Chapter Thirteen
After they got her dad settled with his dessert, he shooed them away again. Sadie wasn’t sure if it was to give her and Dominic time alone together or if he just wanted to be left in peace to watch his shows.
When they were back in the kitchen, Dominic gave her a mysterious smile and went to the fridge.
“Do you have room for dessert?”
She laughed. “I probably shouldn’t admit this, but I always have room for dessert – even when I shouldn’t.” She eyed the box that he took out of the fridge. “I didn’t realize you brought more; I thought the toffee thing was a special just for Dad.”
“It was. Taryn sent it especially for him. This…” He smiled as he held the box up “… This is something that I brought especially for you.”
“Ooh! Really?” She knew that she was grinning like an idiot, but she couldn’t help it. She wasn’t used to anyone doing anything especially for her. “What is it?” She took a step closer, but he shook his head with a smile.
“I’m not telling until you’re sitting at the table, ready.”
“But I need to dish it up.”
He leaned his head to the side and met her gaze. “You don’t think I’m capable of doing that?”
“No! It’s not that! I’m not saying that…” She gave him a wry smile when he chuckled.
“I didn’t think you were. I just… Can I do it?”
She nodded, and a little thrill rushed through her veins when he held a chair out for her. As she stepped closer to sit, he ducked his head and pressed a quick peck to her lips.
Her fingers came up to touch her lips as he stepped back, and she sat there smiling at him.
His eyes seemed to twinkle as he said, “I’ll be right with you.”
He took a dish down from the cabinet and turned his back to her. She wanted to ask if he needed anything, if she could help, but she managed to stay quiet and let him do his thing.
When he turned back to face her, he kept the bowl behind his back.
She had to laugh. “What are you up to? What is it?”
He grinned and set the bowl on the table before her with a flourish. “It’s something that I figured you would like.” His smile dimmed a little as he added, “But it’s not a problem if you don’t.”
She looked down at the bowl. “Tiramisu? That’s one of my favorites, how did you know?”
“It is? That’s even better. I had no idea that it was your favorite, but when you take a taste, I think you’ll know why I chose it.”
She gave him a puzzled smile as she picked up her fork. He nodded encouragingly. “Go on, take a bite.”
Even before she tasted it, she knew why he’d chosen it. Just the smell gave it away. “ Bailey’s tiramisu? Wow! I didn’t even know that was a thing.”
“I didn’t until I started working at the restaurant. Julio, the chef, likes to put a boozy twist on some of the desserts. When you mentioned the other day that you love Bailey’s, I knew I had to get you to try this.”
She closed her eyes and had to swallow around the lump that had formed in her throat.
“Go on, taste it,” he encouraged.
She nodded, hoping that she’d be able to hide the rush of emotion that had hit her.
Apparently not. His eyes filled with concern, and he squatted down beside her chair. “Hey, what’s wrong? Shit! I’m sorry. I thought…”
She rested her hand on his shoulder. “Please don’t say you’re sorry. It’s wonderful. This is such a lovely thing to do.”
He gave her a puzzled smile. “That was what I hoped, but going by your reaction, I feel like I screwed up.”
“Oh, Dominic, no. You didn’t screw up. Far from it. I… You just have to forgive me, I’m being silly. It’s just so thoughtful of you. Thank you.”
He leaned in closer until their noses were almost touching. “Shit, Sadie. I already suspected that your ex was an asshole. But if a little thing like bringing you dessert is enough to make you cry, he must be a major dick.”
His words were so unexpected that she choked out a laugh. “Oh my God, you’re totally right. He really is.” She looked down at the bowl in front of her. “But I wouldn’t call this a little thing, Dominic. This is huge! You listened to what I said – about liking Bailey’s – and not only that, you also remembered it, and you did something about it.”
His eyebrows drew together. “That’s not huge. It’s not a big deal. It’s normal.”
“Not in my world, it isn’t.”
He frowned. “Maybe not in your old world, but in your new world – in this world, in the one that I’m in. This kind of thing is normal.”
A shiver ran down her spine as she looked into his big, brown eyes. “I don’t know what it’s like to live in a world like that.”
His full lips turned up in a small smile. “Then it’s time you found out.”
She nodded; she’d like to, but she didn’t know if he meant that he wanted to be part of it.
He leaned in and brushed his lips over hers. “In case I didn’t make myself clear, I’m saying that I’d like to be the one who gets to show you how you should be treated.”
Her hand came up to touch his cheek of its own accord. “I’d like that. And… You haven’t told me much about Polly, but I know that you loved her – that you still love her – very much. I know I won’t be able to compare to her…” Her words trailed off when he squeezed his eyes shut. Damn, she hadn’t meant to say the wrong thing.
When he opened his eyes again, he brushed his thumb over her cheek. “That’s something I figured out over the last few days – since I met you. There is no comparison.”
She swallowed. She could understand that he might feel that way, but did he need to put it quite so bluntly?
“Hey.” He caught her chin between his finger and thumb and made her look at him. “I didn’t mean that the way you thought I did. What I mean is that there’s no comparison between you and Polly because you’re very different people. I’m a different person than I was when she was still here.” He gave her a rueful smile. “And apart from anything else, I’m at a different point in life now.” He chuckled. “I’m getting to be an old man.”
She slapped his arm. “Don’t say that. You’re nothing of the sort. Dad refuses to accept the label of old man, and he’s got a few decades on you. In fact, how old are you? I’ll bet that I’m older than you.”
He gave her a mock indignant look. “You know that it’s not polite to ask, right?”
She laughed. “Sorry, I didn’t realize that you were so easily offended.”
“I’m not. I’m only messing with you. I’m fifty-eight.”
“Me too.”
“I guessed that you were younger.”
“Thanks, that’s sweet of you.”
“Not sweet, just honest. But speaking of sweet…” He jerked his chin toward the bowl. “You should try that.”
When she tasted it, it was so good that she moaned. Then, she almost choked on it when she saw the way Dominic’s eyes widened.
He met her gaze and burst out laughing. “Jesus! I knew it was good but…”
She laughed and slapped his arm. “It’s amazing.”
“It sounds like it,” he said with a chuckle.
“Here, see what I mean.” She brought the fork to his lips, and he took a taste.
He made an appreciative noise, but he didn’t sound anywhere near as bad as she had.
“It doesn’t do it for you?” she asked with a smile.
“It’s good.”
She realized that he was still squatting next to her chair. If she were in that position, her knees would be killing her by now.
“Do you want to take a seat, and we can share?”
He grinned and sat in the chair next to her. She watched with a puzzled smile as he pulled the bowl toward him. She held out the fork, but instead of taking it, he caught her wrist and tugged.
“I thought we were going to share,” he said with a smile.
“Yeah, here’s the fork.”
“No.” He patted his lap. “Share a seat.”
She stared at him, and his smile faded. “Sorry. Not if it makes you uncomfortable.”
She laughed. “It doesn’t. You took me by surprise, but in a good way.” With that, she got up from her seat and plonked herself on his lap before she had the time to talk herself out of it.
The second his arm curled around her waist, she relaxed against him. He was big, solid. But it wasn’t just the feel of his muscular body. It was something more than that. She’d felt it when he came to rescue her on the hill. He felt like a safe place – and that was something she’d always wanted, yet never found.
He held her to him as he leaned forward to scoop up a forkful of tiramisu. He brought it to her lips, and she savored the taste of it – almost as much as she savored the feel of his body against hers.
“Is this okay?”
She turned to look up into his eyes. “This is so much more than okay that you might have to peel me off you later.” She covered her eyes with her hand. “At least I’m honest.”
He chuckled. “I like it. We might have a slight problem, though.”
Her heart sank. “Yeah, what’s that?”
His arm tightened around her. “I might not want to peel you off.”
She leaned back against his shoulder and relaxed. “I guess we should enjoy it for now then and worry about that later.”
He set the fork down and wrapped both arms around her middle. When he rested his chin on her shoulder, shivers chased each other down her spine. She turned and pressed a kiss to his cheek.
“In case I forget to tell you later, I had a great time tonight, Dominic, thank you.”
“I won’t forget to tell you – I’ll just go repeating myself; I’m having a great time too. Can I ask you a favor?”
“Of course.”
“Would you call me Dom?”
Her heart sank as she wondered if Polly used to call him Dominic and he didn’t want her to do the same.
He tapped her temple. “There’s nothing for you to overthink. It’s just that I feel like people only call me Dominic until they really know me. Damon calls me Dom, so does Jake.” He smiled. “If you think about it, even your dad calls me Dom.”
“And you like that better?”
He smiled. “I do.”
“Okay. I’ll do that, then.”
He chuckled. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to start calling you honey bun.”
She had to laugh. “That’s a relief. I love it when my dad says it, but it’d seem strange coming from anyone else. Especially you.”
As if he knew that they were talking about him, her dad called from the living room, “I think I’m going to go to bed now, guys.”
Sadie was shocked to see how late it was. She started to get up. Dominic – no, Dom – kissed her cheek before setting his hands on her waist to help her up.
“Be right there, Dad.”
~ ~ ~
Dom made himself useful and took care of the few dishes they’d used while Sadie helped Harvey get ready for bed. He was wearing a big stupid grin, and he didn’t care. This evening had been great, it had gone way better than he’d hoped. Sadie was awesome.
His smile faded; he hated to think what her life had been like with her ex – dopey Dale, as Harvey called him. Then again, he was kind of grateful to the guy. If Dale had known what a gem he had in Sadie, he would never have let her go, and Dom would never have met her.
He straightened up. Thinking things like that sounded like he was already in deep. He stared out the kitchen window into the darkness as he mulled it over. He reached the conclusion that he probably was in deep – but that didn’t mean that they needed to move quickly. They could take their time, see how things developed – he needed to take a minute to discover if Sadie even felt the same way.
He spun around when the front door rattled, ready to defend Sadie and Harvey against whatever intruder was trying to get in. He relaxed, feeling foolish, when the door opened, and Savannah walked in.
“Hi, Dominic,” she said with a smile. “How’s it going?”
He nodded. “Great, thanks. How about you?”
She smiled. “Business as usual for me. Busy, busy, busy.”
Dominic liked her. She seemed straightforward, and there was no question that she was a hard worker.
“Do you eat at the diner while you’re working?”
“Sometimes.” She gave him a puzzled look. “Why?”
“I brought you dinner from the restaurant. I knew you wouldn’t be here.” He gave her a rueful smile. “I thought I’d be gone before you got home. But I didn’t want to leave you out.”
Her hand came up to cover her heart as she said, “Aww! Thank you. You’re awesome!”
He chuckled. “I don’t know about that.”
She nodded vigorously. “I do. It’s too late for me now, but I’ll look forward to eating it tomorrow. And thank you.” She frowned and glanced toward Harvey’s bedroom. “Is Sadie helping him?”
“She is.”
“I’ll say goodnight then, so that you guys can have some space when she’s done.”
“You don’t need to do that.”
Sadie came out of Harvey’s room. “Hey, Savannah.”
“Hi, I was just telling Dominic that I’m going to go up now.”
“You don’t need to do that, sweetie.”
Dom smiled. “You really don’t. Not on my account. I should get going.” He didn’t want to leave, but it was getting late. He cocked an eyebrow at Sadie, and she nodded.
“I’ll walk you out.”
When they reached his SUV, he slid his arms around her waist. He’d surprised himself when he’d hauled her onto his lap earlier. But now that he knew the way that her body felt next to his, he was eager to hold her close again.
She rested her hands on his biceps, and smiled up at him as she said, “I really enjoyed this, thank you.”
“I did, too. Want to do it again soon?”
“I’d love to. When are you thinking?”
He chuckled. “If you want to know the truth, what I’m thinking is… I’m wondering what you’re doing tomorrow.”
“I’d love to hang out, but I said that I’d help in the garden center. It’s always busy on Saturdays. Dad was talking about going into work. I vetoed that, but he’s right that Tilly and Parker will need some extra help.”
“Will you want to eat afterward? I could bring dinner again.”
“I couldn’t let you do that. I can make something, if you want to come over?”
“You shouldn’t have to cook if you’re going to be working all day.”
She shrugged. “That’s just how it goes.”
He frowned. “In your old life, maybe.”
She gripped his arms tighter. “How about we go over to the diner?”
“Will Harvey be okay with that?”
She chuckled. “We won’t be able to drag him away from his shows to come with us, if that’s what you mean.”
“How about I call you and we can decide what will work best.”
“Okay.”
He tapped the end of her nose. “I’ll call you. Don’t think that I won’t. It’s cold out here, I want you to go in, not stand outside while we figure it out.”
“Okay.” She started to step back, but he tightened his arms around her waist.
“Whatever we decide to do, what’s important to me is that I get to see you again tomorrow.”
He loved the way she smiled as she nodded. “Me too.”
He brought one hand up to cup the back of her head. “Can I kiss you?”
She chuckled. “I was wondering how long it’d take you to get around to it.”
He laughed with her. “I’m out of practice with this whole dating thing.”
“That’s okay, I am too.”
He lowered his head, and she rolled up on her tiptoes to meet him. He brushed his lips over hers once, twice, three times. Until now, that was all he’d allowed himself. When she shivered in his arms, he was done holding back. He took the kiss deeper, and she opened up to him. Her arms came up around his shoulders, and he tightened his around her waist. What started out slow and gentle soon grew more passionate. He felt as though the connection they shared deepened with every moment that passed. The rest of the world faded away. All that remained was the woman in his arms, and the feeling that she belonged there.