Chapter 26
Chapter
Twenty-Six
SIMONA
D ominic is everywhere.
All I can see is him. His scent is inside my lungs and, god, the way he hovers above me, he owns me completely. Effortlessly.
He watches me carefully as he draws out an inch, and I should feel embarrassed when my eyes roll backwards as he pushes back in, but I’ve never been so turned on.
I could die happily, having him stretch my pussy like this. I get why he’s being slow and careful; I may have been eager but at the same time I knew my eyes weren’t bigger than my mouth. And he’d fit between my lips perfectly.
He draws out further this time, surging back in faster.
I release a noise that makes him chuckle before he leans down and demands my mouth get busy with his. His tongue licks inside my mouth while he pumps his hips. When he cups my breast and tweaks my nipple, I’m not surprised I gush slick.
He notices. A cocky smirk making his kisses even tastier. I like Dominic like this. He’s still holding back but there’s a rawness to him that I already know not many people see.
“Please,” I whine when he pulls himself all the way out. My pussy feels empty but my body tingles in anticipation. Using one of his hands, he rubs his cock through my folds while his mouth dips to my breast. His teeth drag my nipple before he traps it, his tongue playing dirty with them.
I flood my nest with my rising need, even the sheets under my ass are messy from my slick. Hooking my legs under his ass, I try to press his skin to mine, but he doesn’t let me. I get another trail of love bites all the way down my stomach to my pubic bone before he settles down to stare at the mess I’ve made.
“Simona, baby, what am I to do with all this?”
He sits up so I can see him. His lips hovering over my pussy so near I can feel the air move as he talks. Dominic plants an open mouth kiss, covering my sex completely, and sucks.
I have no words to describe how he makes me feel. The closest I could come would be describing what I think worship would involve. If a person used their mouth and fingers.
A delicious smoulder ripples from my core, and my first orgasm isn’t abrupt, it was a decadent climb to a soft freefall. Before I can recover, he rolls me to my side, slides my top thigh up, holds it still as he slowly pushes inside me this time before he inserts himself as far as he can. His thigh moves behind mine, and he slowly, really damn slowly, moves in and out of my body, teasing me with each glorious, thick inch.
Each time he thrusts inside, his knot rubs on my swollen pussy. Everything feels oversensitive, it’s so fucking beautiful my face is wet.
I was so scared I’d never feel this. Ever .
Dominic’s hips move faster and harder, circling and driving us to the most beautiful place I have been. His arms wrap around me, and I seriously don’t know where either one of us starts.
I feel his mouth against my shoulder, his tongue licking my perfume off my skin. His arms clamp harder and I’m completely at his mercy, incapable of moving.
“Ssshh, baby,” he cajoles, when I realise I’m crying softly.
“Please, I ache for you,” I answer, twisting to speak my truth against his lips.
Dominic leans up, knowing what I need and breathes into my lungs, soft words filling my ears. “I’ve got you.” Before he makes me scream for him, slamming his knot inside my body, and nipping my lip. Harder. Intentionally.
He pins me down, but I’ve never felt safer. Or stronger.
He is hard and desperate, only in the way he holds me to him.
Dominic’s mouth is next to my ear, I hear how good I make him feel. And I know it’s me, not just us fucking, because the way he says my name, over and over and over, is full of devotion. He reaches further, filling my mouth with his tongue as he floods my body with his release.
I sink into a space full of mindless pleasure, and beautiful quietness. I’m not alone, Dominic is right there with me. He softly massages anywhere he can reach, while he keeps kissing me while we ride out the wave of being knotted together.
I don’t fall asleep, but when we come to a gentle stop, we don’t talk, and we definitely don’t move. I can feel his cock inside me, pulsing every now and then. I feel my body answer, squeezing around him.
I’m in awe. I had no idea.
He breaks the tranquillity and moves but only so he can shuffle his body around, so he’s not squashing me, but I won’t let him. I love the way his heaviness holds me down, giving me a place I know I will forever be safe.
“I wish I had it in me to do that again,” I admit after a few minutes. It might be longer though; I have no awareness outside of him.
He chuckles, his lips on my shoulder making me shiver, and bear down on him in response. Aftershocks of arousal, or remembered pleasure, strum through me and I squeeze around him, chasing the same rush.
I squeak when Dominic rolls us. I end up splayed out on his chest, his legs wrapped around mine, so he holds me wide open. Jesus, the man must be a contortionist, but he stops all logical thoughts when he starts moving under me ever so slowly. Both his hands are on my breasts, rolling and teasing with the pinching and plucking, twisting and teasing until I’m wiggling under his gentle attention.
“I’m not stopping until you soak my cock with your juices, Simona.” His nose is pressed to my scent gland as he talks. And the groaned inhale he makes does a lot of wicked things to me, body and soul. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’re in the early stages of your heat.”
The words make sense, but they don’t register. I’m distracted by him. Dominic’s encouragement is all I need, and I break out of his tender hold, whacking my head on the desk as I sit up. There’s a bite of discomfort since we’re locked together, but I find an angle that works. Only just, it’s a tight space, but it makes it more intimate.
I rock chasing my release, barely seeing straight as Dominic drives up every time I grind down. Pleasure, scent, and slick leak out of me and I think sex can’t get any better, until he sinks a thick finger into my asshole.
I discover Dominic can make anything infinitely better.
The shadows move across his office but this time I’m not in my nest alone as the day passes. My heat doesn’t eventuate, and by my calculations I have a month or so before it does.
Dominic and I snooze, talk, and kiss. We definitely snooze and kiss more than we talk but that man has a mouth to die for. His razor-sharp insight is also endearing.
“I’d like to spend the rest of my days here,” he says, stroking his fingers down my face.
For an Alpha he is very touchy feely. But that’s my trauma talking.
“There’s a but coming?”
“Sadly, there is. I need to start working on finding a way to get you away from him and keep him away from you. I need more than one avenue, and my Alpha will not stop stressing or worrying until you are completely safe. Then I’d be overjoyed if you can be under my desk any day you want, although I suggest you’d have company.”
“We might need a bigger desk because I like the sound of that, Alpha.”
A smile blazes, lighting up the colour of his eyes, but it falls away and he becomes more like my lawyer, than my lover. “I need you to be very careful around him now. I’ve met people like him before, and if he discovers you’ve been claimed it will shift his drive. He goes from holding the power in your relationship, to knowing he lost the one thing to keep you under his influence. He has nothing to lose. I’m not sorry I bit you, Simona, but I am furious with myself. My actions have made your situation worse.”
“Worse than what it was yesterday, last week, month, or year, Dominic? He’s already beating me at any chance he gets. He’s successfully cut me off financially and has weaselled his way into my family, isolating me from what should be my safe place. Whether you bit me or not, isn’t and wasn’t going to stop him because he has always been a toxic piece of shit.” I move, ignoring his glare at I talk badly about myself.
I don’t stop shuffling until our noses are touching. “You have to know, instead of putting me in danger, you gave me an incredible opportunity. Not only am I yours, but I also think I have a pack waiting in the wings for me.”
He goes to say something, to argue or counter, but I push my nose firmer to his. To keep him quiet but also so he is the air I breathe.
“What you also did when you claimed me, and for the record I reciprocated just as swiftly, was prove that my judgement is sound. I might have lost a lot of myself under his influence, but I fought every day. I knew you, Ryder, and Hendrix mattered, and I never lost sight of that. Sure, I got a bit waylaid by guilt and second-guessing, but even the strongest do that sometimes. So, don’t tell me you’ve made this worse, because I trust you implicitly. If you believe it’s worse than that… then it must be true. And that really would break my heart.”
The ring of my mobile interrupts us. I’ve been vaguely aware of its buzzing off and on—mostly messages from Raney, though Tris and Ho have been just as busy texting. I’ve replied to let them know I’m alive and well, but that’s as much of an update as I’ve given.
Triple checking there’s no emergency, I’m floored to see the latest one is from Kozantine, Raney’s Alpha, and not from my girls.
“Wow, I think I have to take this. I hope there’s nothing wrong.” I sit up and press call.
He answers before the first ring finishes.
“Kozantine? Is Raney okay?”
Kozantine isn’t what most people would consider a good person. He is a criminal and sells weapons for a living. Except I don’t know that side of him. I only know him as Raney’s Alpha, and he absolutely adores my bestie. In my books how he treats her is how I define if he is a good person or not.
Dominic’s whole mood shifts. His face does too. If I didn’t know better, I’d swear he recognizes Raney’s name. I meet his gaze, silently asking the question, but before he can answer, the chance slips away.
“I have a favour, Simona,” Kozantine starts. “First though, you know to call me Koz. We are friends after all.”
I laugh nervously, making him chuckle, but he sobers up. “My micina is ready to pack. I’d like you to be a part of the celebration along with the others.”
I hear him shudder, and then it’s my turn to chuckle. I get it through; my girls are scary as individuals. When we’re together, it can be downright terrifying.
“And I want to ask you to keep your attendance at her packing a surprise. I know what she would like for her ceremony, and how she sees the event including all the finery she thinks I have forgotten. I agree with most of her requests but not the one about her Scorned Girls not being with her. I know it would be her greatest regret, and she would never forgive herself.”
“She doesn’t want us there?”
“Moreover, she is driven into not asking because she is concerned for your welfare. The police have been overly difficult during our visit with King. And Reid continues to be a prick. It’s not that she doesn’t want you with us. Raney’s heart is often too big and she’s more worried that something could go wrong. Nothing will. I promise you that. I have all my best men with us, plus her father and his club will be there. Your safety is assured.”
I look at Dominic. Our recent conversation about how to deal with Brody is the loudest in my thoughts. I clear my throat, and immediately I hear Koz’s awareness snapping taut.
“Koz, I have an issue that may have you reconsidering your invitation to me. And I completely understand if you ask me not to come once you’re aware. I don’t want to put the girls at further risk, but it seems I have a stalker.”
Koz freezes up, and the silence in our conversation becomes audible. “Excuse me?”
“I believe I may have attracted the unwanted attention of someone. I’m currently getting professional advice on how best to handle the situation, and their recommendation was to tell the girls I had a stalker. I haven’t had the chance to speak with any of them yet. Being around me may draw him out and inadvertently put them at risk. The stalker is unstable, and things are escalating.”
I hear a growl, more like a roar of frustration. But he takes a deep inhale before he speaks, slightly calmer. “My issue, Simona, is why am I just hearing about this now? I thought we were friends. Friends rely on each other. They reach out when they are in danger, yet I don’t recall you contacting me. Ever. In fact, I called you. Were you going to tell me at all?” He growls.
Koz is a very strong Alpha. His designation is always on display, and it wraps around him like the expensive suits he likes to wear. And no one could ever misinterpret his possessiveness of Raney. But this is the first time I have been at the mercy of his Alpha. Even over the phone, it has me cowering submissively.
Until I look at Dominic.
I come face to face with his Alpha. There is hardly any man looking back at me through those hauntingly magnetic brown eyes.
Right now, he is displaying all the hallmarks of a similar Alpha level as Koz. He was hiding it from me before, or maybe it’s more accurate to say, he wasn’t showing me how strong an Alpha he is.
Strangely, or maybe not, it doesn’t take long at all to realise that not only does it not surprise me that Dominic holds the same intensity, but it also doesn’t scare me. And out of the two, the latter is more important.
If anything, I get another confirmation that I am exactly where I should be. With him.
I snuggle up under his chest, while Koz gives me the rundown on the secret, and seriously perfect, bonding ceremony he has organised for Raney. Of course, Koz being Koz, it’s not going to be a singular event. The invitation to be with Raney during her time has more girl time included than any bonding I’ve heard of. Also, not a surprise is that he outlines his recent conversation with Omega Mother Beatrice which results in her blessing for us all to go, giving permission for us to take a break from our study schedule.
Of course I agree. And after a quick negotiation, Koz arranges to have his private jet ready for me this afternoon. He wanted me to leave immediately, but that’s impossible. I hang up, excitement for one of my besties becoming so real that my heart beats out of sync, and I feel myself getting overly emotional on her behalf.
“Holy shit, Raney is going to be a mess,” I tell him. Explaining what’s going on with me, and why I’m leaking happy essence like it’s room spray.
Dominic doesn’t say a word. He pulls me gently out of my small haven, so I can sit on his lap. His brown eyes waver with all the emotions I’m coming to associate with him, but right now, contrition makes them extra chocolatey in colour.
“I need to tell you something,” he starts, earnestly. He looks away when he speaks. “I am not a good man, Simona.”
“How can you say that?” I argue as I use my hand to pull his face and focus back to me. “You are one of the better men I know. I can attest to that fact. Plus, as you so recently reminded me, I am an exceptional judge of character. You are good.”
He pulls his face out of my hand, and I show him my teeth in irritation. “A good man would not work day and night to defend murderers or thieves.”
I barely stop glowering at him. My lips flatten but I can’t do anything about that. “Why do it then?” I challenge.
“Because I have been alone. I know what it means to be backed into a corner without anyone to defend you.”
“Do you agree with what they do?”
He scoffs, throwing his hands up. Confirmation enough. “Sometimes I do. Other times I loathe their actions and hate them for doing them.”
“So why do you defend them?”
He goes to say something, but I beat him. “Would you defend a rapist? What about a whole community of Alphas who manipulate their wives, daughters, sisters, the weak and the voiceless to ensure subservience? Would you put your life on the line for people who control by intimidation and feeding malicious lies to their nearest and dearest? What about people who turn a blind eye to domestic violence?”
Dominic doesn’t answer and I don’t need to clarify who I am speaking about because it is as obvious as my name is Simona.
“The ‘good people’ I know are the vilest, most evil examples of humanity I have ever seen. They demand respect and hold positions of power, but they prey on the weak, and use their power to control, and coerce. Not everything is better in their world, only better for them. Those ‘good people’ will only look after other ‘good people’, leaving an entire part of our community alone, without money or shelter because they don’t bend to their will, or conform to their perceived ideals. They are racist, ableist, elitist and bigots, along with every other label you want to throw their way.” I take a breather, staring at him, challenging him to argue. My hand pushes against his chest, demanding he hears me. “I don’t care who you fight for in your career, Dominic, but you defend any of those ‘good people’ and I won’t stand by you. At least criminals have morals to live by, a code of conduct to adhere to. Sure, it’s all about money and power, but they are honest and don’t pretend they are anything but what they are.”
He is completely still when I finish.
Once upon a time I would have been scared shitless that perhaps I’d pushed him too far except I can feel the vibration of his relief, the surge of pure joy, through our bond. And then he smiles, like a starving man seeing food.
“You’re right,” he whispers, slowly closing the distance between us. His hands bury through my hair, and he holds my face. He isn’t gentle, but he is earnest and when he showers me in his designation, drowning me in his scent and sucking my bitten lip back between his teeth, I think I fall in love. “I don’t regret biting you at all. You are so fucking perfect, Amore Mio . But please let’s get some of the best scent blockers we can to hide our secret until you are ready to share our wonderful news.”
Hand on heart, all those huge overflowing emotions you see in the movies when the hero gets the girl race through me, making me tremble, laugh, and dissolve into loved up tears.