Crushed Affections (Dominic and Bella) novel Chapter 414

Diane shook her head and clarified, "They're not planning a wedding. It's going to be something simple due to time restraints. Leo... Are you really okay?"

Leonard forced a smile. "What could possibly be wrong? You're worrying too much."

Daniel and Diane exchanged a look but didn't press the issue any further.

After dinner, Leonard drove away from Sawyer Manor, his mind replaying the conversation from the table. Lia was getting married—to his cousin, no less, yet he only found out through the grapevine. Lia hadn't even mentioned it to him directly.

He had assumed that they were at least friends, but now it seemed they weren't even that. He felt restless and unsettled, unable to calm his mind.

Before he knew it, his car pulled into Lia's neighborhood. The unpleasant way they had parted last time had killed any courage he might have had to approach her.

Suddenly, Dominic's car stopped right before him. Leonard instinctively honked to say hello, and Dominic got out and waved. "Come up for a bit. I need to talk to you about something."

Leonard got out and followed him. "Are we going to Bella's place? Won't we be disturbing her?"

Dominic pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and handed one to Leonard. "Nah, we won't. I already pissed her off this morning. If you show up, she won't have the nerve to argue with me. I'm too lazy to fight with her. Let's finish our smokes first."

Leonard couldn't help but laugh. "You're too lazy to argue with her? It's more like you're scared. You used to think you had her wrapped around your finger, but now it's the opposite."

Dominic exhaled a puff of smoke, looking toward Bella's floor. "You shouldn't talk, considering how much of a mess you made of things. If you'd been through a few more relationships, you wouldn't have flunked out before you even started. You ended it before it even got started—how embarrassing for you."