Chapter 38 #2
My mind is finally quiet.
I’m busy brushing my teeth and making faces at myself in the bathroom mirror when the loudest sneeze I’ve ever heard rattles the walls. It’s immediately followed by a high-pitched hiss and a short, shouted curse.
Oh, no. That’s not fucking good.
I sprint out of the bathroom, nearly tripping over Gary as he bolts past me, and skid to a stop beside the bed.
My hands hover over Dominic, shaking. I don’t know where to touch him. Or even if I should.
He’s clenching his jaw, his face twisted in pain, one hand clutching his side, the other fisted in his sweatpants.
Shit. And he was sleeping so peacefully. I don’t even want to think about the kind of pain that sneeze just caused. It’s only been a week since he got out of the hospital.
“Meds. Pain meds,” I rush out, my tongue finally working. “I’ll bring you some.”
He shakes his head, then squeezes his eyes shut and stays like that for a long moment, just trying to breathe.
“Your cat just tried to kill me,” he rasps when the pain eases enough for him to speak.
My eyebrows shoot up. My hands finally start to steady.
“What the hell did he do?”
He groans, his body slowly sinking back into the mattress.
“Shoved his tail under my nose.” He opens his eyes and glares over my shoulder. “That little fucker knew exactly what he was doing.”
As if he could understand the accusation, Gary jumps onto the other side of the bed and starts licking his paw.
Dominic and I both stare at him in silence.
Before I can defend my fluffy menace, Dominic looks back at me and glares again.
“See?” He says it like he just presented undeniable evidence.
“Ummm…” I start, barely holding in a laugh. It’s not funny, but… it is. “Gary didn’t do it on purpose. I’m sure he’s very sorry.”
Right on cue, Gary stretches, his little butt lifting into the air, then curls into a ball with his back to us, like he couldn’t care less.
Dominic blinks up at me, eyes wide, brows raised, daring me to defend my cat.
I smile, sit on the edge of the bed, and lean down, cupping his cheek.
“I’ll make sure to protect you from Gary from now on,” I whisper against his lips before kissing him slowly.
His hand slides to my waist, thumb slipping under my t-shirt, tracing slow circles against my skin.
These are going to be some long fucking weeks. I thought I’d have more control than this, but my restraint isn’t even hanging by a thread right now. Just hopes and dreams.
When I pull back, something — something hard — brushes against my arm.
He looks at me with heavy-lidded eyes, not even trying to hide the fact that he got a hard-on from a simple kiss. He was in pain just a few minutes ago!
Something wicked stirs in my chest at the thought that I can do this to him. Fuck, I want to wrap my fingers around that thick cock of his and watch him tremble under my touch. I want to see this dangerous man come undone by my hand.
And he knows it. Judging by that smirk playing at the corner of his lips, he definitely fucking knows it.
“You can do whatever you want, adorable,” he murmurs, tempting me with that deep voice of his.
My fingers itch.
“The doctor said—” I start, but my voice is weak. My will, too.
“Fuck the doctor,” he cuts in, his voice like steel, dark and unyielding. “I’m ready to go right now.”
I touch his thigh, feeling his heat through the thin material of his sweatpants. His cock twitches, harder now. A fire sparks low in my belly, spreading through my entire body.
Then Gary hisses in his sleep, and reality crashes back in. I jump to my feet. Dominic groans, throwing his head back against the headboard.
“A sneeze almost fucking killed you,” I snap, hand on my hip. “You’re not ready to go anywhere. Except to the gym with Pops, to do the homework your physical therapist gave you.”
“I bet I can at least eat your pussy and live,” he shoots back, mock-glaring at me.
“I’m not ready to take that risk,” I say, smiling. Then I get serious, crossing my arms, one eyebrow raised. “Now get up and get ready to do your homework.”
“This strict teacher side of you is hot, but I’m not sure I like it,” he mutters, but he listens and pushes himself out of bed.
Once he’s up, he steps closer, his hand reaching for my face, his thumb brushing across my bottom lip.
“You’re unstoppable, Adora,” he whispers, right before he kisses me.
Nothing compares to hearing the words every morning, straight from him.
Two weeks later, I’m at Next Chapter, going over paperwork in my office, while Petunia — my not-so-new hire — handles customers.
I was such a mess while Dominic was in a coma that I couldn’t handle the bookstore. It took me a week just to step inside after the shooting. By then, the club had already taken care of the cleanup and replaced my shattered window.
Mindfuck poached Petunia — or Petty, as he calls her — from the local gas station.
She’s happy to be out of night shifts, and I’m happy because, breakdown aside, she showed up exactly when I needed her.
Temperance is helping me launch the bookstore online, and I was going to need extra help when that happened anyway.
I’m about to slam my laptop shut and leave all that numbers mess for another day, when the door opens and Dominic strides inside.
His steps are slow, but it’s obvious he’s already so much stronger than he was just a week ago.
I’m on my feet instantly, already rounding the desk to meet him.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, pleasantly surprised.
The last time I checked his tracker, he was at the clinic for PT.
“It’s time for your lunch break,” he murmurs, his arm sliding around my waist before he pulls me in for a kiss. “I missed sharing a sandwich with you.”
He smiles down at me, lifting a paper bag between us.
I grin, wrapping my arms around him. “I already brought one.”
“Then we’ll swap,” he says, his smile widening. “See whose is better.”
I snatch the bag from him and drop into one of the chairs, delicious anticipation running through me.
“Did Mama make it?” I ask, pulling the food out of the bag. I pause, raising an eyebrow. “Or Pops?”
Depending on his answer, I’ll have to adjust my expectations. Pops makes the weirdest combinations — sometimes they’re amazing, sometimes they’re a total miss.
He chuckles, taking a seat across from me and stretching his legs out until they reach under my chair. I absently trap one of his legs between mine and push the lunch bag I packed this morning toward him.
“I made it,” he says, ignoring the food.
Damn. I’m in for a treat. Still, I frown down at the sandwich. It’s chicken parm. Homemade. This wasn’t thrown together, it took time.
“Dominic, you know you’re supposed to rest after PT. Your therapist said so.” I aim for my best scolding tone. “You’ve been pushing your limits all week. Don’t think I don’t know you stupidly tried to ride your bike yesterday.”
He glares. “Who snitched?”
I wipe all expression from my face and shift my gaze to the wall behind my desk, absently tapping a finger against the surface. I’m not about to get Pops in trouble.
A sharp exhale leaves him, followed by a groan.
“As much as I love you fussing over me, I’m fine, adorable. I promise I’m not pushing too hard.”
“Yeah, yeah.” I roll my eyes and jerk my chin toward the unopened bag beside him. “Just shut up and eat my damn sandwich.”
He mutters something under his breath as he reaches for the bag, but I don’t pay attention. I start eating. And fuck me, he outdid himself. My stomach practically sings. My entire body hums with pure, tasty pleasure.
I’m so lost in my trip to Flavor Town that it takes me a second to register what he says next.
“Why do you have a dozen pomegranates taking over that entire chair?” he asks, brows pulling together.
I glance over my shoulder at the overstuffed armchair I use for temporary storage, then look back at him.
“It’s only ten, not a dozen,” I say, a little too sharply.
His eyebrows lift, clearly not expecting that tone. I huff and set my half-eaten sandwich on the desk. A mix of irritation and something softer, closer to shame, twists in my chest.
“I just… never had one,” I admit quietly, looking down at my lap before meeting his eyes again.
His expression shifts, turning serious. He sets his sandwich aside, sensing there’s more behind the words. He’s right, but he doesn’t push. Just waits, letting me decide.
Memories from a distant past tie themselves into a knot in my throat, forcing a sigh out.
“I was about eight or nine when I became obsessed with eating one of these,” I start, my voice quiet. “I read about it in a storybook. Eating it was supposed to teleport you to another world. One day, against every survival instinct, I asked my mother for one. Just one.”
I swallow, my throat suddenly dry. Life with her was such torture that even Hell sounded better to eight-year-old me.
“I don’t know why, but it set her off worse than anything before,” I whisper.
The weight of the memory pulls me down, my shoulders slumping as I stare at the ceiling.
“Needless to say, she punished me for that small request. It was so bad I never asked her for anything ever again.” I pause, drawing in a slow breath.
“I learned to just take instead. A small piece of revenge. A secret first boyfriend. Little acts of rebellion she never knew about, but made me feel a little better.”
Another breath.
“Unfortunately, I got careless when I met you.”
My eyes find his. The anger burning there makes me smile. It’s a weak smile, but it’s better than crying.
“Anyway,” I continue, clearing my throat, “with everything always going sideways in my life, I forgot about the pomegranates. But now that she’s gone…
” I shrug lightly. “It made me realize how many normal, stupid things I never got to experience because of her. So I’ve been working on a list of everything I want to do. ”
Determination sparks in my chest.
“And dammit, I’m going to start by eating all ten of those fruits. And I’ll make a huge mess doing it.”