by Lee Piper
Waiting.
I honestly had no idea what caused Dominic to hide this part of himself from the world. I didn’t understand why he preferred a string of meaningless flings to a serious relationship. He was putting up a false front—to protect either himself or me, I wasn’t yet certain. But what I could be sure of was the need to remind this complicated man of his own self-worth. Luckily, I was just the woman to do it. Hormones be damned.
“I’m not a fool, Dominic. I see you.”
Dominic lowered his mouth until it skimmed over my exposed shoulder, sending shockwaves across my skin. “You see me, do you?” He chuckled. “Do you see me hurting you, Riley? Do you see me fucking with the heart of the purest woman I’ve ever had the misfortune to meet?” His lips caressed my neck. “’Cause I will. Whether I mean to or not, I’ll ruin you.” Dominic buried his face in my hair, breathing deeply and I swear to God, I almost orgasmed on the spot. “You deserve better than a fuckup like me.”
“You’re not a fuckup.”
His hands tightened against my stomach. “Never heard you swear before. Not gonna lie, it’s making me hard.”
“You’re not a fuckup, Dominic,” I repeated, vainly ignoring his growing bulge as it pressed against the small of my back. “You’re a better man than you give yourself credit for. For some reason you can’t see it but I can, I can see what you are. I can see you.”
He stopped and was silent for a long time. Each of his soft breaths cooled my flushed skin. Then, the briefest burn of his lips branded my collarbone and I shivered.
“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Now, can you please help me find Brea? I really need to sit down.”
Chapter Five
I can still feel it … us,
Not looking but it’s all I ever find.
—MONDEZ, “Stranger”
I didn’t remember much after that. Vague, foggy memories came and went like wisps of white smoke amidst impenetrable blackness. At some point, I could have sworn Brea, Dominic and I laughed at some random thing on my phone, though at what exactly, I couldn’t say. Then I remembered Levi’s wet t-shirt, but my thoughts were too murky to turn that tenuous concept into a logical conclusion. However, just before I passed out, I distinctly experienced an overwhelming sense of completeness. I just wish I knew what it was from because I’d never felt anything like it and would have chased that sensation to the ends of the earth if given half the chance.
Doctor Powell was going to crucify me. Escapism is never the answer, she had said. No matter how much I tried to distract myself, sooner or later I’d have to do it. I’d have to face my demons, deconstruct them until their scary parts became nothing more than boring segments and then move the heck on.
Hmm.
Maybe tomorrow.
“Are you fucking blind as well as deaf?”
Grace was awake.
Her raised voice sent a stabbing pain through my head which prompted a throbbing fanfare to spring to life behind my eyes. Grimacing, I rolled onto my side and then gratefully swallowed some aspirin and water she must have left for me. Judging by the muffled sounds coming from the kitchen, she had a visitor and an unwanted one if her previous exclamation was anything to go by.
Gingerly, I sat up. The room swam so my hands gripped the cool Egyptian cotton sheets, steadying me as I waited for it to slow down enough so I could stand without falling over. I needed to get out there. God only knew what was going to happen to our poor guest otherwise.
After slipping on a cream silk robe, I wandered into the kitchen but then stopped short. “Levi, hey. I thought I heard voices.”
Surely, my head was playing tricks on me. I could have sworn Grace and Levi were holding hands a second ago. Shaking my head and instantly regretting it, I tried to smile through the pounding pain. “In fact, I could have sworn I heard raised voices.” Grace ignored my pointed look. “So figured G had a visitor who needed rescuing.”
Levi grinned back. In a red body-hugging t-shirt and faded blue jeans, he was one very attractive guy.
Sigh.
How can he possibly look this good after a massive night? I’m pretty certain I’m sporting raccoon eyes and an eighties perm here.
I ran fingers through my knotted hair.
“Hey, Riley. Thanks, but Grace here is nothing I can’t handle.” He then turned and winked at G, I would have laughed out loud at his audacity if given the assurance it wouldn’t split my head open.
What happened next was… strange.
I mean, it was obvious there was a strong connection between Grace and Levi. In fact, Grace was trying so hard to assume an air of nonchalance it only served to make her feelings for the man more noticeable. She might as well have held up a banner declaring, Levi, take me now. However, something was holding her back, and for the life of me I couldn’t figure out what it was. Sadly, it was also obvious I was playing the awkward role of third wheel.
Long story short, Grace was going to make Levi a coffee—in our stifling hot apartment—so I offered him a nourishing smoothie instead. God only knew I needed the vitamins, though wasn’t looking forward to the racket of the machine or my subsequent agony that would undoubtedly ensue. Anyway, Levi refused, Grace went all weird and then death-marched herself back to her bedroom.
I know, right?
So that left Levi and me once again gawking at each other, I think it was going to become a regular thing.
“What was that all about?”
“She wants me,” Levi replied. “But is fighting it. Fuckin’ doing my head in.”
“Grace seems to have that effect on a lot of people.” I thought for a moment, the aspirin must have kicked in because it didn’t hurt at all. “Want me to put in a good word for you?”
“Could you?” His eyes were so wide and hopeful I laughed.
“Sure.”
“We’ll name our first born after you.”
I held up placating hands. “Whoa, you might want to chill the heck out, Levi. You only met the girl last night.”
He stood up straight, his blue eyes bright. Reckon he must have been a good two inches taller than Dominic. “I can’t describe it, Riley. There’s this thing between us, you know? It’s like…” he paused. “It’s like I’ve been asleep my whole life and I’m only just starting to wake up.” He shrugged. “Now my eyes are open, all I can see is her.”
I stared back at him, stunned.
Wow.
He nodded and was silent for a moment before changing the subject. “I’d better go. I’ve got a paper to finish and my teacher placement to prepare for.”
My eyes widened. “You’re studying teaching?”
“Yep.”
“You know Grace is a high school teacher, right?”
“Sure do.”
Shaking my head, I murmured, “Small world.”
Levi smiled. “I left your phone on the coffee table in the lounge room.”
“Uh, thanks? Didn’t even know I lost it.”
“I’m not surprised.” He winked and right on cue, I blushed. “Dom found it, you must have left it in the booth last night. I wanted an excuse to see Grace again, so he gave it to me to return to you.”
“Oh, that was, ah, nice of him.” I tried not to let my disappointment show. As awesome as it was seeing Levi, I would have much preferred waking up to Dominic instead. Not that I was going to delve into the reasons why, ignorance was bliss and all that.
After Levi left, and I talked a surly Grace into giving him a chance, I flopped on the couch, absentmindedly scrolling through my phone. Suddenly, I stopped. Sitting bolt upright, I exclaimed to no one in particular, “What the hell?” Blinking, I stared closer at the screen and because curiosity always got the better of me, pressed Dial.
After a couple of rings, a familiar voice rumbled, “I was wondering when you were gonna call, angel.”
My toes curled. “Bootycall? You put your phone number under the name Bootycall?”
His chuckle made my
breath catch. “Well, the offer’s there if you ever want to take me up on it.” His voice deepened. “Do you get horny when you’re hung over? I know I do.”
Clenching my thighs together, I countered, “That hardly counts, Dominic. You’re horny all the time.”
He laughed again. “You’re not wrong there.”
Internally, I moaned because all this innuendo was doing my head in. I really needed an orgasm, like, pronto. Just not from Dominic, oh no, I wanted some release from a nice, steady guy who only slept with one woman per night—me. Was that really too much to ask?
Apparently so.
I shook my head and, not wanting Dominic to notice how much his vocal cords were affecting my nether regions, snapped, “By the way, this isn’t a conversation friends usually have.”
“How ’bout we make our own rules about what constitutes friends, huh?”
Damn it, the man had a point. Though I would not give him the satisfaction of saying it out loud; a girl had her pride after all.
“I’ll take your silence as a yes.” He paused. “You up for a run later? If we’re not gonna fuck, I need a run.”
Taking a steadying breath, I considered my plans for the rest of the day. “I’m meeting a friend in a little while but can catch up with you afterward. I mean, if you want?” Yeah, that question came out a billion times needier than I intended.
“I want.”
Ignoring the way those two words made my belly flip and somersault, we agreed on a time and I hung up. The less I heard his teasing voice in my ear, the better. In fact, it reminded me of an earlier time when another playful voice turned my world upside down, only not in a good way.
“So, how was your day?” I was lazing outside my parents’ house by the pool, exam revision notes long forgotten. After all, studying midwifery was a lot more confronting than I expected and there were only so many images of vaginal prolapses I could take. One foot dangled languidly in the cool water as I twirled a strand of hair around my index finger.
“Frickin’ awesome. That’s why I called.”
I smiled. Paul was always so excitable and in the eight months we had been together, he’d started phone conversations by impersonating an overexcited chimp no less than twenty-five times. It was usually because he had discovered a new university course he wanted to study or a new instrument he wanted to play. The guy was a perpetual drifter, he never settled on anything for long and even though it was frustrating at times, it also meant our time together was never boring.
“Yeah?” I asked. “What is it?”
“I’m moving to Canada.”
“What?” I sat bolt upright and then had to steady myself on the sandstone brick edging so as not to fall in the pool.
“I know, right?” He laughed, and for once it didn’t warm my stomach. Instead, it made my insides churn. Painfully.
“I can’t believe it either. But then I thought to myself, life’s too short, you know? Fuck, I could be dead tomorrow, Riley.”
I shook my head. It felt like my feet were snagged on riverbed reeds and instead of releasing myself from their clutches, I was becoming so entangled they dragged me underneath the water.
“How long are you going for?” My voice was so hollow I was surprised it didn’t echo back at me.
“Not sure. Six months, maybe a year. Was thinking of heading over to Europe afterward.”
“But Paul,” my voice was quiet, “what about us?”
“What do you mean?”
Ouch.
“Well, what about our relationship?”
He paused and the silence on his end of the line was deafening. Finally, he muttered, “I knew you’d be like this. I knew you wouldn’t be happy for me.”
“Paul, I am happy. I just—”
“Look, it’s something I’ve always wanted to do, all right? This negativity of yours is draining my positive energy, it’s bringing me down.”
“But, I’m not. I—”
“You know what, Riley? Now that I think about it, you’re not the girl I thought you were.” He took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled. “I think we should cool it for a bit.”
“What?”
“Yeah.” He sighed. “I’ll see you around.” And he hung up.
I stared down at the phone in my hand, trying to make sense of the last five minutes of my life.
Forty minutes later, I still hadn’t figured it out. I was still perched on the edge of the pool, gazing confusedly at my phone while wishing the intermittent Low Battery notification held the answer. Over and over again, a single question circled my muddled brain.
What the fuck just happened?
****
“Oh, my God, you’re killing me, Riley. I’m actually dying here.”
“You’re not dying, Mae.” I rolled my eyes. “If you’ve got energy to complain, then I’m not working you hard enough. One more set and we’re done.”
“I hate you,” she said in between pants while struggling through her final round of burpees.
“You’ll thank me when you can get through this program without breaking a sweat.”
She mumbled something obscene under her breath which I tactfully chose to ignore and a couple of minutes later, we were both sitting in the sand. Mae had a sports towel draped over her shoulders and was guzzling from her water bottle; the poor woman looked completely exhausted. After glancing across at Annabelle, she commented, “Don’t know how I’m gonna pry that dinosaur off her when we get to the car.”
“She can take it with her.” I smiled. “And next week, she can bring it back to swap for something else.” My gaze took in the mountain of toys to our right. “There’s plenty to choose from.”
“Using the kid as a bargaining tool, I see.” I smirked. “Clever tactic.” Mae stood, albeit gingerly. “Here, let me help you carry this stuff. When we get home, Annabelle’s gonna watch cartoons while my bath and I have some alone time.”
We packed up the sunshade, toys and training equipment before lugging them to my black convertible. After quickly filling the trunk, we then shoved the rest of my things into the back seat. Once done, we moved to Mae’s car and set about wrangling a squirming Annabelle into her booster seat. With a satisfied sigh, Mae finally shut the door, turned around, and then gave a low whistle. “Hot damn, sex on legs at stud o’clock.”
“Huh?” I glanced in the direction her gaze was fixed and stilled. Dominic stepped out of Levi’s car and looked… Yeah. Fucking amazing didn’t even begin to cover it. Levi maneuvered his beaten-up Ford out of the parking bay and waved to me as he sped past. I self-consciously waved back.
Mae turned to me, her dark eyes incredulous. “You know them?”
“A little.” I tried to ignore the way my heart skipped a beat as Dominic sauntered toward us. His sandy-brown hair was just the right side of tousled, his eyes that perfect shade of blue. He wore a white t-shirt that did nothing to hide the rippling muscles beneath and black shorts that hung oh so deliciously low. But it was the animalistic, predatory way he moved that had me grasping for something to hold onto and preferably before I fell over. I blinked. The car door handle would have to do.
Nothing to see here, people, I’m just casually gripping the door of Mae’s car like my life depends on it.
He stopped in front of me, a dangerous grin forming when he took in my expression—dazed, aroused, confused? I honestly couldn’t be sure.
“Hey.”
“Dominic, um, hey.”
Wow, that didn’t sound shrill at all.
I swallowed. “This, ah, is my friend, Mae and this,” I indicated to the little girl who was in the process of squishing her new stuffed dinosaur against the window, “is Annabelle.”
Mae stepped forward. “Why hello there, handsome.”
Dominic’s smile widened.
“Sadly, they were just leaving.”
“We were?” Mae looked so disappointed, I almost laughed.
“You were. Unless you and Annabelle would like t
o join us for a run?”
Mae screwed up her nose in disgust. “Hell no.” Smiling appreciatively up at Dominic she murmured, “It was very nice meeting you.” I gazed heavenward but Mae just moved past and gingerly lowered herself into the drivers’ seat. Once settled, she turned to me. “We’ll talk tomorrow.” Her pointed you’re-gonna-tell-me-every-last-juicy-detail-about-whatever-the-heck-is-going-on-between-that-hot-guy-and-you look made me groan.
“Looking forward to it.”
Once Mae had driven off, Dominic’s gaze shifted to my black convertible. The tan canvas roof was on but bulged in the strangest of places. It looked like a slater bug with boils.
“What the fuck’s all that?”
“I’m helping Mae improve her fitness but she can’t focus on the program I’ve drawn up for her if she’s too busy chasing after Annabelle the whole time.” I shrugged one shoulder. “So, I decided to buy a few things to keep the girl occupied.”
“You bought an entire toy store.”
My smile was sheepish. “I might have got a bit carried away, yes.”
“You think?”
I threw up my hands. “So I wanted to be prepared, sue me. How am I to know what a three-year-old likes? I’m no expert.”
Dominic swallowed with effort and the blood drained from his face. “That kid was three?”
“Yeah.” I stepped forward, placing a hand on his bicep. “Hey, are you all right?” Something was off. Way off. Like, a-bucket-of-prawns-left-in-the-sun-all-day off.
He stood as though frozen, his eyes staring unseeingly over the top of my head. When at last he spoke, his voice was hard. “Wanna do sprints today?”
I dropped my hand and stepped back, confused. “Sure.” But then smiled. “If you think you can catch me.”
His gaze returned to mine and gradually thawed as it raked my body from head to toe. A lazy smile appeared as he drawled, “Reckon I’m up for the challenge.”
He did not just incinerate my panties. Honest.
Forty-five minutes later, Dominic and I both collapsed onto the sand, breathless.