“Have you considered using your company to see what eligible women are out there for you?”
And now we were at the real reason for the call.
“Since you’ve expressed your desire for me to remain out of your romantic affairs, this might be a good way for you to see what your options are.”
“Mom.” I kept my voice polite, but firm. “That wouldn’t be very professional of me.” I didn’t add that I didn’t give a fuck if she thought the women I saw were ‘appropriate’ or not. It didn’t even matter that I wasn’t planning on settling down with anyone in the first place.
“Dominic, darling—”
“I’m not getting married, Mom,” I snapped. “We’ve had this discussion before. It’s not going to happen, and certainly not with someone like Penelope Rittenour. I’ve seen firsthand how those kinds of marriages end up.”
“Your father and I—” she began.
“No,” I interrupted again. “I’m not talking about this. You said you called to see if I was okay. Well, I am. I’m busy with work and helping Fawna take care of things with Eli. Was there something else you wanted?”
Silence.
I hated talking to her this way.
I hated this chasm between us.
But she refused to understand that the man she wanted me to be and the man I already was were a world apart.
The world she lived in and the world I wanted to live in couldn’t be any more different.
Her world was benefits and banquets and society functions.
If I had my way, I’d lose myself in work from the time I woke up, right up until…oh…eight or nine o’clock, then I’d lose myself between the thighs of a woman. Then I’d sleep and start the cycle all over again. Making money was a game and sex was the release.
That was all my world needed to be.
Society could go fuck itself.
But that concept was foreign to my mother.
“I’m sorry, Dominic. I’m just…” She paused and when she spoke again, her voice was quieter. “I just worry about you. I’m sorry to bother you.”
She hung up and I was left feeling guilty. I don’t know if that was her intent, but it left me wanting to throw the phone. Instead, I put it down with controlled force and turned, bracing my hands on the counter as I stared ahead at the cabinets.
I saw absolutely nothing.
My relationship with my mother still felt completely broken.
I guess I should give her some credit. At least she tried. That was more than my father had done. We hadn’t spoken in a decade and change. Ever since—
Dark, ugly blasts of memory swamped me and I shoved away from the counter. Driving the heels of my hands against my eyes, I tried to blot out those memories, but they never stayed buried for long. I could lose myself in work or I could lose myself in booze or I could lose myself in vice. If I didn’t stay busy, though, the ghosts of my past found me.
I’d decided a long time ago, I wasn’t going to end up drowning in alcohol, so I did the logical thing. I left the kitchen and headed for my home office.
I had work to do.
I wondered if Aleena had any idea what she’d gotten herself into.
Chapter 8
Aleena
Emma had taken the check—and my news—with surprising good grace.
My rental agreement with her did indeed have a provision for what happened if I moved out without giving her sufficient notice. It was kind of necessary, and I got why. She’d be up a creek without a paddle if she constantly had roommates not holding up their financial end of the bargain and yeah, I was one who had been slacking.
I’d been surprised with a sign-on bonus, and Fawna, in an act of extraordinary kindness, had given it to me immediately, instead of waiting ninety days as was typical. “I’m sure you need to square things with your roommate,” she’d told me. She had no idea how badly I needed to square things with my roommate. I’d paid Emma for this month’s rent and an additional month, according to the rental agreement if I left without giving sufficient notice.
And—bonus—I still had money left to put in the bank for once. That meant I was able to do some shopping. I’d needed it, too, because my business wardrobe was woefully non-existent. Molly had come through in spades there, taking me to a dozen kitschy little consignment shops where I found barely worn designer suits and retro pieces that made me feel like a million dollars.
Now, three days later, Molly lay on the new bed in my new room and stared up at the skylight.
Dominic had tried to insist I allow him to pay for a moving service. I’d put my foot down, while Fawna had quietly laughed from the side. Molly and I had just finished bringing in the last of my stuff and I was thoroughly exhausted.
“This is so unreal,” she said, sighing happily. Then she slid me a look. “And your boss….oh, my goodness. Want to talk about unreal…honey.”
Dominic hadn’t been happy about my refusal so he’d shown up at my door both yesterday and today. The sight of him hefting boxes was one that would linger with me for a long time to come. Muscles bulging under worn tees, jeans clinging to strong thighs…
Stop drooling over your boss. I managed a casual smile for Molly. “Yeah, tell me about it. You should see him in just a towel.”
Molly laughed while I rubbed at my stiff neck.
I dropped down on the scoop-styled chair that had come with the apartment. Both Fawna and Dominic had told me I could have the place redecorated however I wanted, but I like how it looked. It was bright, airy, and feminine without being fussy. And mine…I hadn’t ever dared hoped for someplace like this. Not even once. Well, not after I saw what New York real estate went for.
“How did Emma take the news?” Molly asked, bonelessly shifting position and rolling onto to her belly.
“Well, once I ponied up the money for the rent for this month and next?” I shrugged. “She couldn’t have cared less.” Then, wrinkling my nose at her, I added, “But you should have seen the look on her face when I told her about my new job. You would have thought she’d swallowed a whole lemon.”
“I bet.” Molly hooted with laughter. “You found the golden goose, baby. I mean…wow. I knew the guy looked familiar, but I had no idea that Dominic Snow was one of the Snows.”
I drew up my knee, instinctively glancing toward the door. Dominic wasn’t here. He’d left after we’d finished bringing up the boxes. While he was gone, I planned to unpack what precious little I owned and settle in.
Molly had a shift starting in less than three hours and once she left…
I swallowed the knot that formed in my throat.
Once she left, I’d be on my own in a world that felt so alien.
It was Saturday, my first official day of living here. Monday, I’d started my new job, although I’d been going through the motions for the past two days with Fawna walking me through things while I took a hundred thousand notes.
“I’m gonna have to go soon, girl,” Molly said with a sigh, moving into a sitting position. She stared at me. “What are you going to do?”
“Take a bath.” I grinned at her. “I’ve been dying to try that tub out.”
“Hmmm.” Molly waggled her brows at me. “Maybe I could stay a little longer. We can make it a double.”
“Pervert.” I made a face at her. Molly flirted with just about anything with a pulse and I was used to it by now. Throwing one of the decorative pillows at her, I picked up the folder lying on the table next to the chair. “I’ve got homework for later. Fawna left me with all of this to go over. At some point, she tells me I’ll have all of this memorized.”
I eyed it dismally, wondering just how it was possible.
Molly rose and came toward me. “What is it?”
Protectively, I covered it with my hand. “Sorry. Private.” I shrugged. “A lot of the stuff I do for him falls under ‘If I tell you, I have to kill you’ territory, I think.”
“Man, he’s James Bond…I knew it.”
“Exactly.” I rolled my eyes and put the folder down, tucking it into the space between my seat and the table, out of sight. “If you’re heading out, I’ll walk you to the elevator. I want to grab some lunch anyway.”
“Okay. Speaking of lunch…we need to make plans to meet. You’re all the way across town now.” Molly’s face took on a glum cast.
Impulsively, I hugged her. “I know. We’ll make plans for next week, maybe?”
“I’m working Saturday. Sunday?”
“Done.” We headed toward the elevator, talking although my mind was already on that bath.
***
After Molly left, I slipped back inside and pressed my back to the door, staring at the world I’d somehow tumbled into.
“Welcome to Wonderland, Alice.”
Although the bath in my suite called me, I hadn’t had a chance to explore, not really. Licking my lips, I chanced a glance back at the door.
Dominic was still gone.
Slowly, I moved around the open area that was both living room and dining room. The dining table was set up in front of a broad, floor to ceiling window that stared out over Central Park. I stood there a moment, staring down over the green. It only intensified my feeling that I was no longer in any sort of world I recognized.
It wasn’t entirely a comfortable feeling, so I moved away, hurrying into the kitchen. This place, at least, was one where I knew what I was doing. I’d always liked to cook and both Fawna and Dominic had assured me I was welcome to use the area as often as I wanted. There was a professional chef who came in for Dominic, and I was told he’d be available for me as well, but I couldn’t imagine anybody cooking for me.
It had been forever since I’d been able to really cook. That miniscule kitchen back at Emma’s place barely qualified as a real kitchen and I couldn’t make anything without crashing into one counter or the other. There was no way to make a real meal without stopping half way through to wash the pots and pans.
Leaving the gleaming surfaces and polished chrome, I padded down the hallway to find the offices where I’d be working with Dominic when we stayed in. More windows, letting light pour in. I saw a desk that I assumed was mine and a massive one that could only be his.
It was also in a state of semi-organized chaos. I grimaced. Fawna had told me on Friday why she was leaving and my heart broke for her. It also explained why the office was in this state. The meticulous woman wouldn’t allow this, but she had other priorities now.
As I continued through the penthouse, I found two more bedrooms with their own bathrooms. One of the beds struck me as unusual, although I couldn’t figure out why.
The last two rooms downstairs were a pantry and laundry room.
If you had replicated—no, triplicated—the apartment I’d shared with Emma, you could have fit the entire thing into the downstairs alone and had room left over.
Upstairs, the only rooms were mine and Dominic’s. My personal apartment, complete with its own personal kitchenette, a sitting room, a bathroom and its own laundry was double the size of my old place. But Dominic’s rooms dwarfed it. I paused in the open doorway for just a minute, just long enough to bring in his scent, so that it flooded my head.
It was slightly spicy and wholly male, the very same scent that had surrounded me the day we’d met. It was the same cologne he’d been wearing that fateful day.
“Stop it,” I told myself, pushing away from the door.
But the memory followed me, all the way into my rooms. Closing the door behind me, I then leaned against it. My nipples peaked and stiffened against my bra.
I thought of his arms, bare and glistening from his shower.
What would it be like, I wondered, to have those arms around me? To lick away the droplets of water that had rolled down his chest?
Frustration burned inside me and I shoved away from the door, striding into the bathroom. As I walked, I jerked off my shirt, tossing in the general direction of the wicker basket that Fawna had left behind. I dumped my shoes in the closet, and then I tossed my yoga pants and underwear toward the basket as well.
If I was going to daydream about my boss, I might as well get it over with—and make the most of it.
The tub filled fast and the water was hot. I eased myself down and fiddled with the controls until the jets pulsed around me and then I gave into the urge.
I could still picture those drops of water, running down his chest. My hands flexed, itching to follow the path of those droplets, and my mouth went dry, aching to follow the trail of one droplet in particular. The one that rolled down the slope of his pectoral and clung to his left nipple for what seemed like an eternity.
My peripheral vision had always been excellent.
Now, as I remembered, my own nipples tightened and I shivered as the water lapped at my skin. I slid a hand down my belly and imagined it was his. His hands had been hard, and just the slightest bit rough. To feel them on me…
I whimpered as I parted my flesh and started to stroke myself.
Heat spread across my skin as his hands caressed me. I could almost feel it.
This isn’t smart.
But the throbbing between my legs didn’t care about smart and the arousal driving me was stronger than anything I’d felt in a long time, maybe ever. Fuck being smart.
I cupped my breast with my free hand, rolling my nipple, as I imagined that it was Dominic, his touch strong and certain, just the slightest bit rough. Not too rough, though, and never with the intent to hurt.
I moaned as I imagined his teeth scraping across my neck, then down to my nipples before he moved lower, and lower…
My fingers stroked through the wet curls, the water pulsing and pounding all around me. Dominic’s hand, I thought, circling my clit.
Arousal jolted through me.
I whimpered as my mind fed me an image of him going to his knees before me, that golden blond head between my thighs, his mouth worshipping me. His tongue—what would that be like? I wouldn’t know, of course. Nobody had ever gone down on me before.
A moan tore out of me as I pushed two fingers inside my pussy. I imagined it was Dominic and my muscles spasmed around my fingers. At the same time, I arched up. The heel of my hand pressed against my clit and the pressure sent delight arcing through me.
Images flashed through my mind.
Dominic’s ass flexing as he rode me.
The way he would feel inside me, stretching me.
Those eyes, those bright blue eyes watching me as our bodies came together over and over again.
The pressure building inside me exploded and I came with a muffled cry. My blood roared in my ears, my heart thudded fast and hard.
I was about ready to release a long sigh of completion when everything in me froze.
“Ms. Davison?”
Shit!
Dominic…
I slammed my hand against the panels of the tub. “Yes?” It came out more a squeak than anything else.
“I’ve got Thai out here if you’re hungry…” There was a pause. He was in my room.
“Ah. Okay. I’m um…I need a few minutes, Mr. Snow. I’ll meet you downstairs!”
Chapter 9
Dominic
With spring rolls and curry spread out in front of me, I called myself ten kinds of idiot.
But I wasn’t sure why.
Because I’d gone to get food for us instead of out to Olympus liked I’d planned?
Or because I’d dumped the food and followed the sound of the throaty moans I’d heard coming from the bathroom?
My cock was so hard now, so ready, I could feel the drops of pre-come leaking from it. But had I gone into that bathroom and knelt beside the tub? Had I taken her mouth in mine, slid my hand below the water to see what she was doing to make her moan so sweetly?
No.
I was scooping out rice and listening for the sound of her footsteps.
This was a mistake, I told myself.
It wasn’t the first time and
I doubted it would be the last.
She was quiet.
Fawna hadn’t been that quiet.
It took me off guard to look up and find her standing in the door, wearing a faded pair of jeans and a worn T-shirt with a blue fish and the words Just Keep Swimming. She hovered there, looking flustered and so damn beautiful. All I wanted to do was back her up against the wall and strip her naked, then take up where she had left off.
Instead, I nodded to the food.
“Are you hungry?”
She nodded. “Yeah.” She nibbled on her lower lip as she came in. “I…uh…is there anything you need me to do for you?”
Yes. Tell me what you were doing in the bathtub and then let me do it all over again.
I gave her a tight smile. “No. You don’t officially start until Monday, Ms. Davison. Now…help yourself.”
As she came closer, I turned away.
I needed to get my head examined.
How had I possibly thought this could work out?
***
“Tell me what will please you, master.”
The sub was beautiful. Her red hair was short, cut close to her skull like a sleek, silken cap. Her skin was pale as moonlight and her eyes were blue as the summer sky. She was lush and soft, her curves ripe and she’d fill my hands to perfection.
In short, she was as different from Aleena as she could be.
I didn’t imagine it would make much difference, but maybe I could avoid calling her the wrong name.
I gestured to the floor and she knelt.
Reaching up, I cupped one breast in my hand, rolling the nipple until it peaked. She rubbed her cheek against my thigh, close to my cock. Deliberately, I closed my eyes and thought of Aleena.
“Take my cock out,” I said.
She did and I imagined it was another woman’s hands on me.
When she started to stroke me, I opened my eyes. “Did I tell you to do that?”
She froze, but it wasn’t fear in her eyes. It was excitement.
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