Chapter 26
Dominic
“You look beautiful,” I say. I swear I see Mila’s cheeks blush a rosy shade of pink. I rarely see her blush, I think because her Latina blood keeps her skin a perfect shade of olive. It’s the loveliest contrast with her honey-colored eyes, and it takes everything in me not to stare.
“Thank you,” she tells me as I help her out of the car. We are at Blaze. It’s a swanky restaurant near my company with fire-grilled steaks, chicken, and seafood. There are amazing cocktails and fire pits on an enclosed patio.
“This is fancy,” she says as I guide her through the restaurant towards a staircase.
“We have meetings here a lot,” I tell her.
“Really?” she asks. “I don’t know if I’ve ever even been somewhere like this.”
“The food is great, and the rooftop is perfect for parties,” I tell her.
“The rooftop?” She asks, and I place my hand on the small of her back, guiding her up the stairs.
“Mmhmm,” I answer with a smirk.
There are private tables situated around firepits. There are string lights overhead and around the banisters, and a small bar catering only to our party.
“Wow,” she says with a smile as we walk in. Everyone from work turns to greet us, and it’s a flood of names, hands, and compliments in Mila’s direction.
“Everyone, this is Mila. Mila, this is everyone,” I say. “Nate is my lead man; he handles all the clients on an interpersonal level.”
“I do Zoom calls and sales,” he says with a warm smile.
“It’s because he’s the prettiest guy here. I’m Josh.”
“Josh is in charge of marketing,” I say. “And this is Dalton and Morgan. They handle logistics. Then we have Joel and Brendan. Joel is the electrical engineer, and Brendan is the mechanical engineer. Then Stephen, John and James. They’re all in software.”
“Gosh, I don’t know if I am going to remember all your names,” Mila smiles. I am dead certain is another blush.
“Oh don’t even bother,” Andrew says, coming out of the woodwork with a drink in hand. “This isn’t even half of us.”
“What’s important is that you remember who Morgan and Dalton are,” I say. “They’re my favorites.”
“That’s because we keep the ship above water,” Dalton says.
“No, that’s the engineering department’s job,” Brendan cuts in.
“Right, but we keep the boat rowing smoothly,” Morgan says. Everyone continues to banter, making Mila laugh.
“I thought my impression was the one that mattered most.” My father’s voice comes from behind me, and we turn around to greet him. As usual, he is dressed to the nines with hard eyes and a smug smirk. Some things never change, though I am surprised when he looks over Mila.
“Well, aren’t you charming,” he says, and she smiles, holding out a hand. “More lovely than the photos. Son, why didn’t you tell me she is more lovely than the photos?” he asks, taking her hand.
“I didn’t want to brag,” I say.
“A lady like this on your arm and you should do nothing but brag,” he says. I can’t help but let out a small and discrete sigh of relief. “Well, I’m starving. When can we eat?”
“After you,” I say, gesturing for him to take a seat at one of the tables by a fire pit near the bar.
“I didn’t know your dad was going to be here,” Mila murmurs through a smile without moving her lips.
“I didn’t want you to be nervous,” I tell her under my breath.
“No, because catching me completely off guard is much better,” she sasses.
“Don’t worry, you’re doing great,” I insist.
“Am I?” she asks.
“Trust me. He likes you. And he doesn’t like anyone.”
“Oh, lucky me,” she says, and I grin, winking at her before we sit down. The waitress places multiple dishes to share in front of us. Everything from seared ahi to chimichurri grilled shrimp to a charcuterie board.
“I have to admit,” my dad says as he digs into the shrimp. “When I heard that my son was seeing someone, I didn’t know what to expect.”
Here we go, I mutter internally while keeping an easy smile on my face. I lean back in my chair, lacing an arm around Mila, placing my hand on her hip.
“Oh?” she asks as she gingerly takes a sip of her water with a smile. “And why’s that? Does Dom have a reputation for bringing questionable girls home?” she teases. I squeeze her hip.
“Actually, he rarely brings girls home at all,” my dad says. “Which is why this is such a lovely surprise. You, my dear, are a lovely surprise.”
“Well, you’re sweet,” she says, placing her hand on my thigh. It’s a subtle way of letting me know she is laying it on thick solely for his benefit. “I only regret that he didn’t introduce us sooner.”
“Better late than never,” he says. “Do you want a drink? Something besides water? The muddled berry gin and tonic is phenomenal here,” he says.
“I’m fine with water,” she says.
“Are you sure?” he asks.
“Very,” she says while unraveling her silverware from the black cloth napkin. “I wouldn’t want to make the wrong impression.”
My dad smiles; it’s genuine. I take note of the moment that hell must have frozen over. “Trust me, my dear, you have made a very good impression.”
“I don’t know how you did it,” I tell Mila as we head back to my car after the party.
We stayed longer than I expected, mingling with my co-workers and even talking to my dad for over an hour.
The tension that has always been there was still there.
That will never change, but it wasn’t unbearable, and that’s saying a lot.
“I didn’t really do anything,” she says. “I had a good time. Your friends are fun.”
“And my father?” I ask, and she smiles.
“I think I did well there, don’t you?” she asks.
“I think you did magnificently,” I tell her, opening the door for her.
“I think I should get a bonus for that,” she says, and I wait before closing the door, bracing it in my hand.
“Oh really?” I smirk. “And what did you have in mind?”
Mila taps her manicured nail to her lips with a sly smile and mischievous eyes. “I’ll have to think about it,” she says, and I grin.
I slide into the car and buckle my seatbelt. But before throwing the car into drive, Andrew appears at my window. I roll it down and he leans over.
“What’s up?” I ask.
“Niko’s losing his mind, that’s what,” he answers. “Apparently one of the security cams is down at the Cockpit. He wants someone to go check on it. You want me to send one of the techs over?”
“No,” I say, scratching my chin. “They’re all still at the party. I’ll swing by and check it out.”
“Sounds good,” he says, patting me on the shoulder.
As we pull onto the street, I turn to Mila. “Is that all right?” I ask and she just smiles. I can’t help but smile too at how amiable she’s being tonight.
“Of course,” she answers, and so we head off to the Cockpit.
We use the back door and turn on the overheads by the stage. Mila walks around slowly, her eyes sweeping over the room.
“It’s so different when it’s empty,” she calls out, her voice echoing through the room.
I’m at the control panel for the cameras and alarm systems, plugging through the data to see what’s not quite right. It’s an easy fix, one that doesn’t take more than five minutes. From the looks of it, the camera is running again.
“Hey Mila, do me a favor,” I tell her. “Go stand in front of the back door. The one where we came in.”
Mila trots off, and a second later, her figure pops up on the screen. Even in black and white, she’s gorgeous. She looks up at the camera and waves with a smile.
“Can you see me?” she calls out.
Hell yeah I can.
“I don’t know,” I call back. “It’s kind of blurry. Move around a little in front of the camera, and I’ll let you know.”
“Move around?” she asks.
“Yeah. Maybe do a little dance, you know?”
Mila laughs and then makes eye contact with the camera. Her gaze is sultry, and she blows a kiss. A smirk crawls across my lips.
Goddamn…
“I’ll do the best dance I know,” she calls over. And I cross my arms and bite my lip in anticipation.
She perks her chest forward and tightens her torso, making her ass look perfect. And then…she starts to floss. As in…the dance.
I surprise myself when I burst out laughing. She laughs too and jets away from the camera. When I come out from behind the control panel, she’s standing in the ring.
“What are you doing now?” I ask.
“Looking around. Seeing what you see.”
“Just imagine a roaring sea of people all judging you. Then a 230lb, solid muscle man comes at you hoping to send you home with less teeth than you came here with.
“Sounds scary,” she says as I join her in the ring.
“It’s alright,” I say.
“How do you know what to do?” she asks.
“Well for starters, I’ve been fighting since I was a teen.
I did a lot of research before my first fight.
Read every book I could get my hands on.
Watched MMA and pro boxing. Even military training.
Remember, I wasn’t the most strapping young lad.
I wanted to make sure the first time I entered the ring I was ready.
I wasn’t looking to get my ass kicked by someone twice my size. ”
“And did it help?” She asks, turning to look up at me.
“Not at all,” I say, and she bursts out laughing. “I got my ass kicked by someone twice my size. But I kept going back, working harder, and eventually, I wasn’t the little guy anymore. And I wasn’t getting my ass handed to me either.”
“Alright, so how do you do it?” she asks, and I look down at her.
“How do I do what?” I ask as Mila backs away from me, holding her fists up.
“How do you fight? Show me.”
For a moment, I just stare at her incredulously. “Are you serious?” I ask with a chuckle.
“Yeah! I wanna know how to fight. Show me the ropes, champ,” she says, hopping between both feet, and I literally spit out a laugh.
“Well, first, your posture is all wrong,” I say, stepping towards her. “And take off those ridiculous heels before you roll an ankle.”
Mila giggles and unbuckles her shoes, tossing them aside and losing about four inches. She puts her fists up, feisty as ever and ready to go.