I glanced at my phone one last time before stepping out of the house. 8:30 p.m. sharp. Dominic’s message was short, simple, but it sent a thrill of anticipation through me.
“Meet me at 8:30. I’ll be waiting.”
I barely registered the chill in the evening air as I made my way to the restaurant. It was a place I’d never have dared to enter on my own, not without Nathan by my side, not without his wealth and connections. But tonight was different. I was different.
The restaurant was like a palace—gleaming marble floors, sparkling chandeliers, and hushed whispers from the few patrons who had the privilege to dine there. I felt out of place in the beginning, but as soon as I saw Dominic waiting by the bar, his broad shoulders squared, a slight smile playing at his lips, something inside me loosened.
“Alina,” he said, standing as I approached, his eyes warm, a little too intense. “You look... stunning.”
I forced a smile, though my heart was beating so hard I thought he might hear it. “Thank you. You clean up well yourself,” I said, glancing at the immaculate suit he wore.
He chuckled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. They were on me, studying me like he was memorizing every detail. The heat in his gaze made my skin tingle, but I didn’t shy away.
We were shown to a private booth, the kind that made you feel like royalty. As we sat, I couldn’t help but notice the way his hand brushed mine as he reached for his glass. I ignored the flutter in my chest and focused on the conversation.
“I know this isn’t easy for you,” Dominic said after a few moments of small talk. “But I want you to know that I’m here for you. You don’t have to go through this alone.”
His words cut through the haze of my thoughts. It was hard to think clearly when every inch of me was torn between what I thought I should do and what I wanted to do. What was this? A date? A rebound? Or something more?
“I didn’t realize how badly I needed this,” I admitted, my voice quieter than I intended. “Just... to feel like myself again.”
Dominic’s gaze softened, and for the first time, I saw the sincerity in his eyes. “You deserve to feel that way. You deserve better than the way you’ve been treated.”
I wasn’t sure if it was the wine, or the fact that Dominic was looking at me like I was the only person in the room, but the walls I’d spent so long building up began to crumble. The hurt, the betrayal, the loss—it was all still there, buried under the surface, but I wasn’t drowning in it tonight. Not with him.
We talked more, about everything and nothing. The hours slipped by unnoticed. Dominic made me laugh in a way I hadn’t laughed in years, and I couldn’t help but wonder how things might have turned out if I’d met him under different circumstances. If Nathan had never come into the picture. If I hadn’t wasted so many years trying to fix a broken marriage.
The evening was coming to an end, but neither of us wanted it to. Dominic’s eyes darkened as the conversation shifted, his voice lowering to something almost intimate.
“I’ve waited for you to realize your worth, Alina,” he said, his voice a soft murmur across the table. “You’re not meant to live in the shadow of someone else’s life.”
My pulse quickened, but I held his gaze. I was tired of pretending that I was fine, that I could keep up the charade of a happy wife. “And what if I’m done living in that shadow?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
His lips curled into a smile, but it wasn’t one of amusement. It was a promise. “Then I’ll be here, waiting for you.”
The night air was cool against my skin as Dominic's car pulled up to my house. The evening had been a reprieve—a momentary escape from the suffocating reality that waited behind my front door. I could feel the weight of the night settling into my bones, a mixture of exhilaration and apprehension.
"Thank you," I said, my voice softer than I intended. "For everything."
Dominic's eyes met mine, a look of understanding passing between us. "Take care of yourself, Alina," he said quietly. "You deserve that much."
I stepped out of the car, watching as he waited until I reached my doorstep. The porch light cast a harsh glow, and for a moment, I hesitated. Something felt wrong.
The door swung open before I could insert my key.
Nathan stood there, his face a mask of controlled fury. Behind him, Margaret hovered like a vulture, her eyes gleaming with a mix of anticipation and malice.
"Come inside," Nathan said. It wasn't a request. The sight of her there, in my home, flaunting what she'd taken from me, made bile rise in my throat. She shouldn't be here—this was my space, my sanctuary, even if Nathan had already tainted it. Margaret stood beside Clara, the two of them forming a united front against me. I could see the triumph in Clara's eyes, the way she positioned herself closer to Nathan, marking her territory. The whole scene felt like a carefully orchestrated ambush.
"Don't just stand there," Clara said, one hand on her swollen belly. "We've been waiting for you."
"Aww how considerate," I replied, my voice dripping with ice.
My heart raced. Something was very wrong.
The living room felt smaller than I remembered, charged with an electricity that made my skin prickle. Nathan held a photograph. It was a photo of me and Dominic, our faces close, my hand resting on his arm as we left the restaurant. The caption below it was clear: “Alina Averisky, moving on?”
"Care to explain?" Nathan's voice was dangerously calm.
