Desperate (Cunningham Security Series Book 3)

by A. K. Evans

  I wasn’t going to tell her that I didn’t have anything planned for Thanksgiving. Instead, my eyes dropped from Dom’s face to my shoes and I answered, “I am free next Tuesday morning. Would that work?”

  “Let me take a look here…” She trailed off. When she spoke again, she confirmed, “That’ll be perfect. Can you meet around nine-thirty?”

  “I can do that. Thank you so much for calling and for the offer.”

  “You’re welcome. I look forward to seeing you again next week. Take care.”

  Alice and I disconnected.

  I stood there stock-still, my gaze still on the ground. It felt like the opportunity of a lifetime was just dropped in my lap and I needed a minute to process it. I got about thirty seconds to do that before my forehead was planted in Dom’s chest. After his hand wrapped around the back of my neck and squeezed gently, he guessed, “I assume that was a job offer?”

  I moved my head up and down against him.

  “Congratulations,” he said softly. “I told you they’d be foolish to choose anyone but you.”

  Dom took my weight as I tipped my head back and looked up at him. “Thank you for having faith in me. I can’t believe I got the job,” I rasped, my emotions getting the best of me.

  “What did I tell you when we talked after your interview?”

  “Keep my head up and my eyes pointed forward.”

  “Why?”

  “Because my future is in front of me and I need to stay focused on that.”

  He gave me another look of his dimples before he advised, “Why don’t we head inside? It’s cold out here and your nose is starting to turn red.”

  I dipped my chin in agreement.

  Once we were inside, Dom suggested, “How about you go get ready and then you can tell me all about the offer?”

  “Okay,” I replied as I turned to walk down toward my bedroom.

  I didn’t get more than two steps away when I felt Dom’s hand at my elbow. When I turned and gave him a questioning look, he explained, “I told you I couldn’t wait to come here to hug you and kiss you. I want to kiss you before you walk away, Ekko.”

  “You kissed me on my cheek when we were outside.”

  He chuckled and stepped toward me. His voice was deep and low as he dropped his mouth close to mine. “That was not the kind of kiss I was talking about.”

  “Oh.”

  Dom’s hands came up on either side of my neck and his thumbs stroked along my jaw. I felt his lips just barely brush against mine briefly before he claimed my mouth. He offered slow, deliberate, closed-mouth kisses and each one made me feel like I was some long-lost treasure that had finally been found. Dom made me feel like I mattered and I couldn’t begin to process just how lucky I was to have him in my life.

  After taking his time kissing me, never urging me to open my mouth for him to taste more, Dom whispered against my lips, “Go get ready, fun size. I want to get you back to my place so I can give you your present.”

  I couldn’t wait to spend the night cuddled up next to him by the fire, so I didn’t delay in moving to do as he suggested.

  By the time I walked out of my bedroom, an hour had passed. I took my time, mostly because this was a first for me. Maybe I didn’t have fancy clothes or fabulous shoes to wear, but I had an incredible man that believed I was someone worthy. He believed that I deserved to feel special and he was slowly making me feel the same.

  I walked down the hall to meet Dom and found him sitting on the couch waiting. It made me feel awful. Just as I was about to apologize for leaving him alone all that time, he stood and walked over to me.

  “Ready to go, birthday girl?”

  I wasn’t surprised he was ready to go. There was nothing for him to do here. I had books, which offered me entertainment, but that was about it.

  “Yeah,” I replied.

  Dom and I walked out to his truck and left for his house. After parking the truck in his driveway, Dom came around to open my door for me. He’d done this every time I’d ridden in his truck and it astonished me every time. He was a true gentleman.

  When we entered the house, I immediately let out a sigh of relief and removed my jacket. I had missed being here.

  “Before I make you dinner, I want to give you some of your gifts,” Dom announced.

  “What?”

  “Your birthday presents,” he said, putting his hand on my back urging me toward the kitchen.

  When we entered the kitchen, I saw two wrapped gifts sitting on top of the island and one large box underneath it. I froze.

  “If those are for me, I’m going to cry.”

  “Don’t cry,” he pleaded. “This shouldn’t make you upset.”

  My throat constricted so tight it began to hurt. My hands instinctively pressed together in front of my face and I struggled to breathe. Tears pooled in my eyes and with one gentle caress from Dom’s finger down the side of my arm, they spilled down my cheeks.

  I took a minute to collect myself and swallow past the tightness in my throat. When I looked up at him, his expression had nothing but concern in it.

  “Are you okay?”

  I nodded.

  “Do you want to open them?”

  I repeated the same gesture.

  We sat and Dom slid the boxes over to me.

  “Does it matter which I open first?”

  He shook his head. “Whichever one you want.”

  I took the smallest box from the top of the pile and began tearing the wrapping paper from it. My belly was a bunch of nerves as I removed it and stared down at the necklace box. When I lifted the top, I saw a gorgeous rose gold bar pendant. It had the word ‘Bookworm’ engraved on it. I looked up at Dom and gave him a smile, doing my best to not break down into tears.

  “This is perfect,” I said as I removed it from the box and admired it.

  He reached out, took the necklace from my hands, and put it on me.

  When he stepped back to look at the necklace resting just below my throat, I couldn’t stop myself. I threw my arms over his shoulders and initiated a kiss unlike any of our kisses from earlier in the day. I wanted to pour every ounce of appreciation I had for him into that kiss. I knew it hadn’t been a very long time, but the more I was around Dom, the stronger my feelings for him were becoming.

  “Thank you,” I breathed when I pulled back from him.

  He grinned and replied, “You’re very welcome.”

  I moved back to the island and took the next box off the top of the pile. It was bigger than the first box but much thinner. Removing the wrapping paper, I revealed only a simple, white box. Curiosity got the best of me and I quickly lifted the lid to find tissue paper covering the contents. I pushed the paper back, saw what was inside, and burst out laughing.

  When I managed to pull myself together, I held up the gift and announced, “These are the greatest socks I’ve ever seen.”

  Dom was grinning, his dimples on display, and he was clearly proud of himself for getting me a pair of light and dark blue socks, with a picture of a girl peeking over the top of a book, and the words ‘Fuck off, I’m reading’ on them.

  “As soon as I saw them, I knew I wanted to get them for you,” he explained.

  “I love them. Thank you so much.” I leaned toward him and gave him a quick peck on the lips. It seemed I couldn’t control myself; this was the best birthday I’d ever had.

  “Open the last one,” he urged.

  I’m sure I looked like a little kid on Christmas morning when I turned my attention to the last gift. It was a huge box in comparison and when I tried to move it, I noted how heavy it was. I ripped off the paper and uncovered a plain, brown shipping box. The part of the shipping label indicating where the package came from had been removed, so I was stumped. I pulled off the tape and opened the top of the box. After removing the packaging material on top, I saw what was inside and my heart began pounding. I picked up the extra item sitting on top, saw exactly what it was, and felt my knees buckle.
Dom wrapped an arm around my waist to steady me and all I could do was stare at the box in total disbelief.

  Eventually, I tore my gaze from the box, looked at Dom, and questioned him. “How did you know?”

  “I knew what I wanted to get you, but I had Elle help me with the specifics on that special thing on top. For the big part of the gift, when we were there that day Levi helped me with getting your stuff moved in, I heard you telling Elle about how much you liked hers.”

  Dom had purchased me the same oversized chair that Elle had in her library. The only difference was the color. Sitting on top of the chair, though, was a signed paperback of the first book in one of my favorite romance series.

  I stayed silent, still trying to process what he’d done.

  Dom spoke again. “I wanted to get you a signed copy of a book that you’d enjoy, but I had no clue which one to get. Elle told me that this set was something you had to have, so I figured I’d get this one to start. If you like it, I’ll complete it for you.”

  “I can’t believe you did this,” I said, my voice a hair over a whisper.

  “Have you read this? Do you like it?” he asked, now clearly worried that perhaps he’d screwed up.

  I took in a deep breath and assured him, “I love this series and she’s one of my most-read authors.” I paused a moment to let it settle in. It barely penetrated when I felt compelled to share, “Dom, this is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me.”

  “I’ll order the rest of them and when the final one is out, I’ll complete it for you.”

  “What?”

  “I don’t know. Apparently, there’s still one more book that needs to be written, but there aren’t any specifics on a release date. I don’t care when it is or where things are between us, I want you to promise me you’ll tell me when it releases so I can complete the set for you.”

  My heart was bursting with happiness.

  My emotions flooded me. I buried my face in his neck and cried, “You are the most amazing man I’ve ever met. Thank you so much.”

  Dom held me tight, settling me with the closeness and warmth of his body. When I pulled back, I kissed him again and hoped that it expressed even just a fraction of what I was feeling for him.

  After we tore ourselves away from the kisses, Dom went about making dinner.

  “Can I help?”

  He shook his head. “I did a bunch of prep work earlier today. Besides, the birthday girl does not work on her birthday.”

  “I worked earlier today,” I reminded him.

  Dom gave me a stern look and noted, “That better be the last time that ever happens, too.”

  His words made me think back to my phone call from earlier in the day. My new job.

  “Well, now that I’ll have a new job, I might become fancy like you with paid time off. I guess I have to wait and get the details of that on Tuesday, though.”

  “Is that when you go back in?”

  I nodded. “Yeah. Alice said they want me to start the first Monday in December, but wanted me to come in next week to get some paperwork completed and out of the way.”

  “At least you’ll be able to give the diner enough notice that you’ll be leaving,” he pointed out.

  My mind drifted to Jerry. He was such a kind man and an incredible boss. He and his wife had provided me with steady employment and I was heartbroken that I’d be leaving them.

  “Yeah, but I’m going to miss Jerry and his wife, Christie. Not to mention some of my regulars.”

  Dom looked at me like I was crazy. “You’re getting a new job, not moving across the country. It’s not like you can’t go visit.”

  “I know.”

  I watched as Dom began searing the pork chops. While those cooked, he went about combining broth, apple cider, cinnamon and a few other ingredients in a separate bowl. Once the chops had been seared on both sides, he removed them from the pan and put a mix of chopped apples and onion in followed by the liquid mixture.

  “When I was in the shower earlier I figured it all out,” I started. “This new job is going to pay me nearly ten thousand dollars a year more than I’m currently making. It’ll cover my expenses at the apartment and I’ll have enough leftover that I can start saving again. I think I can register for school again so that I can start next semester.”

  “I think this job is going to be the start of a very promising future, Ekko.”

  I couldn’t help but smile. Ever since he’d come into my life, things had started looking up and I was beginning to consider him my good luck charm.

  A few minutes later, Dom was plating our dinner. Pork chops with apples and onions. He even made a side of oven-roasted potatoes. It was, by far, the most delicious meal I’d ever had, and it was perfect for fall. I was, once again, left wondering why any of his previous girlfriends ever left him.

  After dinner, Dom cleared our plates and brought a small dish over to me with a freshly-baked brownie on it. There was a single candle in the brownie.

  “I’d sing, but I’m not a great singer.”

  I grinned at him and brushed it off. “It’s okay. Your cooking skills more than make up for it.”

  “Make a wish,” he urged.

  I didn’t even have to think of one. I already knew what I wanted. I made my wish and blew out the candle.

  Dom stood and got a second plate for himself and a dish filled with brownies. When he was seated again, we ate birthday brownies. They were phenomenal.

  And I sat there trying to ingrain every moment of the night in my mind, fearful that I’d never have something so wonderful ever again.

  “This has been the best day of my life,” Ekko declared.

  She was curled up in my lap, the palm of one hand and the side of her cheek pressed against my chest. We’d just finished up dessert and I followed through with giving her the one thing she’d told me she wanted for her birthday.

  I couldn’t get over it.

  When I asked a week ago what I could get her for the special occasion, her response was just this. She wanted to be in my arms, on the deck, sitting by the fire. Ekko had been struggling for so long, just moved into her new apartment, and could have asked for anything she wanted. I don’t think the thought ever crossed her mind to ask for anything materialistic. It wasn’t who she was.

  Of course, that didn’t mean she couldn’t appreciate nice things.

  She was more than appreciative when she walked into the kitchen and saw the gifts sitting there for her. And while I knew she would have been more than satisfied with simply having a quiet night here with me on the deck, I wanted her to have more. Seeing how she reacted to each gift she opened was worth it and with each reaction she had, I fell harder and harder for her.

  Having her here in my arms now, cuddled under a blanket by the fire, I was finding that I was in complete agreement with her. This had been one of the best days of my life, too.

  “I’m happy to have given this to you today, Ekko.”

  “I have been meaning to apologize to you, though.”

  “For what?” I wondered, completely lost as to why she could have possibly thought she needed to apologize to me.

  “Earlier at my place…I plan to get a television as soon as I can afford one, but I didn’t have any way for you to be entertained while you were there. I feel awful for making you wait all that time with nothing to do.”

  I hated how she always viewed herself negatively simply because she didn’t have the luxuries that most people took for granted. I kissed the top of her head and corrected her, “That’s not true.”

  She pressed her hand into my chest and pulled her head back to look at me. “What?”

  Watching the light from the fire brighten her curious face, I felt myself fall a little deeper. I offered her an explanation, “I spent that hour thinking about you. I thought about how proud I am of you for never giving up and how happy I am that you got that job offer. Mostly though, I spent that time fighting every urge to come down to your room so
I could have you because I couldn’t stop the taste of your lips from completely consuming me.”

  Despite the chill in the fall air, I didn’t feel an ounce of cold. And I was certain the reason for that had nothing to do with the fire burning next to us and everything to do with the sultry woman sitting in my lap.

  Her voice was deep and husky when she spoke. “I don’t think I told you this earlier, but I have the day off tomorrow.”

  Christ. Was she saying what I thought she was saying?

  “Ekko?” I questioned.

  She nodded and added, “Do you think you could help make this day even better for me?”

  “Sugar,” I got out just before she leaned in and gave me a kiss.

  When she pulled back, she pleaded with me, “There’s one more thing I’d really love for you to give me for my birthday.”

  There was no longer any question about it. I couldn’t deny the clear intention in her tone.

  Fuck, did I want her.

  Even still, I made no move to give her what she was asking for and I had no idea why that was the case.

  Ekko turned her body a bit, straddled my legs, and pushed the blanket off her shoulders. My eyes followed her hands as they went to the buttons on her shirt. She unbuttoned each button and she did it painstakingly slow. When she had opened the last one, she allowed the shirt to slide down her arms.

  I took her in, my eyes roaming over the curves of her little body. She was petite, but she had curves where they mattered. Full, round, perky breasts, a tiny waist, and an amazing ass that I always had the urge to squeeze. Ekko’s hands went to the hem of the camisole she had on underneath the button-up shirt, where they lifted it up and over her head.

  She was there before me in nothing but a lace-trimmed bra from the waist up and she was the most exquisite thing I’d ever laid my eyes on.

  “Ekko—” I repeated her name, only this time my voice was thick with emotion at the sight of her.

  Unable to resist the urge to touch her any longer, I ran my fingers up her thighs to her hips. One hand stayed planted at her hip while I lifted the other to the side of her neck. My fingertips began tracing delicately from her collarbone down over the top swells of her cleavage.