Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Istirred against Dominic’s solid warmth.
The first light of dawn filtered through my bedroom window, catching dust motes that danced in the golden beams. I was cocooned in a nest of blankets and Dominic’s clothes.
His expensive Tom Ford jacket—or what remained of it—lay crumpled beneath my head, the once-pristine fabric now saturated with our mingled scents.
My heat had finally broken. We’d shifted positions sometime during the night—or early morning, rather—after his knot had finally gone down for the last time.
Now I lay sprawled across his chest, our legs tangled together, his strong heartbeat a soothing rhythm beneath my ear.
I traced idle patterns on his skin, memorizing the feel of him.
“You’re thinking very loudly,” Dominic murmured, his voice rough with sleep. His fingers tangled in my hair, massaging my scalp with gentle pressure that made me purr.
“Just... processing,” I admitted, shifting to look up at him. The morning light softened his features, revealing a vulnerability I’d never seen before. The bond between us hummed, still new and raw and perfect.
His eyes searched mine, a hint of uncertainty creeping into his expression. “Regrets?”
“None,” I said immediately, pressing a kiss to his chest. “You?”
His laugh rumbled beneath my cheek. “Only that we waited so long.” His hands slid down my back, coming to rest possessively on my hips. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I’ve been thoroughly claimed,” I teased, then shifted and winced slightly. “A bit sore. In a good way.”
Concern flickered across his face. He helped me roll onto my side, his hands gentle as they skimmed over my body, checking for any sign of injury. “I wasn’t too rough?”
The tenderness in his touch—this alpha handling me like I might break—made my heart swell. I caught his hands, bringing them to my lips.
“You were perfect,” I assured him. “Everything was perfect.”
Relief washed over his features. He pulled me closer, nuzzling into my neck and inhaling deeply at my scent gland. The action sent a fresh wave of warmth through me, despite my heat having ebbed.
“I should get you something to eat,” he murmured, though he made no move to release me. “Keep up your strength. Can’t have my omega starving.”
I laughed. “There’s leftover casserole in the fridge. And Penny brought pastries yester—“
I frowned. “How many days has it been?”
“Three,” Dominic replied. Instead of getting up, he rolled us, pinning me beneath him. He stared down at me with an intensity that made my pulse quicken. “I need to tell you something. Something important.”
I froze, suddenly afraid. Even with our new bond, old insecurities died hard. “What is it?”
His expression softened. One hand came up to cup my cheek, his thumb brushing across my cheekbone. “This was more than just biological imperative for me, Leo. It’s been that way for a while now. What happened between us wasn’t just because of your heat or my rut.”
The simple declaration knocked the breath from my lungs. I stared up at him, searching for any hint of deception, but found only earnest vulnerability in his silver gaze.
“I know this is all happening fast, but—” he rushed on, a hint of uncertainty creeping into his voice.
I surged up, cutting him off with a kiss. When I pulled back, I was smiling so wide my cheeks hurt. “It’s the same for me too, you impossible alpha. Even when I thought you were the enemy.”
The smile that bloomed across his face was breathtaking—open and genuine in a way I’d never seen from him before. He lowered his head, capturing my lips in a kiss that was achingly tender.
“Good,” he growled playfully against my mouth. “Because you’re never getting rid of me now.”
As if on cue, my body flushed with fresh heat. I shifted restlessly beneath him, suddenly desperate for his touch again.
“I thought it was over,” Dominic remarked with a soft chuckle. His laugh might just be the most beautiful—and stimulating—sound that’s ever graced my ears.
“But you... you’re making it come back,” I whispered, my voice catching as another pulse of need washed through me.
Dominic’s presence, his scent, his confession—not exactly a confession of love, but admitting that this signified something beyond merely fulfilling a physical need—had triggered one last flare.
My skin prickled with sensitivity, and I arched instinctively toward him, seeking my alpha’s touch because it was the only thing that could soothe the burning ache spreading through me.
“I seriously ought to get that food,” he teased, moving back as though preparing to stand, to abandon me.
At this moment, sustenance wasn’t what I craved. I craved him.
I wasn’t particularly famished or parched. I had some hazy recollection of Dominic compelling me to eat protein bars and hydrate during the intervals between each surge of heat.
“Food can wait,” I gasped, pulling him back down to me. “Need you more.”
His eyes darkened with renewed hunger that had nothing to do with leftover casserole. “Whatever my omega desires,” he promised with a deep rumble, triggering countless butterflies dancing in my tummy.
I let out a needy whimper as he lowered his head to reclaim my mouth.
The mattress dipped beside me as I blinked awake.
Dominic sat there, a glass of water in one hand and a protein bar in the other.
His free hand stroked through my hair, fingertips occasionally grazing the tender mating mark on my neck.
Pine and cinnamon wrapped around me, his alpha scent altered subtly by our bond—deeper, more complex, with notes of my own chocolate-leather scent intertwined.
“Drink,” he urged, pressing the glass to my lips. “You need to rehydrate. And eat this.”
He ripped open the protein bar’s wrapper, handing it to me. “Start you off with something easy on the stomach.”
I obeyed, letting him take care of me. My body ached in the best way, marked by a days of heat-driven passion. “I appreciate you looking after me,” I said.
Dominic rumbled deep in his chest. “It’s my pleasure.”
Heat flushed my cheeks, probably turning them crimson as I nibbled on the energy bar.
“What time is it?” I asked, hastily steering the conversation elsewhere, least I drag him into bed again.
Dominic reached for his phone, turning it on. “Just past noon. Hmm… Abigail’s called me sixteen times.”
“Wonder what that’s about?” I mused as I polished off the energy snack.
“No doubt reporting on the many fires I’ll need to extinguish because a certain someone kept me thoroughly occupied these last three days,” he remarks with no real annoyance.
“Then you should get to work, lazy alpha,” I teased, nestling under the blankets, hoping he’ll join me.
“I’ll call her back after I get some food in you. One protein bar isn’t nearly enough.” His thumb traced my bottom lip, the casual intimacy of the gesture making my chest tighten. “But first, how do you feel?”
“Like I ran a marathon.” Heat crept up my cheeks at the memories flooding back. “Several marathons. In the Sahara. While carrying weights.”
Dominic’s chest rumbled with alpha satisfaction, the sound vibrating against my shoulder where I pressed against him.
He set the empty glass and wrapper aside and stretched out beside me, pulling me against his chest. His skin burned hot against mine, still running warm from the last vestiges of his rut.
“Still no regrets?” His voice held a hint of vulnerability that made my heart clench.
I touched the mark on my neck—his claim. “None whatsoever.”
He studied me for a long moment, something like wonder crossing his face. “I never thought I’d find my mate in a small-town cobbler.”
“And I never thought I’d end up with an alpha who tears thousand-dollar suits like tissue paper.” I traced the line of his jaw, feeling the slight rasp of stubble beneath my fingertips.
“Yes, well... my only excuse is that I might have briefly gone insane.” He flashed his pointed canines in a quick smile. “Small-town cobblers have that effect on me.”
His lips found mine, soft and sweet. So different from the desperate kisses we’d shared during my heat. “We should get up,” he murmured against my mouth, even as his hand slipped under the blanket, tracing the curve of my hip with possessive fingers.
“Probably,” I agreed, making no move to leave the warm nest of blankets.
“I could get that food we’ve been talking about.” His palm slid up my side, leaving goosebumps in its wake.
“Mmm,” I replied eloquently, tilting my head as his lips found the mark on my neck. “Food. Good idea.”
A sharp, insistent knock shattered the moment, followed by the jingle of the brass bell my great-great-grandfather had installed decades ago. Even from upstairs, its distinctive tone was unmistakable.
“Leo!” Penny’s voice carried through the floorboards, pitched higher than usual with urgency. “Leo Sterling-Hart, get your newly debauched butt down here right now!”
I guess the entire district had heard by now that my heat had arrived during the auction and I’d departed from Fairfax Mansion alongside Dominic Steele.
Sarah’s voice followed, quieter but just as tense. “Leo, please. It’s important.”
Dominic growled, his body tensing protectively around mine. I pressed a placating kiss to his jaw, feeling the slight rasp of stubble beneath his lips.
“It sounds urgent,” I said, reluctantly extracting myself from his embrace. “We should see what’s happening.”
Another growl rumbled through his chest, but he released me with obvious reluctance.
I tugged on the nearest clothes—his shirt and my jeans—and padded across the cool floorboards to the door.
Dominic followed, pulling on his pants but leaving his chest bare, his movements fluid despite his clear reluctance to end our seclusion.