Page 53 of His Assistant

“Did you not see him? He has no fight left in him. He’s not recovering from this, Dominic. They took away his safety just like they took away mine.”

“Sofia,” I say softly. “I’m so sorry this is happening. I will make it better, I swear to you.”

She shakes her head. “You’ve done enough,” she says. “I think you and Rafe should go. Let me handle this. He doesn’t want you here.”

“I’m not leaving you alone,” I protest.

Her face goes hard. “That wasn’t a request.”

I’m almost impressed by her audacity, speaking to me like that. Normally I’d argue and impose my will, but maybe she’s right. I’ve done enough.

“There’s a full security team across the street,” I tell her. “I’ll leave you alone, but I’m not leaving you unprotected.”

She grits her teeth. “Fine,” she concedes. “Please just leave.”

As much as it pains me, I do what she asks. I go back inside to grab Rafe and tell him we’re leaving. He looks between me and Sofia, who’s followed me in, and doesn’t argue.

“We’ll find the men who did this and punish them,” I promise Marco. “You have my word.”

He gives me a hard look, and I realize it’s probably the last thing he wants to hear. I mean it, though. I know in my gut that Enzo Calderone ordered this attack. He’s gotten away with too much. I’ve sat back and waited too long, and now he thinks he can do whatever the hell he wants without consequence. That changes now.

Rafe and I get back into the car and he whistles lowly.

“This is bad, Dom,” he says. “Targeting us is one thing, but this is personal.”

“You think I don’t know that?” I snap, leaning against the window and running a hand through my hair. “We need to make a move.”

He nods and sighs wearily.

“We’ve got to be smart, though,” I continue. “If we counterattack without absolute proof of what he’s done, he’ll try to ruin us.”

“I’m on it,” he says. “Whatever you need.”

The driver pulls away from the curb, and I look back toward the garage. Sofia and Marco are still visible through the opening, and it kills me to leave her alone. I fight the urge to stay. This is what it means to build trust, though, right?

21

SOFIA

With Dominic and Rafe gone, I can finally breathe. I know my dad hated having them here to witness this. Unfortunately, when I turn to speak to him, his face is furious. Every angry thought he swallowed while they were here is bubbling to the surface now.

“Why did you bring them here?” he seethes.

“I didn’t bring them here,” I argue. “Dominic just wanted to come and make sure that you were okay. It was a safety thing.”

“A safety thing?” he roars. “Sofia, my livelihood is gone. Because he butted his nose into my business. I have told you over and over again that I don’t trust this man, but you refuse to quit. You’re so stubborn, just like your mother.”

That stings. I know Dad loved her, but he always drags up her worst qualities, especially when he’s measuring me against them. She’s been gone six years now, but his anger about her death never faded.

“That job is the only reason your debts were paid off,” I remind him. “And how you can afford your blood pressure medication without going into more debt. You can hate Dominic all you want, but he’s saved us financially.”

He glares at me. “Does this look saved?” he asks, gesturing around to his trashed garage. “Years of hard work and saving are just gone. Some of those tools belonged to my grandfather. They’re irreplaceable, Sofia!”

“He didn’t trash your garage himself,” I remind him. “You act like he stormed in here with thugs and tore the place apart.”

“He may as well have. I don’t know who decided my loose association with that man was worth destroying my life over, but this is exactly what I’ve been telling you, Sofia. This is what happens when you get sucked into a world like that.”

“If we’re part of that world, it’s because you decided to trust shady people,” I shoot back. “You just had to get that loan. They would have done this to your garage whether I worked for Dominic or not.”