Conflict of Interest

Chapter 19

The next morning Jackie woke in Dom's arms. In the early morning shift from dreamland to real life she was happy. She could feel the front of his body nestled against her back and thought how perfectly they fit together. He had his arms around her and was holding her like a child. She could tell that he was obviously happy to be there too, as there was a slight pressure against her buttocks.

"Is that a gun in your pocket or are you glad to see me?" Jackie teased.

"Always happy to be with you baby. I never want to be away from you any longer than I have to be. I never want to let you go. Especially after last night." Dom's protective instincts had gone into overdrive after the events of the night before.

Jackie suddenly stiffened as the memory of what happened rushed back into her mind. "Oh my god Dom. What have I done. Your father is going to be mad as hell when he recovers."

"What have you done? Jackie, he was the one behaving like a psychopath."

"I feel so bad that this has created a divide between you and your Dad. I never wanted to come between you two." Jackie genuinely felt that she has caused this rift between father and son. "If I hadn't told Luke about us, or if we hadn't come out like that in front of everyone maybe things wouldn't have gone that far?"

"Stop second guessing yourself. It was my idea to reveal our relationship that way, to try and stop him from controlling every aspect of my life. And it was his decision to do what he did. This isn't the first time he's acted like an ass. But he's gone too far this time. I'll never forgive him for this." Dom ran his hands through his hair again in that tell-tale sign of frustration.

"And he will probably never forgive you." Jackie's mood had turned somber and she felt like crying again.

Dom could sense the tears starting to build and squeezed her tight before planting a kiss on her cheek.

"What about your Mum. She was so nice to me last night. I would have thought she would hate me."

"She has been with Dad for a long time. She knows what he's like but she chooses to stay. I have no idea why. She likes you Jackie. She doesn't blame you at all." Dom was trying hard to convince Jackie that she had nothing to worry about. "Let's look at the bright side. I've now decided it's time for me to move out and get my own place. I'm surprised you have any interest in me at all considering I'm 27 and still living at home."

Jackie smiled at him. She was so lucky that she had managed to find such a caring, funny and protective lover. But she still didn't feel completely guilt-free. For now though she was happy to just be in her bed, next to Dom. "Thank you for being in my life." She whispered as she wrapped her arms around him.

"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."

***

Dom had to fly back to Sydney but he wanted to make sure that Jackie would be taken care of before he left. He had contacted Luke to explain what had happened and arranged for her to take some time off work. Jackie decided she needed to spend some time with her mother in Waihi.

"You have met my parents so when am I going to meet yours?" Dom mentioned as they said their good-byes at the airport. Dom was flying out to Sydney and Jackie was going to drive straight to her mother's from there.

"I have a strong feeling that you will meet my mother one day soon. She's not the kind of person to let me keep you all to myself for too long. And the fact that I will no doubt have to tell her all about you the minute I arrive, won't keep her satisfied for long. She will want to find out what you're like for herself." Jackie was itching for her mum to meet Dom, but she was a little scared of giving him an insight into the real kind of background that she had growing up. She'd told Dom that she wasn't from a rich family, but hadn't divulged just how poor they were. "Mum generally comes up and stays for a bit on my birthday. So no doubt you will get to meet then."