by KD Jones
Really, though, she had cried less last night than she had the previous several days. She was frustrated, hurt, and most of all angry. Dom wanted her, she knew it. His body’s response couldn’t be denied. He had been jealous and possessive when he saw her with Phoenix. Why was he pushing her away? Was it because of her lack of experience?
The men she had dated in the past had always been split; half of them wanted to be the one to pop her cherry and the other half found it too much effort to have to teach her everything. Dom didn’t seem to fit into either category.
A knock at her door had her heart racing. Was that him? She rushed over to open it, only to find Amelia on the other side.
“Oh, it’s you.”
Amelia shook her head, smiling at her. “Well, good morning to you, too, sunshine.”
Sam stepped back, gesturing for Amelia to come inside. “Sorry, I didn’t get much sleep last night and I’m in a lousy mood.”
“Things didn’t work out?”
“Not even a little.”
Amelia walked over to the couch and sat down. “I don’t get it. When I saw the two of you leave the banquet, I thought y’all had finally given in to your feelings. Then he came back to the after party—alone. What the hell happened?”
It hurt to know that he had returned to the party after leaving her. “We kissed and made out a little, then he pushed me away again. He demanded that I stay away from Phoenix. Phoenix is nice and all, but I barely know the guy.”
“Dom’s being such an asshole. I thought Nigel was bad to end things after one night together, but he quickly realized his mistake and came chasing after me. Of course, I’m having him make it up to me, over and over again.”
Hearing the smile in Amelia’s voice did not make her feel any better. She envied her friend the relationship that she had. She plopped down on the couch, laying flat on her back and throwing her arm over her eyes. “Well, he is totally turned off by my—lack of experience.”
Amelia sat down in a chair across from her. “I know he wants you. I’ve watched him when you walk in a room. His body goes on alert and his eyes are glued to you. Last night when you were dancing with Phoenix, he was so jealous. I thought he might hurt Phoenix and wanted Nigel to step in, but he refused to interfere.”
She glanced over at her friend. “Do you think Phoenix still has a thing for you?”
Amelia shook her head. “He knows we’re just friends and that I love Nigel completely. Just out of curiosity, why did you come to the party with Phoenix?”
“I didn’t come with him, he was standing outside the door and we just came in together. He knew I wanted to try to make someone jealous, so he offered to help. We had one dance before Dom dragged me out of there.”
“See, that right there proves that he has feelings for you. Dom couldn’t stand the thought that someone else was interested in you.”
“It’s not enough. He may not want anyone else to have me, but he doesn’t want me enough to move forward. I don’t know what to do, except leave.”
“What? You still have weeks to go before your contract is up. You can’t leave now! He’ll come around.”
“I don’t think he will. Dom is stubborn. Have you ever known him to change his mind once he makes it up?” Amelia’s hesitation was telling.
“Don’t make a decision about it right now. Give this a little time to work itself out. Dom is in denial about his feelings and he’ll need time to come to terms with them. I’m hopeful that he won’t take that long. You need to do something to keep your mind off things. Let’s go get breakfast before you go into work. Eating will help you think more clearly.”
Sam got up and walked into her bedroom, where she grabbed a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt. There was no point in trying to dress up and entice Dom; he had made it clear last night that he wasn’t interested in her. He told her to leave, but then went back to the party, probably to the woman he was dancing before. It all seemed crystal clear to her.
“Fuck you, Dom.” Cursing him didn’t really ease her hurt, but she didn't think anything would. She was stronger than this. Be brave.
*****
“Did you find someone?” Dom asked Lydia as he took a sip of his orange juice. He had agreed to meet with Lydia this morning because he had been in no mood to talk to anyone last night when he had returned to the after party. He did his host duties, then excused himself as quickly as he could. Everything in him wanted to search out Sam, but he needed time to sort out his feelings.
Lydia shook her head. “I talked to Phoenix for a little bit last night at the after party so I could get a feel for his personality and what his needs are. He’s very reserved. I doubt there’s any one on my team that would interest him, but I’ve called someone from my homeworld to come visit me. I think there may be a connection there that would work. However, getting this person to come here involves many issues.”
“I’m sure the GCFA will pay for whatever traveling expenses and fees there are.”
“It’s not about money. This person is not a worker and would be insulting if it was offered. I’ll do my best to work things out.”
“I trust your judgment. You know, you could have called me with this information.”
She smiled, showing off a dimple in her cheek. “I know, but you left the party early. You promised to meet me, and I’m not going to turn down a free breakfast. Besides, I wanted to ask you how things went with your woman.
“She’s not my woman.” For some reason denying Sam felt wrong.
“Why are you fighting your feelings? The moment you saw her last night, your entire body reacted. You couldn’t take your eyes off her, and when Phoenix was dancing with her, I thought you were going to kill him. Is she too clingy? Is she after your money? Did she sleep with one of your friends?”
Dom didn’t want to talk about Sam with anyone, but he needed to work out his feelings. Lydia knew him just about better than anyone other than Nigel. He stared at his hands, clasped on the table. Saying it out loud, it sounded like a stupid reason to push her away.
“She’s a virgin.”
Lydia blinked a couple of times then burst out in laughter. “Are you serious? In this day and time? How old is she?”
Dom growled at the insinuation that she thought he would be after an underage female. “She’s twenty-eight, brilliant, full of energy, and completely innocent.”
“Why is this a problem for you? Clearly she wants you to take care of her innocent state.”
“I’ve never been with an innocent. You know my sexual tastes can run a little on the rough side. How is she going to handle that?”
“It’s a conversation that you should have with her. Let her decide what she can and can’t handle.”
He thought about it and frowned. “I’m not sure that I would be good for her. I had a rough childhood, growing up on the streets, fighting for food and places to sleep. I came from nothing, and I had a hard time learning things that most learned easily. She’s beautiful and gentle and so damn brilliant. I can’t understand half of what she says, but I like to hear her talk about just about anything. What could I possibly offer someone like her?”
Lydia placed her hand on his comfortingly. “You, Dom. You offer her yourself.”
“Am I enough?”
She squeezed his hands once more before letting go. “You’ll have to let her decide that for herself. You should talk to her.”
“Well, I kind of fucked it up. I may have hurt her feelings. What if she won’t listen to me?”
Lydia raised her eyebrow and smirked at him. “I know you can be very convincing when you want to be.”
He chuckled. “I can, when it’s something I want.” Sitting there, talking about his feelings, things became clearer to him. He wanted Sam, and what’s more, he wanted a chance with her for a future, or at least the possibility of one.
*****
Amelia froze at the entrance of the restaurant so suddenly Sam didn’t have time to stop before she ra
n into her from behind. “What’s wrong?”
She turned around, face paler than usual. “I think they’re full, let’s go back to my suite and I’ll order us room service.”
“You didn’t even ask the maître d’ how long the wait would be.” Amelia moved to look inside. “Oh.”
“Sam…”
“Who is that woman?”
Amelia took her arm to lead her away from the restaurant and sat them down in the corner of the lobby, away from everyone else, where they couldn’t be seen easily.
“You know who she is, don’t you?”
Amelia nodded. “Lydia Waters, she’s the manager of the Venetian workers.”
Venetian? “Prostitutes? She’s a prostitute?”
“I think they prefer the term Intimacy Therapist.”
“I don’t care what they like to be called. Dom is seeing a fucking prostitute, he prefers her over me, a brainy, boring virgin.” She suddenly felt like she was fighting to get air into her lungs.
“You don’t know that he hired her services. Lydia is the manager and doesn’t usually even take clients anymore.”
“I can’t do this. I can’t stay here and watch him be with someone else.” She shook her head and stood up to leave. It hit her suddenly that she was starting to care for Dom. It was more than just sexual. Her heart was starting to get involved.
“Wait, don’t leave until you talk to him. It may be nothing.”
“I won’t be made a fool of like this. I let him get close to me and he has proven that he doesn’t want me. I’m leaving.”
“You’ll have to at least wait until we reach the next spaceport.”
Fuck! Amelia was right. “When do we dock?”
“Tomorrow.”
“Then I’ll leave tomorrow.” She started to walk toward the restaurant.
“Are you going to work?” Amelia called out from behind her.
“Not yet. There’s something else I need to do first before I leave.”
*****
Dom chuckled at Lydia’s joke and felt someone coming up behind him. He turned his head and looked up in surprise. “Sam?”
She picked up a glass of water and threw it in his face. It surprised him. “What the hell, Sam!”
“You’re an asshole!” She gave Lydia a loathing look before she turned and stormed out of the restaurant.
He grabbed a napkin and wiped his face. “Excuse me, Lydia.”
“Of course.”
He stood up and ran after her but Amelia stepped into his path. “Move, Amelia, I need to talk to Sam.” He watched as Sam reached the elevator and got inside. Damn it!
“No, you need to give her some space right now.”
“I need to talk to her.”
“You need to talk to me first. Are you sleeping with Lydia?”
“No, why would you think that?”
“You danced with Lydia last night and now you’re having breakfast with her this morning. It looks as if you two slept together.”
“We did not sleep together! Is that what Sam thinks? I need to explain…”
“Whatever it is can wait until she calms down. Right now she wants to leave the ship for good.”
“No.” He felt like the wind was sucked out of him. Did he do this? Make her want to leave the ship, leave him? He refused to let her.
“I have to stop her.”
“We’ll think of something. Go on to work. She’s spending the day packing.” Amelia glared at him. “I mean it, Dom, leave her alone for now.”
He grunted. “Does Nigel know how bossy you are?”
She winked at him. “Nigel loves it when I get aggressive and assertive. He even lets me tie him up—”
“Too much information,” Dom groaned as he turned away. He would give Sam space for now, but he would do everything in his power to keep her there on the ship with him. He had messed things up with her, it was true, but the idea of her walking away from him broke something inside of him. He had had so many people leave him, but it had never hurt as much as he knew it would if she left him.
Dom would have to face the feelings that he’d had about her from the first moment he saw her. He wasn’t used to having feelings for a woman. Growing up the way he did, fending for himself and fighting for his life, didn’t leave a lot of room for feelings of love or joy. The closest he had come to having feelings was with his few close friends, like Nigel and Lydia. He could honestly say Nigel was the first person he’d ever cared about; he was a brother of the heart instead of by blood. Was there room in his dark heart for another person? Maybe there was enough room for one small red-haired woman with a fiery temper.
Chapter 5
Four hours later
Sam was hurt and pissed, her ego was bruised, and her heart felt stomped on. She had planned on remaining in her suite until tomorrow when they finally arrived at the spaceport, but Amelia had called her to come to Nigel’s office for an emergency meeting. She was just a glorified computer tech. What kind of emergency could they possibly need her for?
She got out of the elevator and walked down the hall. She was nearly to Nigel’s office when she spotted something that made her freeze in place. Standing there outside the office door was Dom. He was watching her. God, why did he have to be so good-looking? She was still wearing her jeans and sweatshirt from earlier. She had put her hair up in a ponytail, but hadn’t bothered with makeup. There were bags under her eyes from lack of sleep. She was a mess. Shoulders back, don’t let him get to you.
Dom was wearing jeans and a pullover shirt and looked like a rich playboy. He always seemed to fit in, whether with the look of a business representative for the GCFA or a playboy. Her heart was racing as she picked up her feet and moved forward. She gave herself a little pep talk. He doesn’t mean anything to me, I can do this.
“Sam, we need to talk.”
She shook her head and moved past him, trying hard not to notice how his cologne mixed with his natural scent. It was a woodsy, fresh air scent and it drove her crazy. Sam walked directly through the waiting area to Nigel’s office, where the door had been left open. She entered and took a seat on the couch.
“What is this about?” she demanded, wanting to get this over with so that she could leave. Her heart was hurting at the thought of never seeing Dom again. Be brave.
Amelia and Nigel were on the other side of the room talking about something. They looked up when she spoke. “Give us just a second.”
“Fine.” She laid her head on the back of the couch and covered her eyes with her arm. She was extremely tired, but also trying to keep from looking at Dom. Keeping her distance was going to be hard, since he had decided to sit down next to her on the suddenly too-small couch.
“You look tired, have you been sleeping?” Dom asked, sounding concerned.
Lifting her arm, she glared at him. “Like you care.”
Dom frowned. “Of course I care.”
He lifted a hand as if he was about to caress her face, but she shifted as far as she could to keep out of his reach. If he touched her, she would turn to mush, and she couldn’t do that, she needed to stay strong.
“Sam…” Dom leaned closer to say something, but Nigel interrupted.
“Sorry we had to call you down like this on such short notice, but we have a problem.” Nigel handed a small handheld computer to Dom. “The money that Clark Davidson embezzled from the GCFA under my name was moved to another bank the day after Davidson was arrested. When the GCFA went to claim the money from Davidson’s account, they found that account had been closed after the transfer. The bank refused to tell them where the money went.”
“What?” Dom looked at the email sent by the bank in question in frustration. “That’s not possible, Davidson’s in lockup with the IDJ.”
“I agree. The IDJ wouldn’t have given Davidson access to a computer, since he’s also being charged with cyber fraud,” Sam agreed. The IDJ was the Intergalactic Department of Justice..
Sam had actually or
iginally been hired by Dom and Amelia to help track down the money to clear Nigel’s name. It was why she had come to the GCFA ship to begin with. She had found the money trail leading to an account that Davidson had set up. She had helped uncover enough proof that the IDJ were able to make the arrest. Now the money was missing once more. That ticked her off.
She reached over and took the computer from Dom. If she had found the trail the first time, she could find it again. “Someone else transferred it, so he must have a partner. Oh crap!”
“What?” Dom, Nigel and Amelia all asked at the same time.
“It’s been transferred to the Galactic Federation Mint Reserve.”
“If you found it, can you transfer it back to the GCFA?”
“Not from here. The GFMR is the most secured bank in the universe. I should know, because I helped them establish their computer security protocols. If I’m inside their building, I could breach their security wall. I always leave myself a backdoor to all programs I design.”
“Maybe we can have the IDJ get a warrant.”
Dom shook his head. “If this partner of Davidson’s suspects the IDJ is going to demand access to his account, he could move the money again and again. We might never recover it.”
“I’ll leave as soon as we dock at the next spaceport. Fortunately, my bags are already packed. I’ll get access to the account, transfer the money, and the IDJ can arrest the partner.” She stood up to hand the computer back to Nigel.
Nigel nodded. “I’ll go pack so I can accompany you.”
Amelia shook her head. “You can’t, Nigel! I mean, if whoever Davidson’s partner is sees you, he could move the money again.”
Dom stood up and announced, “Amelia’s right, I’ll go with Sam.”
Sam stepped back, gasping for words. “No, no, you don’t have to. I can do this on my own.”
Nigel stepped in front of her, forcing her to look at him. “I can’t let you do that, Sam. It could be dangerous. We don’t know who this partner is and what he’s capable of doing. I’m responsible for this situation and the decision is mine to make. I insist that Dom go with you as both your protection and as a GCFA representative.”