Bad Boy Dom Read Online Free

Day, Six Years Later
     
    I walked out of the boarding area and scanned the baggage claim nervously, looking for my dad. It was the day before the wedding, and I somehow knew he was going to be late picking me up. Still though, it was a small town and I could run into anyone from high school. I dreaded those meetings; everyone was somehow so shocked to discover that I’d gone to college and matured, just like everyone else.
     
    After that afternoon with Domenic, I never saw him again. He left school, and later I’d heard that he accepted a baseball scholarship at Arizona State. For the rest of the year, I’d kept my head down and moped enough to screw up my grades, but I still went to the state university, pre-med. And then had the fortune to graduate in the recession, so instead of med school, I was working as a temp for a data company.
     
    And now, our parents were getting married. I couldn’t believe it either, but it happened. After we both had gone off to college, his mom started asking my dad over for dinner, and somehow…it happened. They both hid it for a long time. I was suspicious when I came home over break and saw perfume and a pink toothbrush in his bathroom, but he lied about it until my senior year. Then he said that they weren’t going to get married, but just live together. I was always worried about running into Dom, and I never told my dad why. The idea was horrifying, and I knew that learning his future stepson de-virginized his daughter would be too much for him.
     
    Then, six months ago, Dad called me. He and Sandy were on a cruise to the Bahamas, and I think he’d had a few drinks too many and popped the question. But they decided to actually go through with it, and here I was.
     
    The small airport was busier than I remembered it ever being, and I didn’t see my dad anywhere. With a huff, I pulled out my cell and dialed him at home. He answered in two rings.
 
    “Hello?”
     
    “Dad, it’s Michelle.  You were supposed to get me from the airport.”
     
    “Oh, god, honey. I am so sorry. I’ll be right there, okay?” I heard a muffled squelch as he put the receiver against his hand, calling out to someone in the house.
     
    “Dad, who’s there?”
     
    “Sandy,” he said, laughing at something she’d said. “Michelle, I’ll be right there.”
     
    “Okay, Dad. Bye,” I responded, hanging up and dropping my phone in my bag.
     
     
     
    That night, Dad, Sandy and I went out to dinner. I couldn’t believe it when I saw her; she looked exactly the same as she had when I was in high school, if not younger. I felt uneasy as I realized her features were a more delicate, feminine version of Dom’s. And she was so warm, I couldn’t imagine how her son had turned out to be such an asshole.
    “So, Michelle, your dad tells me that you’re thinking of re-applying to med school now that you’ve worked for a couple of years,” she began, taking a sip of wine. “Are you looking forward to that?”
     
    I laughed, shortly. “Not really, I mean the application process is such a pain. But it’ll be good to be in school again,” I said, blushing. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude. It’s just kind of a stressful time.”
     
    My dad smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling. “That’s my Michelle,” he beamed. “Always working so hard.”
     
    “You deserve all the best, sweetie,” Sandy added, reaching out and putting her hand on top of my dad’s. I smiled uncertainly; my head was filled with lots of uncomfortable holiday dinners with Dom and me at the same table, glaring at each other. Maybe it won’t be so bad, I thought. Maybe we can trade Thanksgiving and Christmas every year or something .
     
    “Is everything okay, honey?” My dad asked, looking at me with curiosity. “You just made a weird face.”
     
    “I’m fine,” I blushed, looking down. “Just really tired from the travel.”
     
    “Get a lot of sleep tonight,” Sandy advised, pointing her fork at