Chapter 32 Sloane #2
“That’s incredible, Sloane. All I’ve wanted for you since Eric has been gone is for you to find someone worthy of all the love you have to give.
Eric would want that for you too, baby girl.
He’d want to see you smiling again, the way you have been for the past few weeks.
” A lone tear leaks from the corner of her eye, and she swipes it away.
“Don’t think I haven’t noticed you trying to live the rest of your life for everyone else.
For me. For Mal. For Eric and his memory. ”
I open my mouth to protest, but she shuts me down with a firm shake of her head.
“You can’t lie to me, baby, because I know the truth.
That’s exactly what you’ve been doing, and I’m telling you right now to stop it.
If you love this man, if he’s as special as you say he is, then you make sure you hold on to him.
Grab this second chance at love by the balls and don’t let go until it stops feeling like a gift straight from God himself. ”
Her face is so serious, her fingers gentle but insistent as they squeeze my hand, that I have no choice but to push back the laugh bubbling in my chest as a result of her using the word “balls” and the Lord’s name in the same sentence. I squeeze her hand back.
“Okay, Mama.”
“Alright, now. You better mean it, because if you lose this good man over some misguided notion that you have to be sad for the rest of your life just because we lost Eric, I’ll have to break out my belt.”
I roll my eyes and laugh at the ridiculousness of her threat to spank me.
It feels good to let the seriousness and emotion of the moment melt into something else.
Something easier and closer to the light and airy banter we usually have with each other.
I’m glad to be back to normal and happily let Mama guide the conversation into safer territory—mostly family gossip—while we finish our meal.
While we talk, I can’t help but think about how much lighter I feel after getting it all off of my chest. Managing to do so without a huge blowup happening or one of us dissolving into tears feels amazing.
Like kicking off a pair of heels after a long day of work.
I feel happier, freer, and more hopeful than I’ve ever been about my future with Dom.
I’m ready to admit that I love him, and I don’t want to let him go.
And if he feels the same way, then maybe we have a shot.
I could go home tonight and tell him how I feel, and we could develop a plan for coming clean to Mama and Mal.
I’ve already laid the foundation here tonight, easing our way for telling the truth to the people we love most, but I know it’s still going to be tough.
Mama will wonder why I lied about seeing a client and Mal…Mal will flip her shit, but I’ll have Dom by my side, and he’ll help me sort it all out. I trust him to do that, to be my safe place, my shelter in the storm.
***
As I hug Mama goodbye at the valet station, my heart is beating a mile a minute.
I’m anxious to get back home and talk to Dom.
To see his face when I tell him for the first time that our relationship doesn’t have to end when the renovation does.
That I want something more than a temporary fix to my skin hunger, I want to build a life with him.
I tap my foot impatiently, scrolling through my messages while I wait for the valet to pull my car around. I’ve got a few texts from Mal, James, and Sasha, but the only one I care about is from Dom.
Dominic: Please tell me you’re on your way home to me. I miss you.
Sloane: Hmmm. That depends.
Dominic: On?
Sloane: Whether or not any of the cookies I hid from you last night are left.
He likes to tease me about my sweet tooth, but I’ve quickly learned he’s not opposed to enjoying a baked good now and then.
Last night I had a major chocolate craving—thanks, PMS—and baked some cookies from scratch.
He had his greedy fingers in the pan before they even cooled off, scarfing them down like a starved man.
I had to jump on his back just to stop him from eating them all, which resulted in some very dirty counter sex. And then, while he was in the shower cleaning flour and sugar off of his skin, I stashed some away in an old cereal box.
It was a good hiding place, but no part of me believes he’s been in the house alone for hours and hasn’t found them.
Dominic: Don’t know anything about any hidden cookies, but I’ve got something better for you.
Sloane: Your dick is not a sufficient substitute for homemade chocolate chip cookies, Dominic Alexander.
Dominic: True, but maybe this is.
I tap on the image he’s attached to the thread and find a bag from Twisted Sistas sitting on my counter. I’d bet my last dollar he has a slice of double chocolate cheesecake in that bag. He must have stopped by after work just to get it.
My heart swells in my chest, that increasingly familiar bubble of tenderness expanding until emotion clogs my throat.
This is why I love him. Not because he buys me chocolate cheesecake just days before my period is about to start—though the timing really does make it more meaningful—but because he’s always thinking of me.
Always trying to find new ways to make me smile and laugh.
It’s almost like he’s addicted to seeing my eyes shine with joy and happiness that’s aimed squarely at him.
Sloane: Is that what I think it is?
I hit send on the message just as the valet pulls up in my car. I run around to the driver’s side and press a tip into his hand before sliding into the seat. Another message notification pings as soon as I pull away from the curb and flashes on the display screen in the car.
Dominic: Come home and find out.
I’m not that far away from the house, so I don’t text him back. Besides, using the short drive to get my emotions under control seems wise. I want to go into this with a clear head and heart, with nothing but the absolute certainty of my feelings for him driving me forward.
By the time I make it to the front door, I’m practically vibrating with excitement.
The thrill of knowing everything in our relationship is about to change for the better makes my hands shake as I slide my key into the front door.
Before I can turn it though, it swings open, and Dom is there.
Standing in front of me with a warm smile curving his lips and his arms open wide.
I fall into them immediately, and he walks us backward until I’m in the house and then slams the door shut.
I’m pinned to it in the span of a heartbeat, and my breath catches as he picks me up so we’re eye to eye.
I wrap my legs around his waist and let my purse and keys fall to the floor so I can grip his face and pull his mouth down on mine.
The kiss is slow and luxurious, like we have all the time in the world, and Dom lets me guide it.
My fingers flex in the soft hairs of his beard as I explore his mouth with my tongue.
He tastes amazing. Like cinnamon, oranges, and mint.
And I lick into his mouth like a woman starved, my tongue tangling with his in a carnal swirl that leaves us both panting and wanting more when he pulls away.
“I guess it’s safe to say you missed me.”
I brush my nose across his, loving the way his eyes flutter closed before opening again. This time they’re a little less focused and a few shades darker, that rich brown slowly giving way to black.
“I did. Apparently, I’ve grown accustomed to spending my evenings by your side. How terribly inconvenient.”
I scrunch my nose up as if being used to spending my nights with him is the worst thing that could happen to me, and he rewards me with a pinch to my ass before carrying me over to the couch and throwing me on the cushions.
His body comes down over mine immediately, covering every inch of me with the exquisite pressure of his weight.
Dom buries his face in my neck and inhales.
Pulling in a long, deep breath and then kissing me there until I squirm underneath him.
He chuckles darkly against my skin, and I pretend to be annoyed by shoving half-heartedly at his chest. I’m just about to wrap my legs back around his waist when his phone starts ringing in his pocket.
“Shit.” He shifts and pulls the phone out of his pocket to look at the screen. Whoever is calling must be someone he needs to talk to, because he jumps off of the couch and gives me an apologetic look. “Sorry, angel. I’ve got to take this.”
I wave my hand at him and smile. “It’s fine, Dom. I need to run upstairs and change out of my work clothes anyway.”
“Sounds good. I should be up in a minute.” He offers me his hand, which I happily take, and pulls me off of the couch, smacking my ass before heading down the hall to the office.
I hear the low rumble of his voice as he answers the call, and I can’t help but smile to myself as I head upstairs, my hopeful brain conjuring a vision of a million nights just like this.
Dom and I home together.
His noise and warmth filling the house where chilly silence used to be.