Chapter 107: Fatal
After her talk with Elder Bellini, Dora said her goodbyes after they came to an agreement and left, heading back to Dante’s estate.
The sun had gone down and the sky had mostly darkened even as she got back into the car, while Ettore, her bodyguard, got beside her, quiet as usual all the way back to the estate, his presence steady and watchful.
Dora couldn’t help but slowly go through the conversation she had with the man, replaying every word in her mind, realizing that compared to before she actually had a chance to remain with Dante without him being aware that he was being manipulated.
It would come down to whether or not he wanted the shares, she thought to herself, aware that regardless of whatever happened, if Dante refused the shares then there was nothing she could do.
Rubbing her belly with a slight smile on her face, her hand lingering there instinctively, as she thought of the beautiful child she was bound to have.
At least I’ll have you, she thought to herself even as the smile on her lips grew wider the more she thought about it, leaning into the car’s leather seat as she allowed herself to drift a bit, aware that it would still take a while before they got back to the estate.
But her lashes had barely fluttered shut when she suddenly jerked awake in shock, especially when the car she was seated in was suddenly crashed into from behind with enough force to jolt her forward.
Ettore was already barking instructions at the driver to her utter surprise as she looked behind to see lights flashing right into the car, harsh and blinding, making it difficult to see what was going on.
"Drive faster!" Ettore snapped at the driver, who was professional enough not to scream back as he simply did as he was told, even as Dora, who was just waking up, looked confused and scared. Looking back again, she was shocked to see the huge truck that continued to follow them instead of the cars that should have been following behind it.
"It’s trying to crash into us! And it’s quite fast for a truck!" the driver suddenly said even as he continued to maneuver his way, the steering wheel jerking under his grip, even as the car in front of them slowly fell back, and gunshot sounds echoed sharply in the air.
Dora could feel her heart racing violently in her chest even as she wrapped her arms around her stomach protectively, as she also held onto the seatbelt that was cinched against her chest.
"Ettore!" she said, hating how easily her voice trembled, considering the fact that she knew that all it would take for her to lose her baby was for the truck behind them to topple over or crash harder.
That singular fact scared and terrified her as she stared at Ettore, her eyes wide, who did his best to convince her that all was well despite the chaos.
"It’s a deserted road but more guards have been called and even the cops have been informed!" he told her, his tone firm, but Dora knew that all that didn’t matter unless the guards and the cops mentioned could appear and intervene at that very moment.
Still, she could see that Ettore was practically doing his best, the best way he could with what he had. The driver drove faster and soon the car was swerving more sharply than normal in a way that terrified her as she mentally tried to convince herself not to panic.
Which was slowly becoming harder to do the faster they went.
So much so that she could feel her heart racing and thumping painfully in her chest even as she held on to the car door, her fingers trembling.
This continued for a moment until finally a loud whooshing sound exploded in the air just in time for her to watch the car behind them suddenly lose control and somersault off the road.
"They must have shot the tires!" Ettore informed her with a relieved expression on his face, his shoulders finally easing.
Which in turn made her feel just as relieved as she slowly did her best to relax.
Her heart still raced hard in her chest but it was not like before as she watched as the driver continued to drive at a pretty fast pace as he headed back to Dante’s estate.
By the time they arrived and she was able to get down, her legs weak beneath her, she felt relieved as she instantly headed in, surprised to see Dante waiting by the door with a worried expression on his face.
"I heard what happened. Are you okay?" he gently asked her as he moved closer, hugging her in a way that Dora allowed, hating the fact that now she knew why he wanted the baby so she couldn’t even pretend in her mind that he was interested in her.
"I’m fine! Just a bit rattled!" she informed him with a smile on her face as she leaned away from the embrace, staring at his handsome face which she enjoyed staring at immensely despite herself.
"The driver is still alive! I’ll find out who’s behind it. It won’t happen again!" Dante promised her, enough to make it sound like he blamed himself for not being able to protect her, even as Dora slowly nodded her head.
"Yeah! It’s fine!" she responded even as she turned toward Giulia. "I’m a bit hungry, Elder Bellini didn’t feed me!" she joked as she headed toward Giulia, who led the way toward the dining room.
"All he gave me was juice!" she continued speaking to Dante, who followed her, only to be surprised to hear a more serious tone in his voice when he spoke.
"I gave orders for the servants not to serve you! You should only eat here! Outside, you can drink only things that have been properly sealed!" he said even as they all headed to the dining room.
"You think someone will try and poison me?" she asked, a bit of anxiety in her tone as she asked, considering the fact that it had actually happened before.
"They’ve tried for less!" Dante reminded her even as she instinctively nodded, promising to be more careful.
Compared to how depressed she had been the last time she had been in Dante’s presence, this time around she felt lighter and more interested to see what the future held for her.
There was a possibility, a strong one, that even after she had the baby she would still be able to remain with him as his wife in name and that alone was enough for her.
I can still have a flower business and stability, she thought to herself, putting aside the fact that she knew Dante could never look at her with love no matter whatever feelings greater than attraction she felt toward him.
Dinner was a mostly silent affair as Dora ate more than she spoke, which meant that Dante spoke even less, even as she appreciated the meal. Unable to help but glance at him once in a while, taking in the shirt he wore which was firm enough to show his arm and chest muscles enough that she didn’t have to imagine.
She couldn’t help it as she thought back to the sexual offer she had been given, which she had rejected but was slowly considering taking up as she stared at him.
Love is not sex! There’s no rule that says we can’t have sex! she thought to herself, realizing that any bigger than she already was and trying to convince Dante to sleep with her would be a lost cause, especially when she got to her fifth and sixth month. Not to mention her seventh.
Still, instead of saying it the moment the thought popped into her mind, she chewed on it for a while before she finally opened her mouth to speak, her pulse quickening.
"Do you want to have sex?" she asked him, her heart racing as she watched him instantly freeze to look at her with an expression that didn’t hide the surprise he felt even as Dora held his gaze without backing down.
"Do you want to have sex?" she asked him again, not blushing or shyly lowering her eyes like she would have otherwise done, ready to take the rejection head on if that was what she got.
"I thought you were against the idea!" he responded without answering as he picked up a napkin from the table and slowly wiped his warm and moist lips with it even as he held her gaze with his dark ones.
The cool and cold gaze he gave her only made her want to fuck him more as she responded with a shrug.
"That was then, this is now! Hormones..." she said, ready to blame it on anything but what it actually was.
A deep seated attraction which she knew would only be fatal.
