Sweet Seduction Sacrifice

by Nicola Claire

  I swung around at the sound of the second door opening and just about jumped out of my skin. Dominic stood there, door closed at his back, taking up about a third of bathroom. He had a strange expression on his face, one I couldn’t decipher at first. He didn't look angry though, if I had to hazard a guess, I'd say he was relieved.

  "So," he said softly. "That's why you're running."

  He held my gaze, it was impossible to hang my head and hide like I wanted to, I was drawn to his blue-blue eyes like a magnet. Unable or unwilling to pull away without tremendous opposing force.

  "This explains a lot," he went on. Then smiled, that smile. My heart thudded repeatedly in my chest. He took a step closer and I felt the door at my back pressing into my flesh. "I've got something I've been trying to sort for a few months now. Nick's been helping me. But, I promise, sweetheart, it has nothing to do with you or us, nor has it got any possibility of coming between us. It's my past. A mistake I'm trying to rectify, nothing more. But it's complicated and right now delicate. Until I get it sorted I'm not at liberty to say too much. You have to trust me."

  I stared at him. His words just a jumble of sounds to my ears, even though I was trying desperately to make some sense of them all.

  "Genevieve," - that voice - "please trust me. Can you do that?" He held his hand out to me, palm up in invitation.

  Could I? He was saying exactly what I wanted to hear. That it was outside of what we could have, that it meant nothing. That it wouldn't affect us. But that wasn't the end of my dilemma, was it? In order to concentrate on sorting out Brett and his threat to Sweet Seduction, I needed to clear my head of the problems arising with Dominic. But, if those problems weren't what I thought, then that plan was moot. Or was it? ASI and Jason could come up empty handed and then where would I be? I'd have to face Brett and I knew what Brett would want in exchange for keeping Sweet Seduction safe.

  I was so confused. I was so lost. I was thinking life wasn't fair.

  "What is it?" Dominic said softly, from right in front of my face. I hadn't realised he'd moved, that he'd taken the steps necessary to place him in my space. "Talk to me, Genevieve. Tell me what's put that look on your face?"

  I looked up at him, saw the concern. Saw just how much he actually cared. Saw how much he wanted to help, to be the one I turned to. It was all there.

  "He'll take Sweet Seduction," I said, making complete sense to me, but obviously not to Dominic. He frowned in confusion down at me.

  "Who, Elliott?" I nodded. "And that's why you won't take a risk with me?" I nodded again. "Because..." He paused, his frown deepened. "Genevieve," - not that voice - "just what do you plan to do if it comes to that?" His voice was ominously quiet.

  "Whatever I need to do," I whispered, unsure why I was telling him this, clearly he wasn't going to like my plan.

  "Such as?"

  "I have to keep it safe. It's my dream. The only one I'll ever have. You don't understand, it's precious, I can't lose it. If I lose it, it'll be gone and I won't get another dream again."

  "Says who?" he whispered back

  "Says life," I answered on a similar quiet whisper.

  "OK," he said, sounding like he was changing tack. "What do you think you will have to do to keep Brett from taking your dream?" Oh, maybe not on a different tack after all.

  "Whatever he wants," I said softly and watched a muscle tick in his jaw. For a moment it was all I could see, my eyes didn't shift anywhere else.

  Finally he talked again. "All right, in the meantime, what do you plan to do?"

  "Give ASI and Jason the next two days to find him, then I'll have to face him, sort it out myself. Any longer with the shop closed and I'll go under, lose the dream anyway. They've got two days, and then I do it my way."

  For some inexplicable reason he reached out and wrapped an arm around my back, pulling me against his chest. His head dipped down and hot lips brushed against my temple. A tear slipped out of the corner of my eye and tracked down my cheek silently.

  "For the next two days then, you are mine," he said roughly. "Can you give us that?"

  I couldn't understand why he'd bother. Two days together would only make it harder when it came time to part. And I was sure we would have to. Life didn't always have happy endings, the way my life was going - gunshots, kidnappings, Sweet Seduction being forced to close - I couldn't see my way clear to a happy ending.

  "Two days," he said into my hair. "Two days to pretend we have the rest of our lives together ahead of us. Give yourself that, Genevieve." I buried my face into his jacket and inhaled the smell of his cologne, mixed with the delicious smell that was all him. "Give me that, Genevieve," he added, and I stopped breathing altogether. "Then I'll let you go, without a fight, without a fuss." His voice sounded funny, but when I tried to pull back to look at him, his hand went to my hair and he pressed my head close to his chest. "Two days, Genevieve, that's all. Two days of all of you have to offer and all I have in return. One chance to taste paradise, then return to our lives with at least these sweet memories to keep us alive."

  I was really crying now, because I wanted this. I wanted it so very much. It sounded so easy, if not a little unusual, but if I didn't do this, I'd always wonder. And on those nights when Brett would behave a certain way, I'd wish I had taken the chance at a moment's happiness. At making memories that would get me through the tough times ahead. It would be a sliver out of time, but it could be all the difference between surviving something and surviving it with a sense of pride and dignity.

  I could do this and not let Brett take this moment away. If I said no, I would be letting him win.

  I nodded against Dominic's chest, he let a breath of air out he'd obviously been holding. "Say the words, sweetheart. I have to hear them."

  "Yes," I said into his jacket. "Two days of all I've got to give. Two days to make a memory that will last a lifetime."

  His arms tightened around me, then his lips trailed over my temple, in amongst my hair.

  "Let me make a phone call to the office, have someone cover my appointments or shift them, then you and I are shutting ourselves away. Locking the doors, switching the phones off. If I have two days with you, I don't want to be interrupted at all."

  He smiled down at me, slowly lowered his head and brushed his lips against mine. And then with that one sweep of his tongue along the bottom lip of my mouth, I opened and let him tangle with mine. God, it felt good. So good, almost too good. Dominic knew how to kiss and within seconds he had me against the bathroom vanity, my legs wrapped around his hips, his hard length pressing against my centre. Hands in hair and trailing over bodies, touching skin where we could find it, seeking closer contact as though time was already winding down.

  And it was, two days had already started, the clock was ticking, precious sand through the hour glass was running out. He knew it and I knew it, and it was all we could not to strip each other right then and there, and satisfy our craving for the other person in our arms. To finally have what we had come so close to walking away from.

  I knew in that instant, that my decision had been right. Even if I only had two days to love Dominic Anscombe, it was better than not having had any days at all.

  Two days could be a lifetime, if you're with the right person.

  Two days could mean paradise, a memory to last the rest of our lives.

  We pulled apart panting, hair dishevelled, eyes glistening with desire and lust. He smiled at me, shook his head as though dumbfounded, then reached up with one hand and cupped my cheek.

  "I'm going to give you memories to last a lifetime, Genevieve Cain. I promise you that."

  I didn't doubt him, but I also secretly desired to give him even better memories myself, so when I had to leave, he would never forget. It would be so easy for him to move on, a man like Dominic Anscombe would find love again at the drop of a hat.

  I had one chance to make an impression and I was determined not to waste it.

  Chapter 20

&nbs
p; When My Mouth, Uncharacteristically, Failed Me

  While Dominic made his phone call, I packed up my overnight bag and headed into the kitchen to say good-bye to Katie, who was humming cheerfully without a care in the world. Clearly she'd figured out that Dominic had won whatever argument it was we had been having and everything was right again in Katie World. This could have been because Dominic was in the lounge and she'd been unashamedly listening in on his cellphone conversation. Sisters!

  "Hey, Katie. Thanks for letting me stay," I said with a soft smile.

  "My pleasure, darling," she beamed back at me. Then her eyes flicked to Dominic, who was talking to Cathy the bitch-at-reception it seemed. "So, two days off. Now I wonder why he'd be organising that with his firm?"

  I shook my head, but I was smiling. "You don't miss much, do you?"

  "Darling," she started, "he never takes days off. I could hardly miss that."

  I looked over my shoulder at Dominic, who now seemed to be talking to Finn Drake, one of his partners and my lawyer. He looked intense, but there was a shadow of something else around his eyes. An excited type of anticipation. His gaze flicked up to mine and he smiled, that smile. For a moment he held me locked by his eyes alone, carrying on his conversation with Finn, but never pulling his gaze from me.

  I was the one to pull away as I turned my attention back to his sister. She was watching me closely, a small smile on her lips.

  "I do believe things could be turning out for the better for you, darling."

  I raised my eyebrows at her. "Because I'm spending two days with your brother?" I asked, teasingly.

  "Because you're lowering some of those walls you seem to have around you and letting someone in."

  I stared at her for a good few seconds. There was more to Katie than met the eye. I wasn't sure how I felt about her assessment, but the fact she had made it at all was a surprise. I didn't think any walls I may have had were that obvious. Clearly I was wrong.

  "Well," I said, trying to get the conversation back to more neutral ground, "his house is safe and I need to lay low."

  She gave me a strange look then said, "Whatever you need to believe, Genevieve." Then turned back to the dishwasher she was loading.

  I glanced back at Dominic, it was obvious he was on another call now, his whole demeanour had changed. It took me a second or two to figure out who he was talking with, but I finally narrowed it down to Nick at ASI. The clipped way he spoke let me know he was tense about something, but the familiar language led me to believe it was his brother on the other end of the line. It made sense he'd let Nick know we were battening down the hatches for two days, hopefully he'd get those cameras in his house switched off.

  I took the opportunity to text Kelly, letting her know what was happening and asking her to advise the rest of the Sweet Seduction gang. They could all have a compulsory short break and I promised them, through Kelly, that we'd celebrate with an after work party when it was all over. Sweet Seduction after work parties rocked.

  Then I sent messages to Edward and Wayne, letting them know my brother was looking after the loft, and then to Jason himself, letting him know I was OK, but my cell would be turned off for two days while I stayed at Dominic's. I didn't wait for replies from either, but switched my phone off, noting absently that the messages from Brett had all been deleted. I wasn't sure how to feel about that - relieved that I didn't have to face them and that Dominic had taken care of it, or angry that Dominic had made the decision to clear them without consulting me. I decided to push that aside for now, whatever had been in those messages from Brett would surface sooner or later, and if they did resurface, then things had gone wrong for ASI and Jason, and I would have to step up to the mark. For now, I just wanted to pretend that wasn't going to happen. Maybe it was naive, maybe I was living in a dream world, but with my decision made to spend two days with Dominic, I couldn't face that certainty and give everything I have to give to him. And I wanted to give everything I had to give.

  Switching the phone off also meant I didn't have to hear from Wayne and Jason in reply. Wayne would want to gossip and Jason would have brotherly advice I couldn't stomach right now. Not with my insides starting to twist with nerves. Dominic had hung up his phone and slipped it inside his jacket pocket. His eyes on me now heated, a promise of what lay ahead when he got me in his house evident in the flash of sensuality behind his lids.

  "Time to go," he announced, not taking his gaze off me. "Thanks for everything, Katie," he added, still keeping those blue-blue eyes target locked on mine.

  "You're welcome, darling. It's been deliciously exciting."

  His lips twitched but he didn't reply, just walked the few steps to where I was standing immobile under his gaze, grabbed my hand and pulled me firmly towards the front door. He didn't utter another word until we reached the car and he beeped the locks, opened the door and helped me inside.

  "Do you need anything? We can stop off on the way home." I stared up at him as he leaned into the door frame, one hand resting along the top of the car, the other placed on my shoulder, cupping my neck, skin to skin. Even that seemingly innocuous touch sent fire through my body, making it hard to converse at all. "Tell me now, sweetheart, once we get home we won't be going out again for two days."

  I don't know why that sent such heat through my body, but the idea of being sealed away with Dominic Anscombe for forty-eight hours was a definite thrill. A shiver shot through my body but I forced myself to reply.

  "I'm fine," I said on a whisper.

  He grinned. "That you are, sweetheart." Then shut the door and walked around to his side.

  My heart was beating impossibly fast inside my chest, I was barely able to get a full breath in. I willed myself to calm, as he slid into the luxurious leather seat at my side and started the Jag up. Trying desperately to get my body under control, or at the very least not let him see how discombobulated I was, I started to talk. Of course, with my mouth that's not always the wisest move to make.

  "Is this the car you always drive?" I asked, thinking he had a museum full to choose from, why this?

  "It's my preferred at the moment," he answered, resting into the comfortable seat quite relaxed.

  "So, you do mix it up a bit, pick one of the others from time to time?"

  "I like variety, sweetheart. I get bored of the same thing if I have it for too long." I frowned, unsure if that was the answer I wanted to hear.

  "Just in your cars? Or in everything?" I asked, certain I was walking into dangerous territory here.

  "All things," he replied, honestly I was thinking.

  "What does that say about you?" I mused and then realising I'd said that aloud added, "Don't answer that. I don't need to know."

  "You wouldn't have asked if you didn't want to know."

  "Wanting and needing are two very different things," I shot back. "And you know me and my mouth, it sometimes has a mind of its own."

  "I was thinking more along the lines of it sometimes lets me see the real you, when you would have normally shut that part of yourself away."

  I frowned again. "It's only words, they don't mean anything."

  "I'm a lawyer, sweetheart. Words are everything."

  "To you maybe, but to the rest of us they're just words."

  "You're arguing about words?" he asked, sounding amused.

  "I'm not arguing," I argued back.

  He made that cough-which-could-have-been-a-laugh sound, but didn't say anything further. I decided I'd keep my lips firmly closed, or I would divulge too much of me.

  At least the semi-argument had taken up some time, we were at his house within minutes of me falling silent and I hadn't had time to feel nervous at all. Until we turned up Long Drive and his white mansion came into view. I started biting my bottom lip well before he turned the Jag into his driveway and waited for the sliding garage door to open.

  He parked the car in its spot inside the garage and switched the engine off, then in a flash was at my side doo
r, opening it and reaching in to divest me of my overnight bag so I could get out. I took my time, nerves well and truly getting the better of me. But the second I was upright, his arm wrapped around my neck and he pulled me against his side, then walked us to the stairs leading up into the house. He didn't let me go as he disarmed the alarm system and then reset it for external activation only, or when he opened the internal door and walked in. He still didn't let me go as we climbed three flights of stairs, going directly to his room.

  I thought he'd build up to it. Maybe have another coffee in his kitchen, switch on some music in the lounge. Talk even. But his intent was clear. We were home, the doors were shut and locked behind us and he wasn't wasting anymore time.

  If I thought I was nervous before, I had been mistaken. The butterflies that jostled in my belly were ferocious, the feeling; one of heightened anticipation and a hell of a lot of fear. It was stupid. I'd practically done the deed with him at Katie's before she interrupted. I'd made my decision, I wanted him like I had never wanted another man before in my life. But I was scared. I admit it. I was so scared, I think I had started to shake.

  He threw my bag on the bed and then pulled me to face him. He looked down at me for a long moment, then dipped his head and brushed his lips in my hair at my temple. It was his signature move, so familiar to me already that I shouldn't have been surprised. But I had expected him to throw me on his bed, or to kiss me mindless on the lips, or even to thrust my body against the wall and lay a trail of licks and nibbles down my neck, ending up back behind my ear where he knew I'd melt and all nervousness would evaporate. But he didn't.

  He kissed my temple and then murmured, "I'm running you a bath."

  I wasn't sure if I was disappointed or relieved, and didn't that make me confused. Nerves versus rampant desire to get on with it. And Dominic had once again taken charge and decided what path we'd take.