His Merciless Redemption novel Chapter 148

Chapter 148

Dominic’s POV

I held Isa tightly, listening to the rhythm of her breathing, trying to memorize it like a man about to go to

war.

Because that’s what this felt like.

War.

Not with the Vitellis. Not with Alessia. But with myself.

There was no version of this where everyone won. And I was so damn tired of choosing which fire to stand in.

But even though our bodies were touching, I could feel the distance in her. And I hated it.

I pulled back a little so I could look at her.

“You’re not leaving,” I said quietly.

She looked at me. “I didn’t say I was going to pack today.”

“You were going to.”

Silence. She looked away first.

“I can’t let you,” I continued.

“You don’t get to decide that.”

“I do,” I said evenly. “When it’s about safety.”

Her jaw tightened at my words. “Don’t use that.”

“I’m not using anything. I’m stating a fact. And where would you even go? Your old apartment? It is not secure. Not like this place is.”

“The Vitellis haven’t made a move in weeks.”

“And that means what?” I snapped. “That they’ve stopped thinking?”

Her eyes flashed. “They’re targeting shipments. Not me.”

“That’s because you’re inside these walls.”

The silence stretched tight between us.

“I will not compromise Mateo’s safety,” I said more quietly now. “Not for this.”

Her shoulders softened slightly at his name. “I know,” she murmured.

“I can’t let you take him somewhere exposed.”

“And what? I’m just supposed to stay here while you-” She stopped herself.

While you go build something with her, I finished in my head what she couldn’t say out loud.

“That’s why I’m leaving.” I said.

Her head snapped towards me. “What?”

“I’ll move.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

She stepped away from me, shaking her head. “This is your house.”

“And you are my family.”

Her breath caught slightly.

“I created this problem,” I continued. “You didn’t. I did.”

“That doesn’t mean you exile yourself,” she said, frowning.

“It means I fix it.”

She shook her head. “I’m the one who can’t watch.”

“And I’m the one who won’t risk you walking into a trap.”

Her lips parted, ready to argue again.

“Think about Mateo,” I said softly.

That stopped her. Completely.

“He is the safest here.”

Her eyes flickered with conflict. Because she knew I was right. And I could see how much she hated it. But I couldn’t let my problems create situations that compromised their safety.

“I’ll take Alessia and her parents to the penthouse,” I continued. “Full security. Guards. Controlled access.”

“And you?” she asked quietly.

“I’ll stay there,” I admitted, but the words felt like swallowing glass. I watched silently as her face changed. This wasn’t what she expected.

“You don’t have to-”

“I do.”

“Dominic-”

“I will not watch you walk out of this house with our son because of something I did.”

She went quiet. And I saw it then. She was calculating. Not emotionally. Logically,

Safety. Stability. Mateo.

After a long moment, she nodded once.

“Okay.”

It shouldn’t have hurt. But it did. Because this meant it was real. This wasn’t a dramatic threat. This was separation.

“I’ll come back as much as I can,” I said quickly. “For Mateo. For you.”

She looked at me. “But I will just be the mother of your child when you do. Nothing more. Until this thing with Alessia is done, that’s all I’ll be,” she said, and I could see how much the words hurt her.

Even though I didn’t want to agree to any of it, I nodded anyway. I understood what she meant when she said she couldn’t stay and watch. It wouldn’t be fair to her. And I didn’t want to hurt her any more than I already had.

But God, I was going to miss her like crazy.

“Before we do this,” I said.

She watched me carefully.

“Can I just….” I swallowed. “Hold you?”

Her eyes softened slightly.

She stepped forward wordlessly, and I wrapped my arms around her.

God. She fit. She always fit. Her face pressed against my chest. My hand slid into her hair instinctively.

For a few seconds, neither of us moved. I could feel her breathing, feel the slight tremor she was trying to control.

“I hate this,” she whispered.

“I know.”

“I don’t want to share you.”

“You’re not leaving,” he said sharply.

“I can’t stay.”

“I won’t let you.”

A bitter laugh escaped me. “You can hurt my heart but you won’t let me go?”

His jaw clenched. “I can’t lose you.”

“You already are,” I whispered.

That hit him. I saw it land when his face crumpled.

“I don’t know what to do,” he admitted, voice breaking for the first time. “I’m trying to save everyone and I feel like I’m drowning.”

My anger softened at that. He looked lost. Truly lost. Not manipulative. Not strategic. Just torn.

He stepped forward again. “I can’t lose you,” he repeated quietly. “Not when we were finally getting back.”

I closed my eyes. Because that hurt me too. We had been. We had been healing.

And now this.

I stepped forward this time, and wrapped my arms around him. He held me like a man clinging to something solid in a storm.

“We’ll figure it out,” I whispered.

But I didn’t know how.

“I don’t want you to leave,” he murmured against my hair.

“I can’t stay and watch,” I said gently.

He didn’t argue this time. Didn’t say anything. He just held me tighter.

And I realized something with painful clarity-Love was not the problem. Timing was not the problem. Even guilt was not the problem.

The problem was that every choice he made to save someone else seemed to cut me in the process.

And I didn’t know how long I could survive that.

“I’m trusting you,” I said softly as I pulled back. “There are lines you don’t cross with her.”

His eyes locked with mine. “I won’t.”

Honestly? I believed him. Somehow, there was no doubt in my mind that he would ever cheat on me. Still, I was practically handing him over to Alessia for God knew how long.

“If you do,” I whispered, “don’t come back to me.”

His face crumpled slightly at that. “I won’t,” he repeated.

I gave a slow nod.

God, this was such a fucked up situation. I couldn’t say no because I understood his intentions. But I couldn’t. stay and watch either.

I didn’t know how much longer I could keep doing this before I gave up completely. I hoped it wouldn’t come to that.

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Chapter 148

Dominic’s POV

I held Isa tightly, listening to the rhythm of her breathing, trying to memorize it like a man about to go to

war.

Because that’s what this felt like.

War.

Not with the Vitellis. Not with Alessia. But with myself.

There was no version of this where everyone won. And I was so damn tired of choosing which fire to stand in.

But even though our bodies were touching, I could feel the distance in her. And I hated it.

I pulled back a little so I could look at her.

“You’re not leaving,” I said quietly.

She looked at me. “I didn’t say I was going to pack today.”

“You were going to.”

Silence. She looked away first.

“I can’t let you,” I continued.

“You don’t get to decide that.”

“I do,” I said evenly. “When it’s about safety.”

Her jaw tightened at my words. “Don’t use that.”

“I’m not using anything. I’m stating a fact. And where would you even go? Your old apartment? It is not secure. Not like this place is.”

“The Vitellis haven’t made a move in weeks.”

“And that means what?” I snapped. “That they’ve stopped thinking?”

Her eyes flashed. “They’re targeting shipments. Not me.”

“That’s because you’re inside these walls.”

The silence stretched tight between us.

“I will not compromise Mateo’s safety,” I said more quietly now. “Not for this.”

4

Her shoulders softened slightly at his name. “I know,” she murmured.

“I can’t let you take him somewhere exposed.”

“And what? I’m just supposed to stay here while you-” She stopped herself.

While you go build something with her, I finished in my head what she couldn’t say out loud.

“That’s why I’m leaving,” I said.

Her head snapped towards me. “What?”

“I’ll move.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

She stepped away from me, shaking her head. “This is your house.”

“And you are my family.”

Her breath caught slightly.

“I created this problem,” I continued. “You didn’t. I did.”

“That doesn’t mean you exile yourself,” she said, frowning.

“It means I fix it.”

She shook her head. “I’m the one who can’t watch.”

“And I’m the one who won’t risk you walking into a trap.”

Her lips parted, ready to argue again.

“Think about Mateo,” I said softly.

That stopped her. Completely.

“He is the safest here.”

Her eyes

flickered with conflict. Because she knew I was right. And I could see how much she hated it. But I couldn’t let my problems create situations that compromised their safety.

“I’ll take Alessia and her parents to the penthouse,” I continued. “Full security. Guards. Controlled access.”

“And you?” she asked quietly.

“I’ll stay there,” I admitted, but the words felt like swallowing glass. I watched silently as her face changed. This wasn’t what she expected.

“You don’t have to-”

“I do.”

“Dominic-”

“I will not watch you walk out of this house with our son because of something I did.”

She went quiet. And I saw it then. She was calculating. Not emotionally. Logically.

Safety, Stability. Mateo.

After a long moment, she nodded once.

“Okay.”

It shouldn’t have hurt. But it did. Because this meant it was real. This wasn’t a dramatic threat. This was separation.

“I’ll come back as much as I can,” I said quickly. “For Mateo. For you.”

She looked at me. “But I will just be the mother of your child when you do. Nothing more. Until this thing with Alessia is done, that’s all I’ll be,” she said, and I could see how much the words hurt her.

Even though I didn’t want to agree to any of it, I nodded anyway. I understood what she meant when she said she couldn’t stay and watch. It wouldn’t be fair to her. And I didn’t want to hurt her any more than I already had.

But God, I was going to miss her like crazy.

“Before we do this,” I said.

She watched me carefully.

“Can I just….” I swallowed. “Hold you?”

Her eyes softened slightly.

She stepped forward wordlessly, and I wrapped my arms around her.

God. She fit. She always fit. Her face pressed against my chest. My hand slid into her hair instinctively.

For a few seconds, neither of us moved. I could feel her breathing, feel the slight tremor she was trying to control.

“I hate this,” she whispered.

“I know.”

“I don’t want to share you.”

“You’re not.”

“But it feels like I am.”

That cut deep. “I am yours,” I said quietly.

She pulled back just enough to look at me. “Are you?”

The vulnerability in her voice nearly broke me. I leaned down before I could think and kissed her.

It wasn’t soft at first.

It was desperate. Like sealing something.

Her hands gripped my shirt. And she kissed me back pouring all the restraint, all the anger, all the love into that one kiss.

My hands tightened at her waist. She arched into me. And for a second, everything else disappeared. No penthouse. No Alessia. No guilt. Just us. The way we used to be before everything fractured.

I walked her backward without breaking the kiss. She didn’t stop me, her fingers sliding into my hair.

There was something dangerous in this kiss. Not lust. Not exactly. It was need. The kind that comes when you don’t know when you’ll have this again.

Her lips trembled slightly against mine.

“Dominic,” she whispered.

I paused, forehead against hers, breath heavy.

“If you cross a line,” she said softly, “don’t come back.”

The warning wasn’t jealous. It was steady. Strong.

“I won’t,” I said.

And I meant it. Because there was no world where I risked losing her for real.

I kissed her again, slower this time, deeper, memorizing her. Her scent. Her warmth. The way her hands felt

my

hair. Like something sacred. Like something I had almost lost once before.

in

“This isn’t goodbye,” I said against her lips.

“It feels like one.”

“It’s not.”

“I don’t want it to be,” she whispered, and suddenly, the kiss wasn’t enough.

I needed to feel her, all of her against me.

This wasn’t goodbye. It wasn’t.

But I didn’t know who I was trying to convince, her or myself.

田

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