by A. K. Evans
No sooner did I sit down on the couch when I heard my phone ringing in my bedroom. I jumped up off the couch and sprinted down the hall to get it before I missed the call.
“Hello?” I answered, out of breath.
“Are you okay?” Dom asked.
“Sorry. As small as my apartment is, I still feel like I just ran a marathon to get from my living room to my bedroom just to get my phone.”
He let out a laugh and confirmed, “So you’re home?”
“Yes.”
“Any chance you want to put in a little more physical effort and open your door?”
He was here?
“Are you here?”
“I guess you’ll have to open your door to find out,” he teased.
I hurried out of the bedroom to the front door and fumbled over my own hands trying to get the lock open. I was so excited to see Dom.
Once I managed to get it unlocked, I swung the door open and felt a rush of air leave my lungs.
Seeing him for the first time in a week left me feeling nothing short of relief.
Apparently, Dom was feeling something similar because he didn’t wait for me to invite him inside. He stepped in, slammed the door shut behind himself, and slipped an arm around my waist as he bent his head to bury his face in my neck. I pushed up on my toes, wrapped my arms around him, and squeezed.
“Missed you, Ekko,” he breathed.
He missed me. It felt so good to hear him say those words.
“I’ve missed you, too.”
When he pulled back, he lifted one arm and I noticed he had carried a bag in with him. “I brought dinner if you care to join me.”
Giving him a huge grin, I said, “I’d love to join you.”
We walked into the living room, where Dom set out the food. He had gotten pad thai, one chicken, one shrimp. “I’ll eat whichever you don’t want.”
I didn’t know which I wanted and Dom noticed because he interrupted my thoughts and suggested, “We can also switch halfway through if you’d like.”
“You know just what to say to satisfy a woman, don’t you?” I blurted before I had the chance to realize what I had insinuated.
Dom just shook his head as he looked down at the ground, the smile tugging at his lips.
I dropped my gaze to the ground, quickly fell to my bottom, and sat on the sofa. Dom lowered himself to the seat right next to me, leaned close, and spoke gently, “One day soon, I’d love to satisfy you without needing to say anything at all.”
My head snapped toward him. His face was inches from mine. The heat spreading through my body matched the desire in his dark eyes.
I stared at him in stunned silence. Confident as ever, Dom leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to my cheek. “Breathe, sugar,” he prompted me.
It took me a second, but I eventually began to breathe. Obviously, Dom and I had gotten hot and heavy a few times, but hearing him tease me like he just did affected me in a completely different way.
If he hadn’t turned away from me and toward the food, I was sure I would have swung a leg over his lap and straddled him. I would have insisted he take the opportunity to do just as he promised.
Dom passed me the shrimp pad thai and a fork before sitting back with the chicken for himself. We ate a bit in silence, our heated stares saying more than we ever could with words. After we switched meals, I broke the silence.
“Thank you for coming over tonight,” I expressed.
“All week long, I was waiting for you to invite me. When I realized that it wasn’t going to happen, I just took it upon myself. I had a feeling that if I waited for you to invite me, I’d never see you.”
My shoulders fell.
“There’s no need to be upset, Ekko. I know you’re very busy with work and I understand it. When I talked to you on Tuesday night, I already knew how wiped out you were. I was happy, though, that I at least had the forethought to get your schedule for the remainder of the week. This felt like the longest week of my life.”
“I thought this week flew by,” I countered after swallowing a bite of my food.
“I’m not surprised considering the way you work.”
We went back to silence. I had several more bites before I felt full and set the container down on the table. When I sat back on the couch, I turned my body toward Dom’s. He finished the remainder of the shrimp and placed the empty container back on the coffee table.
Instead of sitting back on the seat, he leaned toward me, wrapped one hand behind my head, and the other around my waist. My hands instinctively went to his shoulders as Dom fell to his back, taking me with him. Our lips touched and for several long minutes, we did nothing but kiss.
Kiss and touch and moan.
My legs straddled his hips. At the feel of his arousal between us, I rolled my hips. I disconnected my mouth from his and threw my head back. Mere moments later, Dom’s lips were touching the skin at my throat, sending another shot of desire through me.
I moaned, craving him more than I had anyone or anything.
His tongue ran along my skin toward my ear, where he pulled away and whispered, “You work too much.”
My head fell forward and I rasped, “I know.”
He continued to tease me, alternating between nipping at my earlobe with his mouth and trailing kisses along my neck to the base of my throat. “You need to find more balance in your life,” he advised on one of his assents up toward my ear. “It’s not healthy for you to work like this all the time.”
At this point, one of his hands had drifted down over my ass and squeezed me there while the other was planted at my side, just next to my breast. I wanted him to touch me there and if Dom had planned to be noble like he had been the other times we found ourselves in this position, I was going to lose my mind.
“I’ve got goals,” I got out as I moved my hand down his arm to cover his. My fingers moved and wrapped around his wrist and pushed his hand forward while my head fell forward. Dom pulled his mouth from my throat and looked up at me. He gently squeezed my breast before brushing his thumb back and forth across my hardened nipple.
A desperate cry escaped me, and Dom quickly lifted up and flipped us to the opposite end of the couch, where my back was now on the cushions and he was hovering over me.
“You’re off for your birthday next week, right?” he questioned me as he tortured me with a hip thrust.
My birthday.
He remembered my birthday.
Nobody had ever remembered my birthday.
Ever.
I shook my head as my feelings overwhelmed me.
Dom stopped moving and stared at me.
“What?” I asked. “What’s wrong?”
His hand left my breast and he dropped down to his elbows. “You’re working on your birthday?”
I gave him a few quick nods of my head and watched as his face grew sad.
“Why?” he wondered, the tone of his voice almost a desperate plea.
“To be honest, I can’t remember a time in my adult life when I haven’t worked on my birthday,” I answered. “It’s not a big deal.”
At least, nobody had ever made it a big deal.
“It absolutely fucking is,” he insisted. “And I want to celebrate it with you.”
He wanted to celebrate my birthday with me. Even if I didn’t have to work, I wasn’t sure I knew how to do that.
“Well, my birthday is on Wednesday.”
“Your point being?”
“Don’t you have to work?”
“I’ve accumulated a lot of paid time off. This is definitely one of those occasions I’d take time off for. You should take off for your birthday, Ekko.”
I laughed and explained, “I don’t have paid time off.”
“Are you working all day?”
I shook my head. “Just the morning and early afternoon. I’ll be leaving work at three.”
His body relaxed a bit and he asked, “What do you want to do for your day?”
&nbs
p; My eyes widened. “Me?”
He gave me a disbelieving look and noted, “It is your birthday. You get to choose what you want to do. Anything at all.”
I was going to lose it. My heart was beating faster, and I could feel the tightness in my throat.
“Really?”
Dom’s eyes dropped to my chest, which was rapidly rising and falling. When he looked back up at my face, he wondered, “Why are you so upset?”
I took a deep breath and tried to swallow past the lump in my throat. “Nobody has ever celebrated my birthday with me.”
“Not ever?”
I shook my head and looked away.
Dom brought the backs of his knuckles to the side of my face, gently turned it back toward him, and advised, “This is the last time you work on your birthday. From now on, you celebrate with me. Even if this doesn’t go where I’m hoping it goes, we will still celebrate your birthday every year from here on out. Got me?”
The fact that Dom thought I was worthy of having a lifetime of birthday celebrations meant the world to me.
He was still looking at me waiting for a response, but I was so consumed with a mix of emotions, the only thing I could do was nod my agreement.
He pressed a quick kiss to my lips and repeated, “So what do you want for your birthday?”
I thought a minute before I confirmed, “Honestly?”
Dom dipped his chin.
“I’d love to just spend it cuddled up with you on your deck by the fire.”
“That’s all you want?”
He was clearly shocked by my request.
“Yes.”
A look I couldn’t read washed over his face before he stated, “You’ve got it, sugar.”
I smiled at him, feeling a warmth spread through me. He held my gaze and mirrored it. Then, I remembered what I wanted to share with him.
“Guess what!”
“What?”
“I went to the library yesterday morning and while I was there, I saw they had a new job posted. They’re looking for a library assistant. I don’t know what it pays, but it’s a full-time position and it would be a great way to get my foot in the door for the career I ultimately want to have.”
Shifting his body to the side, propping his head up in his hand, he looked down and exclaimed, “That’s awesome. Are you going to apply for the position?”
Nodding, I answered, “Yeah. I really hope I get called in for an interview. It would be so nice to have a set schedule and steady, predictable income. Even if it were a little less than I make now, at least I could plan better.”
“Plan?”
I’m sure Dom heard the longing in my voice when I replied, “I really want to go back to school. The guaranteed income each week combined with a semi-regular schedule would make school much easier to manage.”
The look on his face changed. It went from curious and questioning to soft and sweet. “I know there’s a lot left to learn about you, but from what I’ve seen, I have no doubts that you’ll make it happen. You’re such a determined and hardworking woman.”
That was true. Even I had to admit that I worked hard. It’s not like I had any other options. I could give up, but then what purpose and meaning did my life have? I would continue to endure what life threw at me because failure wasn’t an option.
“Thank you for saying that,” I returned quietly.
Dom brought a hand up to the side of my head, captured a lock of hair between his fingers, and continued, “To add to that, you are also a remarkable kisser who I’m convinced is a master of innocent and unknowing seduction.”
“I wouldn’t say I’m a master at it,” I mocked him, laughing.
Lowering his mouth to mine, he stopped inches away from my lips and declared, “I would. Everything you do is a fucking turn-on. It doesn’t matter if you’re kissing me, sitting there eating Thai food, falling asleep on the phone, or rambling on about a book. All of that and more leaves me struggling to resist the urge to have my way with you.”
I wanted Dom. I wanted him so bad that I tempted him, “Well if I were so good at this seduction thing, I would think you would have had your way with me by now. Maybe I’m not giving you the right signals after all.”
His fingers left my hair and trailed down over my collarbone and light across the top of my chest. “You are, sugar,” he refuted.
With the way he was touching me, I found it incredibly hard to breathe, let alone respond, so I just gave him a look that I hoped told him I didn’t understand. Thankfully, he understood the meaning in my gaze.
“You deserve more, Ekko,” he began. “From what you’ve told me, it doesn’t seem like anyone other than Ms. Grace ever tried to give you even an ounce of what you deserved. I’m taking my time with you because I want it to mean something. For the both of us.”
I blinked at him in surprise. I never expected to hear him say that. It blew my mind that he thought I deserved something special.
“Are you going to let me romance you just a little bit longer?” he asked.
Romance? He wanted to romance me?
“Yes,” I responded, my voice filled with longing.
The grin on his face grew.
And as it did, there was now no doubt in my mind that I was going to end up destroyed soon. It was already bad enough that I craved and missed him the way that I did. If he romanced me, I knew I’d end up falling in love with him. The bad thing about it was that it was likely he’d inevitably realize he settled for me. I wasn’t sure I’d survive the fallout from that, but I knew I didn’t want to give up the opportunity to be with him, no matter how short the time and no matter what the risk.
“I’m leaving work now,” I told Dom as I walked from the diner to my car.
“I’ll meet you at your place. I should be there by the time you get there,” he replied.
“Sounds great. See you soon.”
We disconnected, and I slid my phone back into my purse as I opened my door and got in my car.
It was Wednesday, and it was my birthday. That also meant that I was currently leaving work and heading home, where Dom was going to meet me so he could commence my birthday celebration.
I was beyond excited for my evening with him. From the moment he told me last Friday that he wanted to spend my birthday with me, I’ve been counting down the days. Luckily, I’ve had enough to keep me busy.
I got a call on Saturday afternoon from Alice at the Windsor Public Library. They wanted me to come in for an interview on Monday. Obviously, I was overjoyed that I was going to have an opportunity to convince them that I was the right person for the job, but I spent the entire weekend worrying.
Monday rolled around. For once, luck was on my side because I didn’t have to go into work until the lunch shift and my interview was scheduled for first thing in the morning. Overall, I felt the interview went well, but that didn’t necessarily mean I’d get the job. In fact, before I left, Alice thanked me for coming in and stated that they had a few more applicants to interview. I wanted to be hopeful; however, I knew that I had to be realistic.
Dom and I managed to speak with each other on the phone a couple of times over the last few days, but I hadn’t seen him since last Friday. He knew about my interview and told me he wanted me to call him as soon as I walked out of the library. It felt good having someone take an interest in what was happening in my life and I enjoyed being able to share it with him. Not only that, he was very good at helping me stay positive. When I told him that there were other people who had applied for the position that still needed to be interviewed, he didn’t let me get down on myself. He encouraged me to stay optimistic and I sincerely appreciated him doing that for me.
I pulled up outside my apartment and saw Dom had done just as he said and arrived before me. What was most exciting, though, was that he was standing there leaning against his truck, out in the cold, waiting for me.
He made me feel so special.
I quickly parked and got out of my car.
No sooner did I close my door when I felt Dom come up behind me, wrap his arms around my waist, and kiss my cheek. “Happy Birthday, Ekko.”
As I leaned back into his embrace, I turned my head to the side to look at him. I smiled and said, “Thank you.”
Dom’s dimples were prominently displayed, so I took a minute to admire them. He seemed content to give me the time to do it, too.
“I feel bad about you coming here so early. I still need to shower and get ready before we leave.”
He pressed a quick kiss to my lips and shared, “I took the day off today and I didn’t want to have to wait any longer to hug you, kiss you, and give you birthday wishes. I was half-tempted to come to the diner.”
Just as I was about to respond, my phone rang. I stepped out of Dom’s arms and pulled the phone out of my purse. When I saw the number on the display, I felt a wave of excitement move through me.
“It’s the library,” I exclaimed.
“Answer it,” Dom encouraged me.
I slide my finger across the phone to answer the call, took in a deep breath as I brought it to my ear, and answered, “Hello?”
“Good afternoon. Is Ekko Rose available?”
“This is,” I quickly replied.
“Ekko, this is Alice from the Windsor Public Library. How are you doing today?”
“Hi, Alice. I’m doing well, thank you. And you?”
“I’m great. I just wanted to give you a call and let you know that if you’re still interested, we’d like to offer you the library assistant position.”
My eyes met Dom’s and I gave him a full-fledged smile. He gave me a wink and dimples in return.
“I’m very interested,” I assured her.
Alice went on, “Perfect. We’ll just need to set up a time to meet and get some paperwork completed. We’d like to have you start just over two weeks from now on the first Monday in December. Your hours would typically be Monday through Friday from nine to five. The position pays fifteen dollars an hour and comes with full benefits after you complete your first thirty days of employment. We can get into all of the details at the meeting, though. Do you have any time to meet next week? I know it’ll probably be tough next week with the Thanksgiving holiday.”
