Her face softened in understanding.
“He told me, on our chat that day, that he got in trouble at work.” I speared a hand through my hair and shook my head. “This is so crazy.”
“I’d be remiss not to point out, though,” she said gently, “a lot of people have sad, awful days that remind them of bad things, and they don’t get drunk at work.” Whatever facial expression I made had her cackling. “Oh my gosh, you’re ready to claw my eyes out for saying something bad about him. Look at little miss defensive girlfriend right now!”
“It’s hard not to feel that way,” I protested quietly. “He’s … he’s so different than I thought at first. And knowing that he’s Nick, the guy I’ve talked to about so many things the last couple of years, it just makes it even better.” I laughed. “I even talked to him about him. I told Nick that I wanted to sleep with Dominic after one date.”
Tori’s eyes sharpened. “He didn’t know it was you, right?”
“How could he have? Millions of people live in Seattle, and we never talked about what we did for a living. I never told him about Allie or who my dad is or the Wolves.”
“And he never told you he was a professional football player?” Her eyes widened dramatically. “Usually, they can’t shut up about it.”
“Usually, they can’t,” I agreed. I’d turned that part over in my head all day too. “I think … I think he didn’t because of me.”
“What do you mean?”
“I messaged Nick for the first time a little over three years ago.” I raised my eyebrows meaningfully. “Right after Charlie.”
“Ahh. And you told him about the douche?”
“I did indeed.” Slowly, I spun my phone on the table. I’d read so many of our message exchanges when I should have been reviewing grants and following up on emails. Every single sentence from Nick was now a fascinating insight into the man I was falling in love with. That and some in-depth googling, something I didn’t usually do on any player.
Dominic’s entire life, he’d been underestimated. His potential was never recognized until he forced people to look at him. Once they did, it was impossible not to see how good he was at his job. And in a way, he’d done the exact same thing with me. The moment he had my full attention, there was no way I could unsee it. Whatever preconceived notion I’d had of Dominic Walker, he’d torn it down until I didn’t have a choice but to see him fully.
“I didn’t give him every detail about Charlie,” I said. “But I was in my active hate all the football players mode.”
Her eyes widened. “I remember. It wasn’t pretty.”
“I guess I’ll add it to the list of things to talk about with him.”
“And you’re going to tell him at the ball? You sure you don’t want to wait until you have a little more privacy?”
I nodded. “Not blowing up his phone right now is about all the restraint I can handle.”
“But you messaged him at first, right?”
“I was so … shocked. I didn’t think through the fact that he was flying. I tried calling, but his phone was off. And I don’t think he’s checking the messenger app where I talked to him as Nick.”
“What’d you say in that one?”
I slid her my phone. But before she opened that app, she saw the text thread with Dominic.
When she scrolled up far enough that the pic appeared, she whistled quietly.
“Damn, girl. That’s some softcore hot shit right there.”
“It’s always been my life goal,” I said dryly.
“You’ve got a real-life You’ve Got Mail situation going on here, but he is no Tom Hanks waiting with a golden retriever and some daisies.” She shook her head. “It’s so much better than that.”
The picture she painted made my heart positively gallop. The thought of Dominic in that type of scenario might make me spontaneously combust into a pile of love-sick, heart-shaped goo. He’d have a smirk on his dangerously handsome face, some wildflowers clutched in his big hands, and even as he’d sweep me into his arms like the end of an epically romantic movie, he’d probably whisper in my ear all the filthy things he wanted to do to me when we were alone.
I would walk into the Black and White Ball with my absolute dream man on my arm, and I wasn’t sure there could be anything better than that.
“Uh-oh, I’ve lost her,” Tori teased.
I blinked. “Sorry, you derailed me with the whole rom-com ending thing.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Let him do his job. Tell him the first chance I get.”
“It’s a solid plan, kid.”
“Thanks,” I told her.
“So … how good was it?” she asked with a sly smile.
I slumped in my chair with a sigh, and she laughed.
“If I didn’t love you so much, I’d hate you.”
I grinned. “Yeah?”
She leaned back. “You found a tattooed football player who is not only good in bed but he also has a tortured heart of gold that he hides from everyone except you. Yeah, you’re a giant bitch, Faith Pierson, and I adore you until the end of time.”
Listening to her discuss him, I got my first real flutters of reality. Dominic Walker was my boyfriend—before that, he’d been one of my best friends—and once he was back, there would be no hiding it. He wasn’t someone I’d ever keep in the dark. I’d never pretend he wasn’t important to me.
“I hope my parents have that same reaction when he comes with me on Saturday,” I told her. “My dad is still wary after the whole Charlie thing. I can’t blame him.”
Tori whistled. “Yeah, Daddy Luke may have a coronary, but you know Allie will tell him what’s up, and then Lydia will do something insane to distract him, and all will be normal again.”
“Help me choose my dress?” I asked her. “If my dad is going to have a coronary, then I want Dominic to lose his mind when he sees me.”
She was up and out of her chair before the words were out of my mouth.
In my room, she was already pulling out the two garment bags I’d had sent over from Allie’s stylist. Tori unzipped the first bag and made some purring sound, like she was a satisfied cat licking cream off its whiskers. “Oh mah gawd, look at this one.”
I peeked over her shoulder. “I’m fairly certain Lydia told the stylist to include it just to torment me.”
“You have to wear it.”
“What about the one with the high neck?” I touched the silky black material. “That’s nice too.”
Tori swatted my hand away with a tsking sound. “No, no, my child. Would I steer you wrong after the cardigan?”
“It really was magical,” I conceded.
“Then you trust me.” My friend turned and set her hands on my shoulders. “This will be your night, Faith. It’s about time you’re getting all the perks of being such a fucking amazing human being.”
After giving her a tight squeeze, I studied the dress again. “I need that magic boob tape.”
“Yes, that’s a given because we cannot have the girls going anywhere.” She eyed me with a wicked grin. “You going to tease him with what you’re wearing? I would after that text he sent this morning. Wowza.”
“No teasing,” I told her. “This might be the craziest thing that’s ever happened to me, but it’s not a game. I just want to see him and know there are no secrets between us.”
Faith
In the end, it was thunderstorms in Chicago that derailed my perfect rom-com plan.
Dominic was stuck there hours beyond what he’d planned because the pilots wouldn’t risk takeoff in such moody weather, all reds and oranges and yellows on the doppler loop I’d watched all morning after he texted he would make it but might be a touch later than he thought.
He still hadn’t seen my text to Nick, and for that, I was grateful.
The ballroom was bustling with athletes and celebrities, philanthropists, and the elite of the Pacific Northwest. They wandered the immaculately decora
ted tables, perused the silent auction, and wrote down bids as they sipped their expensive wine and ate the expensive food on china plates. And as the clock ticked forward, there was no sign of Dominic.
I’d been busy enough talking with people as they passed that I hadn’t fully panicked that he was ditching me, that something I’d done had led to this. But when I left the ballroom, I was greeted with an empty corridor. It was just about the worst thing that could’ve happened to me, given the jittery energy I had coursing through my veins. Dinner would start in thirty minutes, and as it stood, the seat next to me would be empty while the keynote speaker stood to give their speech.
He was a graduate of one of the schools that Team Sutton supported when they branched out from Allie’s initial mission. The addition of providing extracurricular programs for underserved schools and communities. His ability to take part in an arts program for the first time spawned a passion that he’d turned into a career, earning a spot at the prestigious ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena. He’d bring in donations hand over fist, which was always the goal of evenings like that one, where Team Sutton had worked all year on a few hours in a fancy ballroom.
And there I was, the one at the helm of the organization, pacing an empty hallway because the boy I liked was late, and I was freaking out that I wouldn’t have time to tell him this really big thing.
I laid a hand on my stomach, which growled ominously. My nerves were jacked so high from the night itself and now Dominic that I couldn’t fathom touching any food. Against the white of my dress and the pale pink of my manicure, my hands looked tan even though it felt very much like the blood wasn’t flowing properly through my body.
The asymmetrical neckline and sweeping cutout made it look like a river of skin showed through the dress. It started up by my collarbone in a gently flowing line, following the curve of my chest and giving the slightest peek at the top of the opposite hip. A slit cut up to the thigh exposed the leg in the opposite direction, like my body had been draped with a fluid column of white. The makeup artist kept my lips nude and my eye makeup in shimmering tones of gold, thick lashes the only real accessory needed to complement the dress.
It was, undoubtedly, the most glamorous I’d ever looked in my entire life. And inside, I was still a nervous wreck.
My phone was somewhere inside the ballroom, tucked away into a beaded clutch that held nothing except that and a tube of lip-gloss. When I last checked it, Dominic had told me he was on his way, and that was over an hour ago.
“You okay, sweetie?”
I looked up, not even realizing someone had joined me in the hallway. My mom’s executive assistant was giving me a concerned look. She’d known me for so long, she could probably read my nerves all over my face.
I smiled, or as much of one as I could muster. “Yeah, just a little nervous. I’ve never had to give a speech at one of these things.”
She touched my cheek. “You’ll knock ‘em dead, kid. You’ve got some tough genes, you know.”
“I know.” I gave her a brief squeeze. “Thank you, Connie.”
“Need me to get Allie or your dad?”
“No,” I told her immediately. “They can do more good in there schmoozing.”
She laughed. “Okay. Good luck, Faith.”
Feeling slightly calmer, I took a deep breath and turned to use the ladies’ room before I went back in.
But I stopped short when I saw him at the end of the hallway. Dominic stood with his shoulder leaning against the wall, his hands tucked into the perfectly tailored tuxedo pants. The jacket was flawless, cut to fit his wide shoulders in a way that had my heart racing, and even with how immaculately it fit him, it held nothing on his face.
For a second, all I could do was drink him in, the dark shadow on his hard jaw, the sharp intensity in the way his eyes coasted down the curving lines that hugged my torso and hips.
I inhaled sharp and quick when his gaze locked on my face. Because what I saw there was like staring straight into the eye of a hurricane. He wanted me. It was there in the center of all the stormy chaos that he couldn’t quite hold back.
Then he was moving, and so was I. We met in the middle, his hands gripping the sides of my face as his mouth took mine in a fearsome kiss. His tongue swept into my mouth, a groan torn from his big chest as I clutched my hands to his back.
Dominic pivoted us to the side, and there was a wall at my back, so I could do nothing except hold on tight for the onslaught of whatever was happening between us.
This man, with his dangerous kisses and overwhelming heart, had somehow turned out to be exactly what I wanted. And not just wanted, but what I needed. Sometimes they were different, no matter how much we wanted them to be the same. When I writhed restlessly against his hardness, his hands slid down the curve of my waist, stopping to swipe his thumb over the peak of my breast. My hands wrapped around his neck, and I couldn’t believe how quickly it was like this between us.
Right there, in the hallway with the Seattle elite just on the other side of the doors, I arched into his touch when he slid his hand up the slit in my dress, cupping my bottom with a firm grip.
His kisses were sharp and hot and wet, something desperate in the way he touched me, the way he breathed hard through his nose because neither one of us dared pull away. I wasn’t sure if his reasons were the same as mine, but something inside told me that the minute we stopped, something would change.
That thought was enough to have me break away from his mouth with a gasp. Dominic kissed the edge of my mouth, slicking his tongue along my bottom lip.
“You look so beautiful,” he whispered, stopping to suck my earlobe into his mouth.
I laughed shakily. “Thank you. I’ll need to check my makeup before I go back in.”
Dominic lifted his head, gaze tracing every inch of my face. “You’re perfect.”
“I missed you,” I admitted. “You were gone for two days, and I missed you.”
“Why do you say it like it’s a bad thing?”
“It’s not, I guess.” I tucked a piece of hair behind my ear, and his eyes warmed when I did.
“Did I mention that you look beautiful?”
I laughed softly. “Thank you.” Smoothing my hands along his chest, I stopped over his heart and took comfort in the hard, steady pounding underneath my palm. It was grounding to know that he was as affected by this as I was. I wasn’t alone in this. “I’m glad we have a minute alone.”
“Yeah?” he murmured, ducking his head to kiss the tip of my nose. “How much did you miss me?”
“You want a list?”
“Say it slow,” he said, smoothing his hands up and down my arms. “In that voice I like.”
I laughed. “We don’t have long before I have to go in there, but I wanted to talk to you about something.”
He was still staring at my mouth. “What about?”
In a halting voice, I told him about waking up at his place and going into his closet. Finding his jacket.
Dominic’s face was an unreadable mask when I licked my lips and told him about the picture of Ivy.
“I-I saw her picture once,” I told him carefully. “And I know how insane this will sound, but you’re Nick … aren’t you?”
His jaw clenched, his gaze searching deeply into mine.
I gave him a tentative smile, gently touching my necklace, currently hidden under the white of my dress. “I’m Turbo. It was, it was my nickname growing up.”
His chest expanded as his breathing picked up speed. Then it was his turn to lick his lips before speaking. “You knew when you messaged Nick about needing to talk?”
“Yes,” I breathed. “I-I freaked out when I saw her picture, Dominic. I tried to call, but your phone was off because you were flying. I didn’t even think. Then I knew I should wait until I could tell you in person.” With a laughing exhalation, I pressed against him, sliding my hands up along his face. “I was such a wreck waiting for you to get here.”
Dominic exhaled in a relieved rush. “I didn’t open it. I… was worried you might have said something about our night being too much…” His voice trailed off.
It took me a second, in the heady exchange, the absolute relief of having the truth out there, for his words to penetrate.
“You knew before I messaged you?” I whispered.
There was a flare of panic in his dark eyes, gone in the next instant, but I saw it. If his desire for me was the eye of the hurricane, then this was bright bolts of lightning, a warning to stay back.
I didn’t.
Dominic
I always hated the saying about curiosity killing the cat.
Because in this scenario, I’d been really fucking curious. What would happen if Faith only had the one side of me to choose from? Would she want me?
I knew the answer now. Unequivocally.
And as for what would happen if she found out first … this was it. Faith Pierson was pissed.
“When did you know?” she pressed. The color was high in her cheeks, her dark eyes flashing.
My jaw clenched tight because every defensive instinct roared not to concede this easily.
“Does it matter?” I asked.
Her mouth fell open. “Yes, it matters. When did you know?”
Only the smallest shred of self-preservation had me answering through a tight mouth because the truth of how betrayed she’d feel had me wanting to flay my skin off. “When I came back to the center. When your car wouldn’t start.”
“What?” She gasped. “You’ve known that long?”
“Faith,” I started, “hear me out—”
She swept her arms out. “Oh, by all means, explain this to me, Dominic.”
Panic crashed against my ribs at her sardonic tone, making my hands tingle and my heart race. What an idiot I’d been. And instead of saying that, something horrible hissed and snapped at the back of my head.
As I stood there silently, Faith stepped away from me, her face draining of color.
The Lie : a bad boy sports romance Page 20
