Chapter 13 - THE WOMAN WHO WOULD NOT BE HIS POSSESSION
Dominic asked me to move in with him on a rainy Thursday evening.
I was sitting at his kitchen counter eating leftover pasta when he said it.
"Lily."
I looked up.
"Yes?"
"Would you consider living here?"
I nearly dropped my fork.
"What?"
He looked nervous.
An actual nervous Dominic Vale was something I'd learned to appreciate.
"I thought we could spend more time together."
I set down my fork.
"Dominic, that's a big decision."
"I know."
"And your apartment is enormous."
He smiled.
"That's not necessarily a problem."
I looked toward the windows.
Then asked, "What happens to my job?"
His expression changed.
"Whatever you want."
"And Ben?"
"He'll always be welcome."
"And if we disagree?"
Dominic smiled faintly.
"Then I imagine you'll tell me."
I laughed.
But then I grew serious.
"I don't want to become another person who lives inside your world without having one of her own."
He reached for my hand.
"I don't want that either."
I studied him.
For a long moment, we sat quietly.
Then I said, "I'd like us to have a future. But I want to finish the nursing program I've been looking into first."
Dominic's eyes widened.
"Nursing?"
I nodded.
"I never stopped thinking about it after Mom died."
He smiled.
"That makes sense."
"I've saved some money. There are financial aid options, and I can keep working part-time."
Dominic looked thoughtful.
"Would you like help finding programs?"
"Yes. Finding them. Not purchasing the college."
He laughed.
"Understood."
I squeezed his hand.
"And I think we should spend more time learning how to be ordinary people together before making promises."
His expression softened.
"That may be the hardest assignment I've ever received."
I smiled.
"Good."
I enrolled in a nursing program the following semester.
The workload was exhausting.
Anatomy.
Clinical skills.
Pharmacology.
Long evenings studying while Ben tested me with flashcards.
I continued working at Harbor Light when my schedule allowed.
Dominic never asked me to stop.
Sometimes he brought food while I studied.
Sometimes he helped Ben repair the apartment's stubborn kitchen faucet.
He was terrible at plumbing.
Ben found this delightful.
For the first time, my brother began seeing Dominic as something other than a dangerous man with expensive shoes.
One Saturday, the three of us attempted to assemble a bookshelf.
Dominic insisted he understood the instructions.
Ben disagreed.
I watched them argue for twenty minutes before pointing out that they'd installed the back panel upside down.
Ben burst out laughing.
Dominic stared at the shelf.
Then laughed too.
It was one of the happiest afternoons I could remember.
But not every day was easy.
Dominic still struggled with nightmares.
He still reacted sharply when someone approached him unexpectedly.
Some days, physical closeness felt comfortable.
Other days, he needed more space.
I learned not to interpret those moments as rejection.
He learned to tell me what he needed instead of withdrawing without explanation.
We argued about his instinct to control risk.
He sometimes wanted to solve my problems before I had decided whether they were problems.
Once, after a difficult exam, he arranged for an expensive tutor without asking.
I was furious.
"Dominic, I needed encouragement, not someone taking over."
He looked embarrassed.
"I thought I was helping."
"I know."
He paused.
Then sighed.
"Your mother would've corrected me too."
I smiled despite myself.
"Absolutely."
He canceled the arrangement and asked what support I wanted.
I told him I wanted pizza, a quiet evening, and someone willing to listen to me complain.
He ordered pizza.
Then listened for nearly an hour.
And somehow, that ordinary evening meant more than any extravagant gesture could have.
A year after our first date, Dominic took me to the old waterfront pier where he used to imagine sailing away as a child.
The sun was setting.
Small boats moved through the harbor.
He looked toward the water.
"When I was twelve, I thought freedom meant getting as far away from everyone as possible."
I smiled.
"And now?"
He turned toward me.
"Now I think it means choosing who gets to stand beside you."
My heart raced.
He took both my hands.
"Lily, I love you."
I'd heard him say it before.
But this time, the words felt like something deeper.
Not a promise to protect me from every danger.
Not a demand that I belong to him.
Simply a choice.
I smiled through tears.
"I love you too."
Then he reached into his coat.
My breath caught.
A small velvet box.
Dominic smiled nervously.
"I'm not asking you to stop studying. Or stop working. Or become part of some grand Vale dynasty."
I began crying.
"I'm asking whether you'd like to build a life with me."
He opened the box.
Inside was a simple ring.
"Lily Carter, will you marry me?"
I laughed through tears.
"Yes."
His face changed.
"Yes?"
I nodded.
"Yes, Dominic."
He slipped the ring onto my finger.
Then waited.
May you like
I stepped into his arms.
And for the first time in his life, Dominic Vale held someone without fear.
