by Kayn, Debra
She leaned forward, letting him strip the sweatshirt from her. He slipped his hand into the waistband of her jeans and pulled her toward him, kissing her hard and fast. “You make it impossible to go slow.” He paused. “I’ve wanted you ever since you ignored me in Cottage Grove, and it feels like punishment to take my time. You’ve been in my head for months, sleeping across the hall for days, and all I can think about is sinking myself inside of you and staying.”
Validation of what they were doing came swiftly. The unsteadiness inside her vanished. “You drive me crazy.”
That was the truth. She hated him for how he made her react to him. It was a constant fight to keep from falling at his feet like all the other women, but she couldn’t lower herself to being like all the rest. She had to believe that this was real. There was no denying the air sizzled between them, and the way her body warmed when he was near.
He regarded her thoughtfully. “This is special. You know that, right?”
“Yes.” She nodded. “And if you don’t do something right this minute, I’m going to scream.”
He chuckled. “I don’t want you screaming … yet.”
His lips brushed hers, but a wayward curl caught in her mouth. She reached to push it back and fell back flat on the mattress. He undid her jeans, and tugged them from her body, along with her panties and socks. Too hot to care about her nudity for the first time in front of Dominic, she undid the front clasp of her bra and wiggled her arms out of the straps.
He stood at the end of the bed. Without taking his eyes off her, he pulled his shirt over his head. The wide expanse of his chest left her sucking in air. Everything about him was big. Big arms, big shoulders, big chest, big thighs — she gazed down — God, those thighs.
“Too many clothes,” she managed, rising on her elbows and propping herself up to watch.
In one move, he took his jeans and boxers off. She rose to her knees. Oh. My. God.
His hardness jutted out below a flat muscled stomach, proud and a little daunting. She sucked in her lower lip and clenched it between her teeth. The whole man package left her vibrating and wanting.
His strong face.
His broad shoulders.
His sculpted stomach.
His thick thighs.
She moistened her lips. His hard cock.
He joined her on the bed, both of them kneeling and facing each other. He cupped her breasts, and she had the senseless need to let her head fall back on her shoulders and close her eyes. The heat from his palms soothed and tormented.
“So beautiful,” he murmured, and then nibbled her neck. “So hot.”
“Yes.” She slipped her arms over his shoulders. “Oh, yes.”
He pushed his finger between her legs and stroked her wet heat. She trembled and sagged against him.
“Hang on, sweetheart,” he whispered.
He withdrew, circled, entered, withdrew again, and gave her another circling that left her arching off the bed. He caught her earlobe between his lips, his breath tickling her senses. She shivered as her core spasmed in pleasure.
She reached down between them, and grasped his hardness with her hand, rounding her fingers and feeling the soft length of steel react to her touch. Empowered and bolder, she stroked him.
They shuddered together, each on the brink of tumbling over the edge of something wonderful.
A loud banging broke them apart. She gasped, staring at him as if he’d dosed her with a glass of ice water. He muttered a curse and jumped off the bed. Her heart raced, but not in the pleasant way it did when Dominic was touching her. Her mind couldn’t connect what happened between craving more and the interruption.
She leaned over and grabbed the sweatshirt she wore earlier off the floor. “Who do you think it is?”
“Idiots.” He savagely thrust his legs into his jeans. “Stay here. I’ll be back as soon as I can get rid of whoever it is.”
Since Dominic’s sweatshirt went to her knees and covered her naked body, she ignored his orders and followed him down the hallway on bare feet. All the banging coming from the front of the condominium sounded as if someone’s life was in danger, or the place was on fire and they needed to escape.
Standing behind him, she hugged her middle. He opened the door. She jumped back as two women rushed inside and threw themselves into Dominic’s arms. What the … ?
“Oh baby, you played a great game. Now it’s time for us to show you how great of a hockey player you are.” A long legged, blonde haired woman wrapped herself around Dominic.
Not to be outdone, the woman with the brassy red hair pushed her extra-large and extra-round boobs against the side of him. “It’s time to celebrate your win.”
Every speck of pleasure from moments ago fled and in its place, coldness filled her body. This couldn’t be happening. Women really didn’t show up uninvited to his house and demand sex with him, did they?
“We’ve got plans for you.” The blonde put her lips to Dominic’s ear, and spoke too low for Diana to overhear.
Disgusted and fuming, Diana planted her hands on her hips. Why wasn’t he doing anything?
Not waiting for them to start peeling off his clothes and bumping uglies in front of her, she cleared her throat. The one woman with red hair spared her a glance, and went right back to trying to shut off the blood supply of Dominic’s arm by squeezing his bicep between her boobs.
“Excuse me.” She glared.
Dominic turned his head in her direction. Going by the roundness of his eyes, he’d forgotten she lived in his house and was almost having sex with her before the women interrupted. The fact that he looked uncomfortable now pissed her off.
“Get out!” She pulled the back of Ms. Chest’s shirt, hoping the pressure would send the saline splattering all over Dominic when she busted a boob.
“Let go of me, bitch.” The woman flailed her arms.
Diana, smaller and faster, dodged the manicured nails and shoved her out the door. Without missing a second, she had the blonde out the door and the lock flipped before Dominic could gain his wits about him.
She stabbed him in the chest with her finger. Twice. “I am not like those women. Do you understand me?”
He nodded. “Diana. I didn’t — ”
“Save it for someone who gives a shit.” She marched to her bedroom and slammed the door.
Unable to breathe, she bent over at the waist and grabbed onto the dresser. The pain of almost giving herself to Dominic coupled with the knowledge it was only sex made her physically sick. Her stomach flipped and she moaned. How stupid.
It didn’t matter that she’d let herself fall for Dominic. Relationships were a rare thing to him. He’d never be someone she’d be content to stay with long term. Not when he could have his choice of women, any night of the week, at his disposal. She was too good to let someone use her that way. She deserved more.
She stumbled to the bed, and lay down. Why was it when she finally let herself fall for a man, she had to pick one who would never be content with just her?
Chapter Fourteen
The next day, Dominic knocked on Diana’s bedroom door. “It’s almost time for practice. Are you coming?”
He couldn’t blame her if she wanted to leave and quit her job. After last night, she deserved to have him hand her a plane ticket so she could go back to Cottage Grove. The situation escalated out of his control faster than he could act. He didn’t want the other women. He wanted her.
Diana wrapped him in a sexual fog, not knowing what the hell he was doing at any given time. He rode high from having her beneath his fingers, hot for him. Then extreme lows when she wanted nothing to do with him.
He’d never felt such heart panging withdrawal as when she walked away from him and locked her bedroom door. Not even when he’d left Russia for the
first time had he lost all sense of hope, or been this sick with worry. He had no idea how to fix everything.
He knocked again. “Diana. I’m leaving in five minutes.” He paused. “I’ll let you drive the Pors — ”
The door opened. She stood in the doorframe, looking sexier than he’d ever seen her.
A sleeveless, lightweight black sweater clung to her curves. Soft curls hung loose around her face. A pair of skinny jeans hugged her slim legs. Black boots gave her the illusion of being much taller.
He ogled, because damned if he hadn’t missed her while they slept on opposites sides of the hallway. “Do you need one of my sweatshirts?”
“No.” She stepped around him and spoke while she walked to the door of the garage. “My job is to give the illusion we’re dating. Since other women, strange women, aren’t allowed inside the arena during practice, I’m going to go shopping while you’re occupied. I’ll be at the car waiting like a good little girlfriend for all your buddies to see when you come out afterward.”
“Diana, I want to … ” He pushed the garage door opener and walked to the car. “Never mind. Do you want to drive?”
“No, thanks. I’m good.” She slid into the passenger seat.
Oh boy, he’d never seen her polite mad. Arguing mad was one thing. Hell, even ignoring mad was better than the quiet politeness she was giving him.
He climbed in the Porsche, started the engine, and backed out of the garage. Halfway down the driveway, she leaned across him and peered out the window.
“What’s your security team doing here?” She’d touched his arm, before noticing and jerked away.
He gazed over at Tanner and Evan standing on the porch, before pushing in the clutch and shifting. “After last night, I called the security team and asked that they guard the house while you are staying with me. I don’t want what happened to come between us again.”
“It doesn’t matter. Have all the women visitors you want. It’s no big deal to me.” She blew out her breath. “Look. I’ve done a lot of thinking. What happened … almost happened, won’t be a problem. It was a mistake.”
“Says who?” He drove out of the gate and pulled onto Doliver Street. “If you want me to believe you weren’t right there in bed with me, wanting the same thing I was, then you’re lying to yourself. What happened afterward, that’s my fault, and I’ll take the blame. But it wasn’t the women who barged in on us that I wanted. It was you. It’s been you since we met.”
She peered out the side window, unresponsive. He drove another mile and whipped in to the parking lot of a restaurant across from the Tank. He shut off the engine.
“What are you doing?” She glanced at him.
“I want you to talk with me.” He let his hands fall to his lap.
“There’s nothing to say, Dominic. What happened is probably a good thing. You and I are … just wrong for each other. I’m not a prude, and I’ve had my share of relationships, but I won’t compete with women who play unfair or with a man who can have a different woman every night if he wishes. If a man was worth fighting for, you could bet I’d die rather than let a woman put her hands on him, but you’re a hockey player. The women come with the territory.”
“Bullshit.”
Her brows rose. “You need to respect my decision to keep this relationship as employee-employer. You knew before I agreed to the job that I had no intentions of going out with you. Living at your condominium … I let myself think something more was going on between us, when there really isn’t.”
“There is,” he whispered, but it came out harsh and raspy to his own ears.
She shook her head sadly. “No, Dom. There’s a desire to have sex together, but I won’t settle for being another number to you or watching another woman take my place in your bed. It’s not fair of you to ask that of me.”
“What do you want from me?” He lifted his hands and let them fall on the steering wheel. “I’ve told you how much I care about you. I haven’t been with any women for months, way before I met you. I have no control over what other people say or do. The only thing I can hope is you’ll believe me.”
“There are so many women — ”
“In the past. None of them meant anything to me, and I know that sounds cold, but I’m not lying.” He smacked the steering wheel. “How can I prove it to you when you assume the worse?”
“You don’t get it. There’s nothing you can do.” She sagged against the seat. “You’re going to be late for practice.”
“Screw practice.” He opened the door and walked out into the breeze.
Frustrated, he wanted to kiss her into accepting them together. Her reasons made no sense. Why deny what they felt when they were together if they were both having a good time?
He stepped over onto the sidewalk and leaned against a palm tree, facing the Pavilion. Coach would kick his ass when he showed up late for practice.
His tardiness would probably put another check mark by his name on reasons why he should be traded. It didn’t matter where he went, whether it was the Detroit Red Wings, his old team, or a new team, the women were everywhere, and Diana was lost to him.
Maybe fighting for what he wanted wasn’t even worth it anymore. He could play hockey in Russia, and he missed fitting in with everyone else. Yet, he loved the United States. Both places left him floundering to find contentment. His love of hockey was the only bright spot to getting up in the morning. There had to be more to life in the off hours.
“Dominic?” Diana called his name.
There was no judgment in her voice, and no hostility, or anger. Maybe a little curiosity and regret, but that could be his mind playing tricks on him. Lately, he seemed to be imagining a hell of a lot.
She stood outside the Porsche with her hand shielding her eyes from the glare of the sun. His breath caught in his chest. Was he supposed to let her go now? Give up before he even had all of her?
The thought of never seeing her again wasn’t acceptable. He wasn’t ready to give up on them. If he could figure out why he fought so hard to bring her into his life, maybe he could figure out why he wanted her to stay.
Trying to figure out why Diana had the power to stay away from him when other women failed still eluded him. If he couldn’t have her, then his object to straighten out his own life was one big fucking failure.
He shoved his hands deep into his front pockets and strolled back to the car. She watched him with a curious gaze as he walked to the driver’s side. He paused at the door, looking over the roof of the car at her.
“I don’t know what to say to you. I only know I don’t want you to leave me yet. Will that be enough?”
She studied him, seeming to come to her own conclusions. Finally, she glanced away and nodded. “I’ll stay and finish my job.”
He swallowed. Good.
Five minutes later, he walked into the arena after handing the keys to the Porsche to Diana. Coach Gunderson stood at the skate walk through. Dominic slowed his pace and approached him. Shit. He was in trouble.
“Dammit, Chekovsky.” Coach’s voice boomed. “Get suited and out on the ice. That’s your last warning. If you’re late again, your ass will be on the bench and I’ll fine you.”
“Yes, Coach.” He hustled into the locker room.
He had to get his shit together. It’d take nothing for the Sharks to trade him, even though he was the captain of the team. Bad publicity and troubles were frowned upon and he had a ton of them riding his back. Instead of going down in a storm of chaos, he’d quit first. It was that simple. He had to find out why he attracted women to him before he ruined his career. The last thing he wanted to happen was the disarray of his life to force him to give up on playing hockey in the States. The one thing he was capable of loving.
Chapter Fifteen
Two hours later, Diana drove
into the arena’s parking lot after going window shopping nearby. The stores remained a blur, because she’d thought about Dominic the whole time she wandered the shops. It wasn’t her imagination. Something else besides their flubbed up attempt at sex bothered Dominic.
His troubles went beyond the stress of the women fans and his inability to find peace in the United States. For a moment while they were discussing their situation in the car, he’d allowed her to see the pain he was going through. Part of her wanted to believe she was causing the vulnerability he was showing, but the odds were not in her favor.
Who was she? Before coming here, she’d known nothing about hockey. She spent her time working, saving money, and on Fridays, she’d participate in Girls’ Night Out with Shauna and Kate. That’s it. She had goals to run a B & B, not tie herself down to a man who traveled the States playing hockey with hundreds of women at his disposal.
Yet, she couldn’t deny her attraction. The way she looked forward to spending time with him, even when she was trying so hard to make him leave her alone. She opened the door of the Porsche and stepped outside. Okay, a big part of her liked how he never gave up. It was like having a big sexy stalker.
What woman minded having that kind of problem?
A car pulled in beside her. She leaned against the Porsche. Irritation surfaced.
Four women piled out of the vehicle, giggling and messing with their hair. She rolled her eyes. No doubt, they were here for Dominic. The extreme positivity that they’d succeed in landing the hockey star threatened to choke her with jealousy.
Oh, damn. She turned around and leaned her head against the car. She was jealous.
That emotion should never come out unless she envied what someone else had. Yet, the boiling hatred for them was alive and well inside of her. Those women had no tie to Dominic, except for their undying love they hoped he’d return to them. She knew without a doubt Dominic didn’t love the attention. He’d told her many times. She’d seen it with her own eyes.