Chapter 19
CHAPTER 19
W e lay in bed, Dominic’s adept fingers moving languidly over my body. I relaxed as he lay nestled between my legs, where he’d moved after we woke. We’d managed to get in a shower and brush our teeth before breakfast, although we never got to breakfast; we knew it was a bad idea to shower together. Spent from the shower sex, we sank back into the soft sheets. It was hard to separate and do something as mundane as eating when it might be a few days before we’d see each other again. He had to take care of the business waiting for him, and I needed to reassemble my shattered life.
Sinking my fingers through his hair, playing with the strands, I was trying to focus on his questions, which was getting increasingly difficult because my body craved to respond to his touch.
“What are your plans again?” He repeated the same question he’d asked before bed the night before.
“Get my job back.” I beamed.
Warm breath from his chuckle brushed over my skin. “I see your plan to get your job back hasn’t advanced any more than yesterday.”
“I do have a plan. Puppy dog eyes and apologies. That’s plan A,” I said, giving him a light smack across his back when his chuckle transitioned to his tongue grazing over my belly. “I plan to tell her it was urgent family matters and hope she doesn’t ask further questions.”
He repositioned himself until he straddled me. With an arm on each side of me, he held my eyes. The banked fire in them drew me in until they extinguished into deep amber. He seemed to understand I didn’t want to discuss my job any further. I really didn’t have a plan but desperately wanted to return.
Dominic studied me for several moments. The weight and intensity of his scrutiny made me drop my eyes from him several times. It felt like he was stripping away the layers of a facade I had haphazardly erected. Despite the affection that peeked through, it felt invasive.
“Why didn’t you even inquire about a way for your magic to be returned?”
“It was never mine,” I said. “If I had it, I’d be tethered to the magical world. If it’s ever discovered that magic could be taken and harnessed for someone’s own purposes, I’d be a target. Or, fear of the type of magic I possessed would open me up to attempts to stop it by killing me. Even if it was determined I’d never be a risk to anyone, the magic would always be coveted. I don’t want a life constantly upended by requests for alliances. Being with you will come with some risks, I know that. I don’t want magic to add to that.”
“Risks?” He chuckled.
“My life being endangered because of you is funny?”
“Not at all. Of all the things to worry about, that should not be a concern. I give you my word no one will come near you, for any reason. Your life will be more protected than theirs because their existence hinges on it.” His chest reverberated with the growl in his words.
Pressing a gentle kiss to his lips, he deepened it. His lips rested on mine.
“Say it.”
I smiled against his mouth. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.”