Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
Dominic had thought Sylvie riding his cock by moonlight had been pretty damned spectacular. But Sylvie half asleep in his bed while morning sun streamed through the windows? Breathtaking.
He reached for her hand and brought it to his mouth, pressing a kiss to her knuckles.
She yawned. “What time is it?”
It was late enough that he didn’t want to tell her. She’d rush off. “Around breakfast. We can stay here a while longer.”
“If you say so.” She put her arms around his neck and cuddled against him. Her eyes closed like she was dozing.
He pretended that she was just a girl he liked, and that he was just a guy. A guy who didn’t have a stupid fucking ankle monitor attached to his leg.
She had called him Nic. He’d never asked another woman to call him that, not even his girlfriends. It felt intimate. Not in a sexual way, but deeper than that. More true. It was a name only people who cared about him had ever used.
Assuming Sylvie cared about him. He was fairly sure she did, and that was pretty amazing. It felt like winning the lottery on his birthday, nothing he’d ever expected or thought he deserved.
Some of his exes had called him “Dom” as a nickname, thinking he’d like it.
That kind of a name went with the sex dungeon image, which Sylvie had laughed at because it was so ridiculous.
He didn’t have any problem with other people getting kinky.
More power to them. But it just wasn’t his thing.
It didn’t fit him, like clothes that belonged to somebody else.
Sylvie saw that. She saw him.
He had no idea what he was going to do to fix the mess he was in.
But he liked to think Sylvie would stick around through the hard parts and then.
.. What? He couldn’t even imagine a life past the current crisis.
His life had always been the Syndicate. But whatever it looked like, he wanted Sylvie to be there.
“What are you going to tell Max?” Dominic asked.
He didn’t want to inject reality into the little fairytale they had going this morning. But it was getting late, and they’d have to leave the refuge of his bed before long.
“I need to explain about the flash drive Sandford gave you, and what he expected you to do with it. But there’s something I need to know.” She lay on her side to face him. “Are you planning to go back to the Syndicate?”
He chewed the inside of his lip.
“Planning on it? No.”
“Dominic, I’m going to take down those Russian hackers, but the endgame is going after your uncle and the Syndicate itself. Max and I aren’t working with law enforcement yet, but we will if we have to. And I’m going to tell Lana what Sandford’s been up to. I’m not keeping any secrets for you.”
“I know. I expected that.”
“But you can’t play both sides. I can’t…” Sylvie sat up against the pillows, grabbing the sheet to cover herself. “I can’t let how I feel about you cloud my judgment on this. The only way I can help you is if I know you won’t interfere.”
“How do you feel about me?”
Her eyes slid over to meet his. “Like I’d do pretty much anything to make sure you’re safe. That’s what scares me.”
Dominic rested his head against her shoulder. She’d asked him serious questions, and he owed her serious answers.
Taking down the Syndicate… Every time that idea had crossed his mind before, he’d dismissed it.
But maybe he’d been holding onto the idea of the Crane “family business” more than anything else.
The Cranes hadn’t been a real family since he was a kid.
So there was nothing real for him to hold onto at all.
Dominic was afraid his older brother wouldn’t forgive him for betraying the Syndicate, but what stake did Warren have in the business at this point? Once Warren got out of prison, Charles would probably put a hit on him. It might even start another war.
Dominic’s father barely knew his own name because of the dementia. His mom had given up on their old life years ago. And Raymond was never going to get started on that path in the first place.
Sylvie had said she’d do anything to keep him safe. Had anyone ever felt something like that for him before? He doubted it. Not even Warren.
“We agreed last night that we’ll trust each other,” he said. “I meant it. I’m going to keep you safe, too. You and Raymond. Even if I have to destroy the Syndicate to do it.”
“Does that mean testifying against them, like Lana wants?”
Nausea welled up in his throat, but he only hesitated a moment. “If that’s what it takes, I will. I guess I’ll need to reconsider that safe house she offered.”
Sylvie cupped his cheek and kissed him. He pulled her down so that her body stretched over his. There were no sheets between them, nothing but skin and sweat and longing. Their mouths were hungry for each other, hands desperate to touch and to please.
He’d never felt this kind of need for another person. It was like a live wire inside him, lighting him up but burning him, too. She was right here in front of him, but that wasn’t close enough.
A phone rang. Damn it, no.
“Shit, that’s mine.” Sylvie jumped out of his arms. Dominic flopped back onto the pillows.
She dashed across the room and dug into her laptop bag. “It’s Tanner.” She answered it. “Yeah, everything’s fine. I’ll be down in a minute.”
She turned around, a sheepish look on her face. “Tanner saw I wasn’t in my room. Did you know it was almost ten o’clock?”
“That’s still breakfast time, isn’t it?”
“Not when I’m supposed to be at work by eight.” She wiped her hand over her face. “I need to check my messages. Why don’t you take a shower while I try to catch up on things?”
He kicked his legs off the bed. “You don’t want to shower with me?”
A smile twitched at the corner of her mouth. “Of course I do. That’s exactly why I can’t. I have to get going.”
Dominic jogged downstairs and went straight to the kitchen. His hair was still damp, leaving droplets of water on the shoulders of his white T-shirt.
Tanner looked up as he came in. The bodyguard was sitting at his usual stool by the counter. Maureen was emptying clean dishes from the dishwasher. “So you’ve decided to make an appearance. Tanner and I enjoyed our breakfast quite a while ago.”
“She made beignets.”
Maureen nodded. “Just like Café du Monde in New Orleans. We were going to save some for you, but you know how the saying goes.”
“Snooze, you lose,” Tanner finished with a laugh.
“Assuming all you were doing was snoozing?” Maureen lifted two skeptical brows.
“Have you two been practicing this comedy routine all morning?” Their teasing couldn’t ruin his mood. He was too happy and sexually satisfied, even though he and Sylvie didn’t get another round this morning.
Dominic was glad Tanner didn’t seem weird about the sleeping-with-Sylvie thing. Generally, Tanner seemed like a good guy. He hadn’t made Dominic feel completely worthless, so in his book, that qualified as a friendship.
But then again, the bodyguard had probably known about Sylvie’s true mission here. And that meant he assumed Sylvie had slept with him in order to get close enough to install her virus thing on his computer.
So maybe Tanner wasn’t as innocent as he seemed.
Maureen poured Dominic a cup of coffee and gave him a bagel, since the beignets were gone. Tanner wandered off, probably in search of Sylvie.
“You’re rarely so chipper before noon. I assume you and Sylvie had a nice night?”
Dominic sipped his coffee, leaning against the counter. “We did.” He didn’t try to hide his grin.
“It’s lovely to see you smiling.”
“I can’t even remember…” He didn’t finish the thought. He knew Maureen understood. He was happier right now than he’d been in ages, despite the danger they were in.
Maureen finished with the dishwasher. She grabbed a towel to wipe off the countertops. “I just hope you two know what you’re doing. It seems to me a little odd that Sylvie and her bodyguard would turn up here so soon after your lawyer did.”
“What do you know about Sandford’s visit? I told you to wait in your room while he was here.”
She gave him a wry look. “And you think I do every little thing you say? I can hear a conversation in the living room from over in the hallway. I heard what Sandford asked you to do.”
“I wish you hadn’t.” Dominic hung his head. He couldn’t believe she hadn’t said anything. “And you think I went through with it? I didn’t.”
“I’m not judging. I know you care for Sylvie, that’s obvious. But this situation is as messy as mud season. I just don’t want to see either of you getting hurt. I almost said something last night, but… It’s been so long since you had a friend.”
That made him feel pathetic. “I know my life has been really messed up for a while. But last night, Sylvie and I talked about everything. She knows the truth, and she’s going to help me fix things.”
Maureen glanced over her shoulder, checking that the others weren’t close by.
“But don’t you think you’ve let other people control you for far too long already?
Expecting Sylvie to fix things is the same as putting all the responsibility on her shoulders.
All the power. Isn’t it past time you were responsible for yourself? ”
He set his cup roughly on the counter. Coffee sloshed over the side.
“I like you, Maureen, and I’ll let you get away with pretty much anything.
But you’re going too far. I am doing something.
” He dropped his voice to a whisper, though his tone remained harsh.
“I’m going to testify against the Syndicate.
I’m going to help take them down.” He prayed that Maureen wouldn’t disapprove.
“And I’m going to make sure you and everyone else who’s important to me is safe.
Sylvie is trusting me. I hope you will, too. ”
She patted his arm. “Oh, Dominic. I’ve always trusted you. And I’ve always known you were capable of so much more than you believed. But you prove your worth through your actions, not by making plans or promises.”
She didn’t think he’d go through with it.
He picked up his coffee mug and put it in the sink. “I’ll prove myself. You’ll see.”
Maureen had it wrong. He wasn’t putting all the responsibility on Sylvie’s shoulders. He did need Sylvie’s help and her support. That was the only path forward.
But in the end, Dominic was the one who’d have to face down his uncle and his former allies. He was the one who’d carry the burden of being a traitor.