Chapter 31
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
D ominic’s condo was in a big building a couple of decades old on the waterfront in downtown Portland. The underground parking garage had an EV charger for his car. I took the empty spot next to him.
“My storage unit has space.” Dominic waved his hand at a locked door. “And you can take over the spare bedroom in the condo.”
I blinked at him. Take over? “Thank you.”
He unlocked his storage unit and brought out a pull cart. We loaded it up with his fruit and some of my things. He crisscrossed my bags over his shoulders.
Wide-eyed and gripping a box, I followed him into the modern and luxurious building—at least it was to me. Massive pieces of art were everywhere, like a fused art glass wall with a tinkling cascade of water.
An elevator zipped us up to his floor near the top. His door opened onto a bare-walled foyer—with gleaming hardwood floors.
Dominic pointed to the left. “The spare bedroom is through here. It has a big closet.”
The room was empty. I set my box down by the wall, and Dominic piled my bags next to it. “Okay, I have to see the view.”
He jerked his head to the door. “Go explore. Look anywhere you like.”
The living room wall of windows faced the Willamette River, reflecting gold, red, green, and blue lights from the city into the dark night. The Portland skyline sparkled in the distance. Yachts were parked in a marina below his building. I turned in a slow circle around the space—an open floor plan with a large kitchen and dining area next to the living room. His office was on the other side of the hall, with a big desk facing the view.
“Wow.” I smiled at him over my shoulder. “Who needs television when you have this to look at?”
He stacked fruit on the white marble counter tops. “Honestly, I miss watching football on something besides a tablet.”
“There are so many windows. I can’t wait to see it in the morning.”
He came to me and wrapped his arms around me from behind. I bit my lip hard, my heart swelling with hope.
“Should we order in or eat out?” he asked.
“Oh…whichever.”
“Okay. I’ll order in. Is salmon alright?”
“Thanks.” I turned around in his arms to face him. “I feel like you’re spoiling me.”
“Spoiling?” He cocked his head a little. “I’m feeding you to keep your energy up.”
“What for?” I smiled up at him.
His eyes narrowed. “Whatever I think of. Go unpack before I drag you into my bedroom without your dinner.”
I kissed his jaw. “Very sensible.”
His hands tightened on me for a moment as I pulled away. I left him taking out his phone in the living room. Wandering over to the office, I admired the built-in cabinets and popped my head outside to look at the balcony. I peeped in the main bedroom at his king-sized bed when I went down the hall. The walls were empty in there, as they were in much of the condo.
In the spare bedroom, I found the walk-in closet and began stacking boxes and hanging my clothes. The window faced the exterior wall of another condo building. I closed the curtains and took a few deep breaths. Don’t unpack too much. You might be out on your butt tomorrow.
My phone rang with a call from my youngest sister. “Hey, Tilly. How are you?”
“Hi, Kelsey.” She inhaled and blew out. “I’m…eh. Can you talk for a minute?”
“Of course. What’s going on?”
“General shittiness. Sorry. I don’t want to just gripe your ear off. How are you?”
I found the birth control packs and set them on a shelf. “Part shitty, part good. I’m seeing someone new, and I’m at his place right now.”
“What? No way.”
“It’s true. I’m…shocked with myself. We’ve been moving really fast.” My mother’s stern face came into my mind. She used to hit the back of my hands with a switch if she caught me looking at a man.
“Okay, obviously you can’t tell me everything with him there or whatever. You’re going to have to text me. Please.”
“Yeah. But what’s going on? How’s school?”
“School is…hard. You’d think an art major would be a piece of cake. But it’s not.”
“I wouldn’t think that.”
She sniffed. “It’s so damn cold. And I’m working all the time. But don’t have any money. Can’t seem to sleep at night without drinking…I don’t know.”
My mouth opened and closed—there was so much, I didn’t know where to start. She was drinking every night? I squeezed my eyes shut. “You’re cold? Like where you’re living?”
“Yeah. And I bicycle or bus everywhere. I tried calling Mom, actually.”
I stared at my pile of things still on the floor. Our mom didn’t approve of college. “How did it go?”
She snorted. “Bad. Told me I was on my own, as usual. Then we argued about you. I don’t think I’m expelled from the family, but I’m close.”
“Sorry.”
“Don’t be. I can’t stand them. Not sure why it still hurts me when they’re so heartless.”
I rubbed the back of my neck. “I have some time this week. I’m going to try and see you. What’s your schedule like tomorrow?”
After I hung up with Tilly, I went out to the living room where Dominic was unpacking our salmon and mashed potato dinners that had been delivered. He had a basketball game playing on a large tablet. I told him to keep it on—it was the end of the fourth quarter. We ate while sitting on the kitchen barstools. He opened a bottle of white wine, one of the most delicious things I’d ever tasted.
“So, tomorrow,” he said as I searched for the garbage can in his sparkling kitchen. “That cabinet by the sink slides out.”
“Ah. Oh—is this compost? Right.” I sorted everything into the proper bins. “My little sister called from Eugene. She’s doing a bachelor’s down there.”
“Are you close?”
“Very.” I picked up my wineglass and leaned over the counter toward him. “I’m worried about her. I’m thinking I’ll drive down there. I don’t think she has a warm jacket.”
He picked some grapes off the bunch in front of him. “A road trip to Eugene tomorrow? I’ll see about a hotel.”
I grinned at him. “There you go. Spoiling me again.”
He bent forward and held up a grape in front of my mouth. I opened my lips and let him push it inside. “Not yet. Come to bed, and I’ll rub your shoulders.”
I groaned. “Stop. It’s too good.”
He smiled, and it was like I’d won the lottery. The man seemed genuinely happy for one of the first times since I’d met him. His teeth were large and white, one side of his smile a little higher than the other. I rested my head in my hands, staring at him.
“Go get your pajamas on,” Dominic said.
My slip didn’t stay on long. He spread a large towel over the bed and poured oil in a warm line down my spine. His big hands dug into my back and the muscles of my bottom, over my legs and calves. When his fingers finally glided between my legs, I moaned and squirmed, lifting my bottom up higher.
“So hot for me.” He pumped two fingers into me, and I cried out.
“Turn over and open your mouth.”
I rolled to lie on my back. He crouched over me, and I guided his shaft into my mouth. There was almond oil on my hands as I squeezed up and down, his tip pushing in and out of my puckered lips.
He pulled out and moved down my body to push between my legs, both of us gasping as he thrust inside. The pace was fast until his back was damp with sweat. He ground against me, and I came, clenching and lost in searing pleasure. Shuddering, he pressed deep into me, his eyes closed as he held himself still.
When he lay next to me and pulled me against his chest, I kissed his shoulder and wrapped myself firmly around him.
“There, some cuddling for you,” he said. “But don’t get used to it.”