Chapter Four #3
“I did. Aiden did me a favor investing the money John gave us when we graduated college. Gave me enough capital while I served to start Hawke Security after I got my discharge.” His smile flashes white in the dark, quick and sexy.
“As much as I enjoyed the Rangers, I like giving the orders, not taking them.”
The man sitting across from me is so much more than the alpha asshole I had pegged him for.
I knew most of these details about his young adult years.
But what I didn’t have was the context, the way his voice warms any time he talks about John Hawke or the brotherly love when he speaks about Aiden or Cassian.
Didn’t know about the other children he protected on the streets.
“And here you are,” I murmur.
“And here I am.”
Without turning his head, his eyes flick back to me.
The air between us tenses, tightens. I remember I’m still holding the cannoli and look away first, biting into the delicious dessert.
Cream and crispy pastry fill my mouth, providing a momentary but very much needed distraction. “This is phenomenal.”
A noise makes me look up and nearly choke. Dominic’s whiskey eyes are burning. “You have cream on the corner of your mouth.”
“Oh.”
I start to reach up, but Dominic leans forward and beats me to it.
His thumb slides across my lip, lingers at the corner of my mouth.
I resist the urge to open my lips and nip the pad of his finger.
An urge I’ve never had before. But this man is bringing pieces of me to the surface I didn’t know existed.
Or pieces you wanted to pretend didn’t exist. Because it’s not just tonight that I’ve found Dominic attractive.
No, it’s been every moment spent in his company ever since he walked into the palace.
I’ve been suppressing it, ignoring it. But now I can’t pretend there isn’t something there, something dark and tempting that has me wanting to throw caution to the wind as the tension builds to a fever pitch.
Shaken, I lean back. Try to ignore the tightening in my chest, my thighs. “Thank you.”
He pushes back from the table and stands, unfolding himself inch by impressive inch until he’s towering over the table. “You’re welcome. Good night, Your Highness.”
I frown at the sudden formality in his tone, the coolness in the eyes that just moments before were blazing with an intensity that left me feeling scorched in the deepest parts of my body. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes. It’s late. You need sleep. So do I.”
I stand as he heads for the door. I should let him go. But I want just another minute or two before the fantasy is over and I slip back into real life. “Why did you do something so nice for me?”
He stops. His hands flex at his sides before he slowly turns. “What?”
I gesture toward the table. “This?”
“Dinner?” His brows draw together. “Was I unkind before?”
“Not unkind, just…” I look away. I should have just let him go. “Sorry. You’re right, we both need sleep.”
“No.” He advances toward me, every step sending my pulse skyrocketing. “You have to start standing up for yourself, Princess.”
One corner of my mouth curves up as he stops a couple feet away. “An odd statement coming from the man who just an hour ago was chastising me for not listening to him”
He tilts his head to one side, his eyes fixed on my face.
“You can be cool, detached. But I’ve noticed that when it comes to subjects and topics you care about—the effect on the palace, the country, your people—you have no problem expressing yourself.
Except,” he adds, his voice dropping into a lower tone that slides across my skin much the way his hand did across my back at the masquerade, “when it comes to things you want, you stand down.” Another devastating smile curves his lips.
“Unless, of course, you’re standing up to me. ”
I know I need to breathe out, let go of the air I’m holding. But it’s trapped inside my chest, much the way I’m ensnared by his dark brown eyes fixed on me. “Part of it…it’s just me being stubborn.”
“I can agree with that.”
I try to bite back my smile and fail miserably. “And part of it is I feel like you’re the first person to treat me like I’m not just a princess. Not a pretty toy to be used.”
His eyes darken as his gaze drops down to my lips. My mouth dries.
“It was interesting,” he murmurs, “seeing the woman beneath the crown.”
“You’re the only person who’s bothered to look in a long time.”
His eyes drop once more to my mouth. “Don’t look at me like that, Princess.”
His growl thickens my blood.
“Like what?”
“Like you want me to kiss you.”
My heart starts to pound. I told myself I wouldn’t do this, wouldn’t cross the line with my bodyguard. Wouldn’t be like my parents or my brother.
But with every second that passes, the desire I’ve been fighting for months spreads, strengthened by the unexpected moments of camaraderie and the insight into a man I’m coming to realize has far more good qualities than I ever estimated.
I took a leap tonight when I went to the masquerade. One that made me feel alive for the first time in far too long. A feeling I’m not ready to relinquish.
I lift my chin up. “What if I want you to?”