Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 56591 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 283(@200wpm)___ 226(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56591 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 283(@200wpm)___ 226(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
I grin.
Izzy: Only MOST of the night. I think the texts will turn… you know… then we won’t be able to keep the distance any longer.
Dominic: We’ll try your idea one of these days. But for our first date, I need to be close to you.
There’s that word again. Need. It’s too much too soon, even without considering everything else. I also absolutely love it.
Izzy: Okay, you’ve worn me down. Which means: I can’t think of anything else I’d rather do.
Dominic: Tomorrow, then. I can’t wait.
The next morning, I drive to work with a silly smile on my face and a tight feeling in my bones, like everything is pulling taut while it prepares to violently fall apart.
In the rearview mirror, I spot a red Jeep taking the same turns as me, five times in a row. But when I reach work, it goes in the other direction and disappears into traffic.
I park and take a deep breath.
I’m getting paranoid.
CHAPTER 12
DOMINIC
The next day, at lunchtime, I’m in my office on FaceTime with Liam and Jennifer. Liam’s got an ear-to-ear grin on his face as he shows me his new Incredible Hulk toy fists, smashing them together. Behind him, Jennifer smiles with adoration in her eyes. Despite the complications, the secret of Liam’s birth, the problems it’s caused in her marriage, she still loves this kid more than anything.
“Hulk smash!” Liam says, laughing. “Do you think I could beat you up now? Because I do.”
I chuckle. “We’ll have to see about that next time I’m there.”
“What—the house?” he says in shock, lowering the Hulk hands. “You’re coming here with Mommy and Daddy?”
I run a hand through my hair. Liam knows that Jennifer and her husband aren’t his biological parents, but of course he still calls them that. They’ve raised him, loved him since he was a baby. But he doesn’t know the full truth.
“The park might be better,” I say. A knock comes from my door. “I’ve got to go. Talk soon, buddy.”
“Love ya!” Liam says.
“Love you too,” I tell him, then hang up. “Come in.”
Izzy walks into my office, closing the door behind her. I rise to my feet slowly, hoping it will allow me to keep my cool. But before I can even think about it, I’ve walked around the desk and crossed the room. She practically purrs when I pull her flush against me.
“Dom,” she says breathlessly, like she’s going to tell me to stop.
I kiss her. Hard. She doesn’t tell me to stop, even though I’m sure it crossed her mind. She squeezes my sides and pulls herself against me. I push her gently against the wall, my dick waking up immediately.
“Wait,” she groans between kisses.
“You know if we keep going,” I groan, kissing the edge of her mouth. She tastes so damn good. “We won’t be able to stop. We’ll fuck right here in this office.”
She places her hand on my chest, pushing against me. “Sir.”
I smirk, trailing my hand down her back to her hip, but not greedily sinking my hand in. Not yet. That would fucking ruin me. “Now, why would you call me sir, my horny minx, if you weren’t trying to drive me crazy?”
Her smile is gorgeous, nerves warring with confidence, a picture of pure beauty. “Stop being silly,” she says. “We’re not going to, you know, here. Now.”
She’s right. She deserves a bed. Build-up. She deserves it all.
I force myself to take a step back. Putting my arms behind my back. “See? I’m being good.”
I want to record her when her lips break into a smile, watch it in slow motion, the happiness moving across her face. It’s a beautiful sight, like music in visual form.
“Ethan wants me at another site for the rest of the day,” she murmurs. “It’s closer to my apartment. I was wondering if I could go home to get ready instead of coming back to the office first?”
“Of course. You didn’t need to ask me that.”
She shakes her head. “This probably sounds silly, but I don’t want special treatment.”
I tuck her hair behind her ear, revealing her glimmering earring. “Izzy, that isn’t special treatment. That’s just me not being a complete asshole. I don’t know what your bosses were like before, but I try not to run people into the ground.”
She looks at the floor. Her eyes get a faraway look, as if I’ve hit on a nerve somehow without realizing it.
But then she looks up at me, and her smile is back. I wonder if I imagined the look. “Is there anything special you want me to wear?”
“How about nothing?”
She rolls her eyes. “Seriously.”
“You’ll look beautiful in anything,” I say, meaning it. “What I’d love is for you to have your hair down. Tussled and tamed at the same time. The way it frames your face… your gorgeous smile, your bright eyes, and flushed cheeks. If I’ve got one request, it’s that.”