Lost.

Alone.

Scared.

Raine knew.

And together they’d found a neutral peace. From that day forward, he’d found out how freeing it was to ride, to feel the wind in his face. The strength of the beast between his legs as he ran so fast it often felt like they were flying through the fields.

On that day, the day he felt like he’d been falling apart, they’d found an unbreakable bond.

*****

Deidre watched with
a mix of fascination and arousal as Dominic rode Raine around the yard. Controlled him with such accuracy that he didn’t even need to give the animal instruction before he anticipated what Dom would command next. They were one as they rode together. She’d never seen a more magnificent sight in her life.

Stepping through the back door, she quietly sat down on the porch steps, not wanting to disturb the moment in front of her. For the first time since meeting Dom, she saw an emotion in his eyes she’d never seen before.

Absolute freedom.

Something to be treasured. To be envied.

Raine’s muscles flexed and tensed with every silent command from Dom. His eyes were alight with pleasure from the attention and care of his master. She’d never given thought to how an animal would feel about not seeing their owners for days or weeks at a time. She’d never had an animal, so it was shocking to see the bond they obviously shared.

It was a connection nearly identical to what a parent and child could share as well. Something so special many would probably take advantage of. But with Dom, he seemed to know just how fragile that relationship could be. From what she could tell, every time he was gone for an extended time, he always came home to show affection to not just his son—though he was of course first—but immediately after that, he took care to pay extra attention to his animals.

If she were any other woman, she might jealous of the bond he shared with so many. Only, she respected it because she knew from experience how damaging losing it could be. Shaking the thought off before it could even begin, she just observed as man and beast connected—waiting for the moment Dom would feel her eyes on him because he would. He seemed to be hyperaware of her presence when he wasn’t enjoying this animalistic freedom that he probably needed to have more often.

As man and beast made another circle around the yard, Raine spotted her and immediately began to rush her. At first, she froze in fear. He was huge and still terrified her. But common sense told her she was safe with the animal whether she was alone with him or not. She knew he held no threat to her.

The second Dom spotted her, though, he jumped off Raine and came towards her, pulling her into his arms before saying anything.

Heaven.

Whenever she was in his strong arms, she knew nothing could harm her. He was her safety net in their crazy world. As he held her tightly, all her fears came to the forefront of her mind. She’d refused to think about them before but with him, she knew he’d hold her through the worst of storms. In her gut, she knew something huge was brewing.

“Do you think she’s dead, Dominic?” That was her worst fear. Her mam had left so many unanswered questions with her letter that she truly hoped she was safe somewhere, hiding.

“I hope not,” he murmured into her hair.

“What do you think Bradshaw wants with me? What could he possibly think I owe him?” Panic was starting to lace her words.

“Calm down, Princess. We’ll get it all figured out, and no matter what, I won’t let anything happen to you.”

The determined look in his gaze told her he meant what he said, but what if something happened to him while he was trying to protect her? She wasn’t sure if she could handle that.

“Don’t even go there,” he growled like he knew what she was thinking.

“Go where?”

“Wherever that look in your eyes was about to take you.”

“I’m just worried about you. You keep promising to protect me, but damnit, Dominic, who’s going to protect you?”

When he would have started to answer, she cut him off before he could say anything. “Don’t you dare tell me you can take care of yourself. Don’t be some macho man. You can’t take the world on by yourself.”

“Smart ass,” he mumbled just before laying his lips over hers. He whispered, “Let me worry about it,” before he took her in a searing kiss of passion and need. She felt it all the way to her toes.

The way he took control of her mouth and body always left her breathless. He could send her flying with a single touch. But before he could truly make her rocket away from all her worries, he pulled away telling her, “Let me get Raine settled in for the night.”

They walked hand in hand to the barn, grabbing the horse’s lead as they passed where he was waiting for Dom’s next command.

“You two are amazing together,” she told him. “He would follow you to the ends of the earth if you let him.” Dom smiled at her observation and she felt like she’d somehow impressed him or found his acceptance.

“He’s smart as hell, can be more bullheaded than Case when he wants to be, but he’s one of the best horses I’ve ever owned.” Rubbing Raine’s neck in affection, he whispered to her, “Just don’t tell the girls that,” as they entered the barn.

*****

She still managed
to blow him away, daily. Deidre’s intuitive nature let her know more about the people around her than she even realized. The fact she could sum up his bond with Raine in so few words told of her natural ability to connect to the world around her with little effort on her part.