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| �Dom, is that you?� Letty made her way from the bedroom and stood at the top of the stairs as he shut the door behind him. �Yeah.� His answer was flat and told her right away that something was wrong. �Jesus. What now? Valentine�s Day is tomorrow for Christ�s sake. Can�t we have one holiday to ourselves? Just one day of peace?� she said quietly as she made her way down the steps. She approached the kitchen and leaned against the doorframe. He was standing at the screen door looking out into the backyard, beer in hand. Walking up behind him, she encircled his waist and laid her head against his back listening to the sound of his breathing. It was calm and steady revealing that he wasn�t angry and that was always a good thing. For a long moment only the hum of his breathing could be heard then he spoke. �Letty, one of the investments that I made took a dive.� �Yeah? How much of a dive?� She lifted her head, eyes staring at the broadness of his back. �We lost over four?� She laid her head back against him. �Well, that�s not too bad. Four thousand won�t make or break us right?� Dom dropped his head back as the exasperation in his laugh filled the room. �No, Letty.� He took a long swig of his beer. �Not four thousand, four million.� Letty jumped back, mouth gaped open in total shock. �What? That�s not a dive, Dom. That shit sunk!� The look she got in return told her that was the wrong choice of words. Dom pushed the screen door open and walked into the yard. He started to pace the length from the grill to the wooden picnic table, mumbling obscenities as he rubbed his free hand over his head in frustration. She followed him but had no idea why because she was clueless as to what she could say. She had never been big on words and comforting ones were a huge problem. The money he�d saved was supposed to purchase more space for DT Automotives and help Dom hire the best mechanics to get the business up and running again. He�d even made plans to rebuild the store and hire Mia some extra help. Now, a huge lump of the money was gone and all his plans were on major hold if not finished all together. As she walked into the yard, she searched her mind for something to say to give him some sense of comfort but her own nervousness was hindering her thoughts. He seemed to read her body language and decided he would speak instead. �Letty, I�m sorry. I had no idea this would happen. I thought this was a good investment.� He hissed and the tone of his voice began to rise. �I thought� Shit! I can�t believe this. I don�t know what the hell we�re going to do now! Everything that I had planned has gone to shit. DAMN!� He hurled the beer into the side of the house. It shattered into pieces and so did Letty�s heart. She walked quickly to him and cradled his face with her hands. �Dom, it�s going to be okay! Calm down! Everything is going to work out!� Dom stepped away and shook his head. �No, it�s not! Letty, do you know what this means?� She squinted unknowingly. He dropped his tone and his eyes lost contact with hers. �This means I have to do something to make that money back.� A deathly silence fell between them. �No,� she whispered as she dropped her body onto the bench, the imaginary pain from her heeled cracked ribs filling her mind. She knew immediately what he was thinking about doing and she felt as if she were going to die. Clutching her side, she dropped her head forward and whispered her plea in length. �No, Dom. Please, don�t do this.� Dom walked to her and stooped down, his hands resting lightly on her thighs. �I have to Letty. I have too. I won�t let our lives and dreams just wilt away because of this one screw up. I�ll do one more job, make the money back and then we�ll be okay.� He placed his index finger under her chin and lifted her eyes to his. �Okay?� She searched the depth of his eyes and saw his need to make this right. Dom was stubborn and talking him out of this would be a waste of energy so instead she decided to stand with him. �Fine, Dom.� She gripped his hands and stood pulling him with her. �If you feel you must do this, I won�t stand in your way but�� She dropped his hands and steadied herself for the fight she knew would come. �But?� He looked at her in question. �But, I�m doing it with you.� Dom�s eyes narrowed into a thin line and he vocally displayed his displeasure. �No Way! Forget it!� �Dom�� �No Letty! You�re not getting involved with this. I don�t wanna hear any more about it.� He headed back into the house. �Goddamn it, Dom! I�� She stormed up the steps behind him and stopped just inches from his back. He never turned to face her but his voice roared into her ears. �No, Letty! There�s nothin� else to say. I�m doing this and you aren�t. End of fuckin� discussion!� He opened the screen door then slammed it shut behind him leaving her on the wrong side of the grayed screen. �Damn it, Dom,� she whispered as she swung open the door and walked into the kitchen. As she made her way upstairs, she heard him on the phone making arrangements with his contact. He�s really gonna do this. Now she was afraid, really afraid. Standing up to him was something she�d never done. Anything that he said, wanted to do, she agreed to without a fight, always giving in to his subtle demands. Well, not this time. Their lives had been so peaceful, tranquil for the last year and she wasn�t about to let him ruin it with his huge ego and stubborn pride. She ran the remainder of the way and burst through the door. Dom dropped the phone and turned quickly at her more than violent entrance. �NO! NO, DOM! YOU CANNOT DO THIS! I WON�T LET YOU!� She screamed the words and immediately tears flooded her eyes. She eyed him and waited for his retaliation but it never came. He turned his eyes downward towards the phone that was yelling his name. Picking it up he whispered, �I�ll call you back� then he disconnected the line. She watched as he came towards her, his movements, in her mind, coming in slow motion. Then he was there in front of her, his hands resting sweetly on her shoulders. �Letty, I have too.� His voice was soft, loving, and comforting. All of the things she was not expecting. �You don�t have to, Dom. We�ve�we�ve got enough money. We�ll be okay. Business at the garage will pick up and you�ve still got me and Leon as mechanics. Things will work out. What your doin� is�is� Shit! Dom the risk isn�t worth it. The store, the garage�� She paused ��Me. None of it is worth you dyin� for.� She dropped her head and squeezed her eyes tight. �All that I want is you�alive.� He shook his head and placed a flat palm to the side of her face. �You�re wrong, Letty. You can�t tell me that my dreams for you, my life with you, aren�t worth dyin� for because they are.� He put his index finger under her bent chin raising her eyes to meet his. �Look at me, Let. Look right here�� He placed a finger to against the side of his eye ��and you�ll see � see just how much you mean to me.� He smiled and then stepped away. Walking back to the bed, he grabbed his cell phone. �I�ll be back by two.� He leaned down and planted a feathered kiss on her cheek. As he attempted to move around her, she grabbed his arm. �Dom, I do know how you feel and I feel the same about you but why�why can�t we just make do? Why do you insist on doin� this?� He laughed lightly and shook his head. �You just don�t get it, do you? All this is for you, Letty.� He gently removed her hand from his arm and stepped through the door. He paused giving her a sideways glance and added, �Everything I do, Letty I do it for you.� She stood silent as he walked down the stairs and out the front door. She fell across the bed, her head buried in the warmth of the scent he�d left behind. �I do know, Dom and I know it�s true.� ~~~~~~~~~~ The night passed slowly for Letty. She jumped every time a car passed. It was after one in the morning, Valentine�s Day, and Dom was still not home. She�d fallen to sleep and woken up about an hour ago expecting to find him next to her. Frustration had past ten minutes ago and had been heavily replaced with fear. Had something happened to him? Had something gone wrong? Where was he? Why was he late? Unable to stay isolated in their room any longer, she retreated from the bed and made her way down the stairs. As she rounded the corner, her body froze. There directly in front of her was the biggest card she�d ever laid her eyes on. She walked towards it and read his handwritten words: There's no love - like your love And no other - could give more love There's nowhere - unless you're there All the time - all the way Her tears took up residence in her eyes but didn�t fall. Then she heard the noise, a whining sound. She wrinkled her brow and looked past the card and watched as the small grey and white puppy waddled towards her sporting a huge red ribbon and a tag she couldn�t quite read. She smiled widely and sat to the floor grabbing the puppy as it approached. She snuggled it against her and read the message it brought. It simply read: TO LETTY WITH LOVE, Dom She raised her eyes and there he stood, smiling and loving her as he always did. He made his way to her and lowered himself to the floor. She started to speak but a finger to her lips hushed her words. �He�s for you.� He rubbed the puppy�s head then smiled broadly. �I named him Bryan.� Letty squinted her eyes, she didn�t understand. �Huh? After O�Connor?� Dom laughed and shook his head. �Jesus, No! After a singer I know who wrote a very special song. I�ll play it for you one day.� He took the squirming pup and put him to the floor. They watched as he headed straight for the card, growling and tugging at the bottom of it. Letty laughed then turned her eyes back to him. �So, did everything go okay?� �Yeah, fine.� Then he turned his eyes towards the new addition to the family. �I didn�t do it, Let.� �Huh?� she replied with total confusion clouding her face. �Didn�t do it.� She grabbed his chin and turned his eyes back to hers. �You didn�t? Why not?� �You still have to ask that question, huh?� He smiled at her. �I didn�t do it �cause you didn�t want me to. Me, Leon and the other two recruits I�d gotten were right there, Letty.� His voice was full of the excitement she knew and had grown to love. �I pulled in front and Leon was about to go then�� He giggled quietly ��I looked in my rearview and all I saw was your face. I called it off and headed home. So, you answer that question � why didn�t I do it?� She smiled. �For me.� �You got it, babe � for you.� She leaned into him and they shared an intimate kiss. Dom grabbed her hand and they stood from the floor. He smiled that all too familiar questioning smile and she answered with a simple nod then they headed for the stairs but were stopped. It seemed their new houseguest had other plans. They watched as the pup ran towards them barking and then unexpectedly he attacked Dom�s pant leg tugging and pulling at it seemingly trying to lead him back to living room and away from Letty. Letty�s laughter filled the room as she watched the already protective pup defend her honor. Dom leaned down and swooped Bryan into his arms. �Woo, Boy! That�s my woman, not yours,� he teased as he accepted the streams of kisses the pup had to give. �Well, it seems you�ll have to fight for my attention now, Mr. Toretto.� She took Bryan from his arms. �You up for that?� Dom kissed her on the cheek. �Anytime, babe. Anytime!� -------------- FINI |
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by Diesel Love |