The Daring Billionaire’s Wife by Lypstical

Dominic

I'm only on my second glass of whiskey, unlike Frank, who's on his fourth to celebrate this victory with me. I should be just as enthusiastic as he is, but I can't bring myself to do it.

"Dude, you don't have to worry about Shane anymore," he chuckles. "Isn't this what you wanted?"

I lean back in my seat, blankly staring at my glass. "It's definitely what I wanted but that's what bothers me because of what is to come."

"You mean letting Vanessa decide if she wants to be with Patrick or not? Wait, are you scared?" He mocks me as he rests his elbows on the table. "Piss off."

He chuckles. "Okay...okay... damn. I won't laugh anymore. He clears his throat and turns serious. Talk to me."

"Patrick seemed so confident that Vanessa's still in love with him since they share a long history together."

"Do you think that's true when you look at her?"

"Honestly, I don't know what to think. There are times when I've made myself believe she feels something for me but I soon dismiss that possibility."

Raising his eyebrows, he says, "Imagine this - she stands between the two of you and then boom! She actually wants to be in a relationship with Patrick!"

I clench my jaw, trying so hard not to smack him across the face. "You really don't make this easier."

"And why should I? You know, I still can't believe you like Vanessa."

My lips naturally curve into a smile but it soon fades. "Not a word about this to Mia. I know she's part of us now, but when it comes to certain things, you better keep your mouth shut. Some secrets are just for the two of us." "Trust me on this one. My lips are sealed."

I empty my glass all at once, then rise to my feet.

"Wait, where are you going?" he asks.

"I need to talk to Vanessa. She's over at her dad's house. I don't think I can wait until later for this shit with Patrick. I want it out of the way as soon as possible so I can be at peace and know how she truly feels about it."

He sighs. "I guess you can't wait to get your heart broken."

"Shut up."

Getting in my car, I tighten the grip on my steering wheel, determined to speak to her in person before she can make her decision. Though she mentioned in the past that her feelings for Patrick changed, that doesn't make me less nervous as I fear it's not entirely true. I drive to my father-in-law's house and there she is, sitting right beside him.

She smiles with worry as he coughs and I just want to ease their pain, which is why I'll make sure that this treatment is a success. Even though I want to take her up to her bedroom so we can speak in private immediately, I have to wait for the right moment. The moment finally presents itself and I hold her hand and take her up to the bedroom, locking the door as soon as we're inside.

I turn around to face her and she's already crossed her arms and tilted her head while standing on the other side of the room.

"I've been dying of curiosity about how it went with Patrick," she says. "It didn't help that you told me nothing when we spoke on the phone."

"First of all..." I trail off as I get closer. "Shane is no longer a pain in the ass because Patrick offered to help me with that."

"What? How come?"

As I explain to her the relationship between Patrick and Shane, her eyes grow wider.

"That's crazy," she says quietly.ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

"Patrick actually had some very interesting dirt on him and his business, which I didn't even know about. With my influence, it could get rid of whatever little dignity he has. That was enough to make him stay away." "This really means you don't have to pay him anymore?"

"Exactly."

She smiles with relief but it soon fades. "Wait, there's no way Patrick did this without asking for something in return."

"Of course not. He has a condition. He wants you two to be together."

"Huh?"

"Yeah, the same way I was with Carmella. I tried to make that decision on your behalf but he said it has to be you. He wants to know how you feel and that's why he wants to meet again. Next time, you're coming with me." She goes silent with a blank expression and I can't tell if this is good news to her or not, but I don't want to find out.

Instead, I hold onto her shoulders and say, "Hey, whatever it is you're thinking, don't do it."

The silence between us makes me listen to the sound of my heart pounding so hard. I fear that if this doesn't go the way I want, I'm actually going to lose her right when I've just started realizing my feelings for her.

"You don't have to go there if you don't want to," I repeat myself, hoping that she'll listen to me. "No. I'll do it."

Her response actually shatters my heart a little and I loosen the grip I have on her shoulders.

A sigh of defeat escapes my lips as I look to the side. "The final decision is yours to make."

Now more than ever, I fear that I'll lose her to Patrick, which makes me regret that I confessed to him how I feel about her. No matter what happens, I can only hope that he keeps his mouth shut about it.

-

After this, if I end up seeing Patrick face-to-face again, I might end up openly showing my irritation for everyone to see because this is already the second time in a few hours that I'm seeing him today.

As soon as we get to the park where Patrick wants us to meet, I step out of the car first, walk over to the other side and open the door for Vanessa, holding out my hand for her. She looks at me with a half smile of gratitude and the pain in my heart won't go away as I'm getting closer to finding out what's actually going on in her head.

She places her hand in mine and I hold it tightly as I don't want to let go.

"I really hope doing this doesn't put any stress on you," I say to her, glancing at her stomach.

"No. It doesn't," she assures me. "I just want to get this out of the way. It's important that I do this for me."

"Then let's go."

$

As Patrick approaches us from a distance, I tighten my grip on Vanessa's hand even more, not wanting to let go.

"Good afternoon, Vanessa. It's been

a while." His voice is as soft as the expression in his eyes as he looks at her, but it soon fades when he looks right at our hands and shakes his head. "There's no need to pretend because no one's watching

"What the hell?" she says quietly, making me chuckle.

"Don't act so offended." He smirks. "You're only Mr and Mrs Richards when it matters."

"Can you please stop with that?" she says to him as she rolls her eyes.

"Fine." He sighs in defeat. "I can't believe you actually came here."

"It's because I really wanted to do this."

He chuckles, bringing his hands together with hope. "I'm not ashamed to ask for this since I know the truth. Just seeing you here already fills my heart with joy."

"Patrick, you were my highschool sweetheart. I never loved anyone the way that I loved you."

Hearing those words from Vanessa already breaks my heart and it only gets worse when she pulls away from my hand and approaches Patrick but stops right in the middle, with only her back facing me. Patrick's face brightens up as he steps forward and says, "I know I messed up when I hurt you, but I've realized I still love you and-"

"Hold it right there because I'm not finished," she firmly cuts him off. "The way I felt about you before isn't the way I feel now."

His smile fades in disbelief but he soon composes himself as he tries to hide how hurtful her words are.

"Come on." He forces a chuckle. "There's no need to pretend. No one is watching. It's just the three of us, so you can be completely honest."

"And I'm being honest with you. I really loved you but that was in the past."

He forces a chuckle again and even from where I stand, I can see the side of his mouth twitch.

"Look," she says to him, keeping her head high. "On the day you confessed your feelings and kissed me, I meant what I said to you. I don't feel anything for you. Everything's different and I'm married now."

He firmly shakes his head in denial, his eyes turning a little red. "Everything's different and you're married now? That's the last thing I expected to hear from you. Wait, are you in love with Dominic?"

Patrick's question instantly makes me hold my breath as I look at Vanessa, wondering what she's about to say in response.