Chapter 6 - NOBODY'S FOOL
Six months later.
The sun set over the glittering skyline of the city, casting long, golden shadows across the penthouse balcony of the new Costello enterprise headquarters. The dark, suffocating mansion had been sold. Dominic had wanted no part of the house that had served as his tomb.
He stood by the glass railing, holding a glass of expensive scotch. The gray pallor of illness was entirely gone, replaced by the robust, terrifying vitality that had made him a legend in the underworld. His enemies had heard the whispers of his resurrection, and after what happened to Vincent at the docks, no one dared challenge the throne again.
The sliding glass doors opened behind him. Dominic didn't need to turn around to know who it was. The soft, confident click of heels on marble was all the warning he needed.
Bridget walked onto the balcony, wearing a stunning, tailored emerald green dress that caught the evening light. She held a tablet in one hand and a glass of champagne in the other.
"The eastern seaboard shipment cleared customs," Bridget said, handing him the tablet. Her voice was sharp, professional, and entirely fearless. "And the front companies in Vegas are reporting a twenty percent increase in clean revenue. The laundering structure I implemented is holding up perfectly."
Dominic didn't even look at the tablet. He looked at her.
From a terrified cleaning lady invisible to the world, to the chief financial strategist and right hand of the most powerful syndicate on the coast. Bridget had not just saved his life; she had proved she possessed a mind sharper than a scalpel and nerves colder than liquid nitrogen. Dominic had spent the last six months teaching her the business, and she had mastered it with terrifying speed.
"I don't care about the Vegas numbers right now," Dominic murmured, setting his scotch down and stepping closer to her. He took the tablet from her hands, tossing it carelessly onto a patio chair.
"You should," Bridget teased, her eyes sparkling with amusement. "It's your money."
"It's our money," Dominic corrected, his hands coming to rest on her waist, pulling her flush against his chest. "I told you six months ago, you were getting hazard pay. I just decided to make it a lifetime contract."
Bridget smiled, resting her hands flat against the solid muscle of his chest, feeling the strong, steady beat of his heart—a heart she had kept beating when the rest of the world wanted it stopped.
"I remember," she whispered, looking up into his intense gray eyes. "But I’m not cleaning up your messes anymore, Dominic. If you make them, you mop them up."
Dominic threw his head back and laughed, a deep, resonant sound that echoed into the evening sky. He leaned down, pressing a fierce, possessive kiss to her lips. She kissed him back, entirely equal in power, entirely equal in fire.
They had met in the shadows of death, surrounded by poison and betrayal. But they had walked out of the darkness together, forged in blood and bound by loyalty.
Dominic broke the kiss, resting his forehead against hers as the city lights began to twinkle below them.
May you like
"No more messes," he promised softly, his thumb tracing the line of her jaw. "Only an empire. And I don't want to rule it alone."
Bridget looked out over the city, the world laid out at their feet, and smiled. The invisible girl was gone forever. The queen had arrived.
