Chapter 20
Dominic
He didn’t look at him. That was the first rule. He kept his attention fixed on the man in front of him, listening to the supplier talk about margins and timelines. Dominic nodded at the right intervals and asked the appropriate questions.
He didn’t need to turn his head to know what Knox was doing. He could see it in his peripheral vision: the deliberate way Knox set the empty glass down before cutting through the crowd.
“—if we could just push the window back a week,” the supplier said, trying for casual and failing. “Not cancel. Just… adjust.”
Dominic watched him. “This was scheduled three weeks ago.”
“Yes, and we thought—”
“You confirmed twice.”
The supplier faltered. “We did, but circumstances changed.”
Dominic inclined his head, as if considering it. “I don’t reschedule infrastructure,” he replied. “If you can’t meet the deadline, tell me now. I’ll find someone who can.”
A flicker of panic crossed the supplier’s face. “No. That won’t be necessary. We can make it work.”
Dominic held his gaze a moment longer, making sure. “You’re certain?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” Dominic dismissed him with a nod, done with the conversation before the man had even stepped away. The supplier drifted back into the crowd, relief poorly disguised as composure.
Only then did he allow his focus to shift.
And there he was.
Knox had taken a seat at Cassian’s table as if he belonged there. The table was crowded, loud, and alive. Knox’s friends were relaxed, unaware of the current running beneath the surface. A few of the off-duty dancers had drifted over, drawn in by Cassian’s gravity.
Dominic’s gaze settled—inevitably—on Knox, then shifted to the new dancer. The one Dominic had approved a month ago. She was young and ambitious, learning quickly how to aim her charm like a weapon. She was leaning toward Knox, laughing at whatever he’d said.
Dominic turned away before the stillness in his body could be mistaken for hesitation.
He took the staircase to the upper level, the section reserved for VIP tables.
Private enough to separate him from the floor, open enough to see everything.
From there, the club spread out beneath him in a blur of movement and sound.
He took his usual spot along the railing, resting his forearms against the polished metal. Everything was exactly as it should be. Except his attention wasn’t; it anchored immediately.
Knox sat back in the booth, one arm stretched along the backrest. The dancer had closed the distance. Her hand slid up Knox’s chest as she leaned close to his ear, lips brushing his jaw as she laughed.
Knox didn’t move away. If anything, he tilted his head toward her, giving her more access.
Dominic’s jaw locked.
The girl grew bolder, fluid in her confidence. One leg slid over Knox’s thigh, settling into his lap like she’d done a hundred times before. Her hips moved to the rhythm of the bass, while her fingers traced the line of his collar, teasing the hollow at his throat.
Knox’s hand closed around her waist.
Dominic adjusted his grip on the railing, metal pressing into his palm.
Below, Cassian watched with lazy interest, sprawled comfortably, clearly entertained.
The dancer rolled her hips again, slower this time, testing how far she could go. Her fingers slid into Knox’s hair.
Dominic had to consciously force his fingers to loosen, one by one. The club carried on around him, but it all felt distant. Irrelevant. His focus narrowed until there was nothing but that table, the girl, and Knox.
The dancer was nearly draped across Knox’s lap now, and he seemed to be enjoying the attention. He had shifted back to give her room to move, to grind, to perform. His hand hadn’t left her waist.
Stop looking.
That’s when Cassian looked up. Their eyes met across the distance and Cassian’s mouth curved. Dominic felt a specific kind of irritation he reserved exclusively for this man. Cassian had clocked it. Clocked exactly where Dominic’s attention had been and why.
Dominic held the look, a clear warning in his eyes. Cassian didn’t look chastised; he looked pleased. He leaned closer to Knox and spoke into his ear. Knox’s brow furrowed before he followed Cassian’s subtle tilt of the chin. His gaze traveled upward and found Dominic instantly.
The connection hit like a physical force. There was no surprise in Knox’s eyes, only heat and something dangerously close to defiance. The corner of Knox’s mouth curved before he turned back to the dancer, slid his hand into her hair, and pulled her in.
The kiss wasn’t tentative. It was deliberate and performed without haste. The dancer melted into it eagerly, fingers gripping at Knox’s shoulders. The table reacted with laughter and noise, but Knox didn’t pull away.
Dominic was moving before he registered the decision. The staircase felt shorter on the way down. People shifted instinctively as he crossed the floor, his stride alone enough to clear the path without a word.
Cassian saw him coming. He leaned back in the booth, smile widening, and didn’t warn Knox. Didn’t interfere. Just watched as if the entire scene had been orchestrated for this exact outcome.
Smug bastard.
Dominic reached the table just as the kiss tipped toward indulgence. His hand closed around Knox’s forearm, breaking the kiss instantly. The girl blinked up at him, startled, her fingers slipping free from Knox’s hair. She scrambled off his lap a beat later, straightening her dress nervously.
Knox looked up. There was no mistaking what he found in Dominic’s eyes.
“Up,” Dominic said quietly.
The laughter at the table thinned into silence. One of Knox’s friends froze mid-smile. Only Cassian’s amusement remained intact.
Knox rose without protest, but Dominic didn’t release his arm. His grip stayed firm as he guided him out of the booth and through the crowd without looking back.
* * *
The back corridor swallowed the noise as the door shut behind them. The bass dulled to a distant throb, replaced by the heavier sound of their breathing.
Whatever Dominic had been holding in check all night was no longer contained. He released Knox’s arm and stood still for exactly one second. “What the hell was that?” he snapped, stepping forward. His voice had lost all its polish, stripped down to something raw he never let anyone else hear.
Knox’s breathing wasn’t steady. “It’s a club. That’s what happens.”
Dominic’s teeth ground together. “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?”
“Don’t pretend that wasn’t deliberate.”
The silence between them thickened. Knox didn’t deny it. He tilted his head a fraction instead. “You were watching.”
Not a question.
Dominic stepped forward until Knox’s back met the wall with a muted thud. “You wanted me to.”
“Maybe.”
That single word burned hotter than that staged kiss ever could have. “You think that was clever? Provoking me in my own club?”
Knox’s throat worked as he swallowed. “If you didn’t care, you would’ve stayed upstairs.”
That was it.
The fracture.
Dominic’s hand came up, bracing flat against the wall beside Knox’s head. The other slid to his jaw, firm enough to control the angle of his face. “Careful,” he murmured.
They were inches apart. Close enough that Knox’s breath warmed his mouth, the heat coming off his skin impossible to ignore. “You don’t get to weaponize my attention,” Dominic said. “You don’t get to test how far you can push before I react.”
Knox’s pulse jumped beneath his fingers. “And what happens if I do?” Knox whispered.
Dominic kissed him.
Not gentle. Not restrained. It was heat, possession, and the dangerous edge of control slipping from his grasp.
Knox didn’t hesitate. His hands fisted into Dominic’s shirt and pulled him closer, meeting the force with equal desperation.
Dominic’s pulse was pounding harder than it had in years. His grip was tighter than intended. He had never reacted like this. Never felt anything override instinct and logic so completely and so fast.
The kiss turned rougher. Hungrier. He pressed Knox harder into the wall, closing every last inch of space between them. There was no room left for pretense or denial, not here, not like this.
Knox kissed him back just as fiercely. Hands dragged him closer, like he was trying to climb inside his skin. Dominic answered by deepening the kiss—slower but more consuming. His other hand slid down Knox’s side, gripping at his waist.
The kiss spiraled, messy now, desperate in a way Dominic didn’t recognize. He dragged Knox’s lower lip between his teeth, then soothed it with his tongue. Knox’s breath broke against his mouth, hands sliding up into Dominic’s hair.
This wasn’t calculated anymore.
This was want.
Raw. Immediate. Unfamiliar.
Terrifying.
Dominic tore his mouth away. He stood there breathing hard, chest heaving as he stared down at Knox, hand still tangled in his hair.
Knox looked dazed, eyes searching, like he was trying to understand what had just happened.
The air between them felt unstable. Like something explosive had just gone off and neither of them knew where everything would land.
Dominic forced himself to step back. Release him. Put distance between them that his body immediately objected to. “That wasn’t supposed to happen,” he said, voice rough.
Knox’s breathing hadn’t evened out. “You’re the one who—”
“I know.” The admission came too fast. He dragged a hand down his face. “I shouldn’t have done that.”
The music thudded faintly through the walls. Knox’s back was still against the concrete. The silence that stretched between them was tight and unsteady. Knox watched him carefully now, trying to read him. Dominic had spent years making sure people couldn’t do that.
Knox was doing it anyway.
“Why?” Dominic asked.
Knox blinked. “Why what?”
“Why push me?”
Knox’s brow furrowed. “I don’t know.” And for once he didn’t sound evasive. He sounded like he meant it, which was somehow worse.
Dominic studied him: the lingering heat in his face, the confusion still sitting behind his eyes alongside everything else. “You’re not stupid,” he said. “You knew what pushing that far would do.”
Knox looked away, biting his lip. “I didn’t know it would do that.”
“But you wanted my reaction.”
Knox pushed himself off the wall, rolling his shoulders like he needed to shake the moment off his skin. “Fine,” he said, frustration breaking through. “Yeah. I wanted a reaction. Because I didn’t like it when you ignored me for two weeks.”
Dominic looked at him.
Knox lifted his eyes. “You keep asking why I wanted a reaction,” he said. “But you’re not asking the more important question.”
Dominic’s jaw tightened. “And what question is that?”
“Why it worked.”
Dominic said nothing.
Knox straightened. “You saw me kiss a girl. That shouldn’t have mattered to you.” His head tilted. “But it did. Why?”
“You were being provocative.”
“That’s not what I asked. Why did it bother you?”
Dominic could feel the question pressing into the space between them, but he kept his mouth shut.
Amusement moved across Knox’s expression. “You know what I think? You were jealous.”
“No.”
Knox took a small step forward. The corridor felt considerably smaller than it had a moment ago.
“You saw me with her,” Knox said. “You came downstairs. You dragged me out of there.” He shook his head slowly. “That’s not jealousy?”
“I don’t get jealous,” Dominic said, voice even. “You don’t affect me like that.”
Knox’s eyes held his. “Then prove it.”
A beat.
“Prove what?”
“That I don’t affect you.”
Dominic almost laughed, but there was no humor in it. “You think this is a game?”
Knox stepped closer. “I think you’re hiding behind words and control.” Another step. “So let’s see.” The distance between them was nearly gone. “You keep saying I don’t affect you. But every time I push—”
“Careful,” Dominic said.
“—you react.”
His fingers slid into Dominic’s hair at the back of his head and tightened just enough to hold. Dominic felt the pull immediately. A primal awareness ran straight down his spine.
“Remove your hand.”
Knox didn’t. Instead he let it slide down, fingers curling lightly around the back of Dominic’s neck while his thumb traced a slow line along his throat. Testing. Measuring. His other hand came up and pressed flat against Dominic’s chest, palm warm through the shirt.
Dominic went completely still. Every instinct in his body lit up at once, impossible to ignore.
“Still nothing?” Knox murmured.
The hand began to move, slow and deliberate. His thumb dragged across Dominic’s nipple through the fabric, and the sensation detonated through him, his breath catching before he could control it. His shoulders locked. Every muscle went rigid under Knox’s hand.
Don’t give him that.
He hadn’t been fast enough. Knox had felt it. He saw the exact moment Knox knew—the small shift in his eyes, the subtle lift of his brows. His hand didn’t leave, if anything it settled more firmly, like he was confirming what he’d just found.
“Your heart just sped up,” Knox whispered.
“You’re imagining things.”
Knox’s mouth curved. Unconvinced. His hand slipped upward and his fingers moved behind Dominic’s neck, drawing him forward.
Dominic could have stopped it.
He didn’t.
Knox closed the last inch and kissed him.
The kiss was slower this time. Not less intense, just exploratory in a way that felt dangerous.
Then Dominic took over. His hand shot up into Knox’s hair, fingers tightening hard enough to sting, before he drove Knox back into the wall.
Knox made a rough sound, half surprise, half satisfaction, and Dominic felt the vibration of it move through his own chest.
This was what happened when restraint failed.
The kiss turned hungry. Dominic set the pace and took exactly what Knox had been daring him to take. Knox grabbed his shirt with both hands and whimpered.
Dominic pulled back abruptly.
Knox’s lips were parted. His eyes were darker now, the challenge from earlier replaced by something more volatile. He looked—god, he looked good.
Dominic leaned in, mouth brushing the shell of Knox’s ear. “You should be careful what you ask for.” Then he stepped back completely.
The absence of Knox’s hands felt almost violent.
He ignored it. He straightened his shirt, smoothed the fabric, and brought control back the way he always did.
When he looked up, Knox was still against the wall, lips swollen, hair disheveled, watching him with an expression Dominic didn’t have a safe place to put.
“You wanted my attention,” Dominic said. His voice had returned to its usual register. “You have it. But the next time you decide to provoke me… be very sure you’re ready for the consequences.”
He held Knox’s gaze just long enough to make sure it landed. Then he turned and walked back toward the club.
He didn’t look back, but he wanted to.
Fuck.