CHAPTER 5

DOMINIC’S POV

The little minx blinked up at me with those green doe eyes, so wide and confused that I almost forgot why I was fucking furious.

I’d been in the middle of an important meeting when my men called to inform me of her attempted escape and accident.

I can’t explain the panic that gripped me as I stormed out of my meeting. I bet she doesn’t even know she has been unconscious for three days.

Seeing her head wrapped in a bandage on the hospital bed, made my anger sizzle.

What the hell was she thinking?

Did she really think she could escape me? Especially after she hadn’t yet paid for all she did?

My fists clenched as I closed my eyes, trying to rein in my anger. One thing I prided myself with was my ability to control my emotions.

It’s what made me as formidable as I am today, but ever since I saw Mila again, that control has been tested severally.

“Ow,” she winced as she tried to sit up, and I reached out to clamp down on her narrow shoulders.

Everything about her was so small that I could snap her into two with my palm if I wanted to.

“You’re clearly still in pain, so don’t get up,” My voice came out sharp as I forced her back down on the bed.

Standing to my full height, I folded my arms across my chest, glaring down at her.

“What am I going to do with you, Tesoro?” I muttered in a sarcastically calm tone.

“You tried to escape from me while still being in debt, and you injured one of my best men. That’s grounds for severe punishment in my book.”

Her eyes widened, and she shrank back on the bed from the intensity of my gaze, but then her brows furrowed.

“Escape? Debt?” She repeated, her voice sounding confused. “What are you talking about? Who are you? And why does my head hurt so much?”

My forehead pinched as my eyes narrowed skeptically at her. “Why the fuck are you acting clueless? Is this another one of your tricks?”

“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she stammered in a meek voice. “I just want to know what I’m doing in this hospital.”

As soon as she said hospital, her eyes grew wide and she shot upright, wincing and clutching her head in pain as she did so.

“My father! My father just had an accident! I need to see him!” She exclaimed, her voice sounding urgent as she scrambled to get out of the bed.

My confusion deepened as I watched her frantic outburst. I couldn’t tell if she was being genuine or not.

But one thing I knew is she wasn’t leaving this hospital room.

When she tried to push herself off the bed, I reacted instinctively as I grabbed her wrists and pushed her back down.

Her eyes were wide with panic as I pinned her hands above her head, holding her in place. There was little space between us as I hovered over her, and her lavender scent assaulted my senses.

In this position, she looked extremely vulnerable and submissive and it stirred something dark within me.

“Drop the fucking act, Tesoro,” I hissed through gritted teeth, and I could tell she was affected by our close proximity due to the rapid heaving of her chest.

“It’s not going to work on me. I know you’re just pretending.”

“Let go of my wrists. You’re hurting me,” She whimpered as she thrashed on the bed, struggling to free her hands from my grasp.

The action made her ample chest brush against me, and my jaw tightened as I felt her nipples harden.

I leaned in closer to her, my voice dropping to a husky whisper. “Stop rubbing your tits against my chest, unless you want me to do something about it.”

The dark promise in my tone seemed to do the trick as she stopped thrashing and stayed limp on the bed.

“Please,” she began, her shoulders slumping as though accepting defeat. “let go of my wrists. They hurt.”

The crack in her voice almost made me give in, but I hardened my heart. “I’ll let you go, if you stop pretending to be clueless.”

She let out a frustrated groan and her eyes glistened with tears as he stared at me.

“I’m not pretending. I really don’t know you! I just want to see my father. He’s hurt, and he’s alone, and he needs me.”

The furrow in my brows deepened as I began to consider if she was really being sincere.

“What’s today’s date?” I asked sharply, needing to confirm if she was lying or not.

She paused and her brows knotted together before she replied. “15th of May, 2018.”

The confusion in my expression turned to one of surprise and my grip on her wrists loosened as I leaned away from her.

2018 was five years ago.

And 15th of May was about two weeks before we first met.

Could she really not remember our encounter?

Did she truly not recall what she did to me?

The sound of the door creaking open jolted me out of my thoughts and I turned to see the doctor walking in.

He was a young man, probably in his late, and his eyes darted to me and widened when he took in my completely inked skin and the cross tattoo on my face.

He gulped visibly as he averted his gaze from my tattoos and began walking towards us.

I always had that affect on people when they saw me.

Call me a sadist, but I loved the feeling of fear I seemed to ingrain in people whether I intended to or not.

He cleared his throat as he stopped a few meters across from us and I completely released Mila’s wrists as I rose to my feet.

I towered over him, but the doctor was not short by any means, I was just that tall. I shoved my hands into the pocket of my slacks, and my brow arched as I waited for him to speak.

“Well…” I demanded, the irritation in my voice seeping through as I noticed his gaze lingering a little too long on Mila.

His attention snapped towards me and his ears turned a deep shade of red as though he was caught doing something bad.

This meant he was indeed checking Mila out. The thought didn’t sit well with me, and I found my teeth subconsciously grating against each other.

What kind of doctor checks out their patient?

He cleared his throat as he finally summoned the courage to speak. “I came to check on the patient and see if she had woken up.”

“Clearly she has,” I retorted. “But she doesn’t seem to remember anything. She thinks today’s date is 15th of May, 2018. Why is that?”

The doctor’s forehead pinched as he adjusted the sthetoscope around his neck and moved closer to Mila’s side.

His hands hesitated as his gaze flickered cautiously to me, like he needed my permission to touch her.

I rolled my eyes as my voice came out flat. “Do what you need to do.”

The doctor turned around on a whim and got to work checking her vitals, and asking her a series of questions that flew over my head.

I watched intently as he continued this process for the next few minutes before he finally turned to me, his lips pressed into a firm line.

“Her vitals are stable,” he carefully explained. “But the trauma to her head from the fall caused a severe concussion. I believe she has amnesia.”

I stiffened.

“Amnesia?” I repeated in confusion, and my gaze flickered to Mila, whose expression was unreadable.

“Yes,” the doctor confirmed. “She may have lost her memories from the past few years.”

Fuck.