“It doesn’t detract any,” she said grudgingly.
“Wow. Tough crowd.” He took off his tie and unbuttoned the top few buttons of his shirt, but he didn’t move closer to her—yet.
“More wine?” Dominic headed to the kitchen, and she followed.
The kitchen was decorated in a modern art deco style with bright reds, yellows, and blues, and there were even more paintings on the walls in there. Absentmindedly, she stroked a drooping basil plant, letting her earth energy flow into it, and it sprang back to life.
“I’m fine, thanks. Oh, and thank you for an amazing dinner. I loved that restaurant,” she said. “I’m curious though. Your pack owns a restaurant at the Arena. Why didn’t you take me there?”
“I thought it was too loud and flashy. I didn’t want to overwhelm you.”
“That’s surprisingly thoughtful.”
“I’m full of surprises. Some of them are even good ones. Like the neighborhood garden center. And this tiramisu.” He pulled open the refrigerator door.
Zoey was sure she was too full for dessert, but when he served her up a plate of the creamy confection, she suddenly found room.
He only had one rule: he had to feed it to her. She should have said no, but then she wouldn’t get any tiramisu. And she really wanted the tiramisu.
He moved the kitchen chairs so he was sitting next to her and spoon fed her bite after bite of the meltingly sweet dessert until the bowl was empty.
“Seconds?” he offered.
“You know what I want more than dessert? Information about you. And don’t try to distract me by asking for a kiss first. I’m wise to you and your addictive lips.”
He set the fork on the plate and drew his brows together. “What kind of things do you want to know?”
“Why are you so reluctant to share anything about yourself with me?”
Dominic stood, grabbing her empty bowl, and carried it to the sink before he answered. “I’m a private kind of person.”
“Why would you think I’d want to share my life with someone who won’t share anything of himself with me? You know all about me, and I know nothing about you. It hardly seems fair.”
His lip curled in that cruel smile of his. “I never fight fair.”
Usually, Zoey found his smile terrifying and sexy in equal measure. Right now, she found it infuriating. She shoved back her chair and stood abruptly, her eyes flashing with anger.
“All right! I’m sorry,” Dominic said, leaning against the sink. “I know, I can be kind of defensive. Ask me something. One question. I’ll answer, whatever it is.”
She sat back down. Only one question? There were so many things she wanted to know about him. “Why did you decide to get bitten by a warrior-class wolf? What made it worth the risk?” she blurted out, then bit her lip. There were so many other things she could have asked.
His gaze took on a faraway look. “What risk? I didn’t have anyone who’d miss me.”
“I’m sorry,” she said quietly. Perhaps she had asked the right question after all. That gave her surprising insight into his life but raised a million more questions.
“No reason to be.” He grabbed a bottle from the wine rack on the kitchen counter. As he poured, the phone rang with her mother’s ringtone. Zoey quickly silenced it.
He snapped to attention. “Who’s that?”
“Nobody.”
He set a glass of wine on the table. “Nobody, like some guy who wants to take you out on a date?” His voice had become dark and dangerous.
“It’s my mom, okay?” she said, exasperated. “Nobody wants to take me out on a date. Except some crazy wolf who won’t take no for an answer and expects me to marry him without knowing a damned thing about him!”
“Why don’t you answer her?” He arched an eyebrow. “Unless it’s actually not your mom?”
The phone started ringing again, and he lunged for it. She shoved it down the front of her dress. He threw back his head and roared with laughter.
“Oh, Zoey, of all the places for you to hide it … thank you for that.”
She stood and leapt back, but Dominic was on her in a flash, pinning her up against the wall. When the phone rang again, he grabbed the front of her dress and ripped it open as if it were wet tissue paper.
A split second later, he had grabbed the phone. Nimbly dodging her, he answered it.
“Hello, Zoey’s mother. Lucinda, is that right?”
Zoey didn’t have more than a micro-second to freak out about the fact he knew her mother’s name.
“Who is this?” she heard her mother’s voice.
She lunged for the phone, but he danced back, holding it tauntingly over his head. Then he whirled around, his back to her.
“Oh, Zoey didn’t tell you about me? My name is Dominic Lombardi.”
“I need to talk to Zoey, please. I’ve been trying to reach her and she hasn’t answered.” Her mother sounded irritated and worried. Dammit. That was last thing Zoey needed.
“Of course, ma’am, just one minute and I’ll get her.” Oh, it was ma’am now? Suddenly, he was mister polite, respectful choirboy.
He covered the phone with his hand. “What will you give me not to tell her I mate-bit your ass?” he whispered.
“I won’t kill you!” she hissed furiously.
A chortle rumbled up from deep inside him. “Yeah, that’s kind of a given. So? What do I get?”
“You bastard!” Zoey grabbed at the phone, and he danced back out of her reach again.
“Zoey?” her mother called out.
“One more kiss!” she whispered desperately.
Dominic smiled in triumph and handed her the phone. She was so going to murder him. He was going to be very, very dead.
“Mother!” she said brightly. “I’m fine!”
“Why weren’t you answering the phone? I was worried!”
“I was in the restroom.”
“Are you on a date? Who is that man?”
She winced. Such a loaded question. “He’s a businessman.” Not a total lie. “He works in security. We’ve, ah, been out a few times.”
“You’re not at his house, are you?” Great, the mom morality police was on patrol.
Dominic was listening to every word with his hand pressed over his mouth, his shoulders shaking from quiet laughter. Zoey’s face flushed red and she glared bloody murder at him.
“Mother! Of course not. I’m at a restaurant.”
“What kind of restaurant? It’s very quiet,” her mother replied suspiciously.
“They’re about to close,” Zoey said desperately. “He’s going to give me a ride home. You don’t have to worry. He always walks me to the door and makes sure I make it inside safely.”
“Well, he does sound like a gentleman. And the fact you told him my name must mean this is something serious.” Her mother’s tone of voice suddenly was warm with approval. What had just happened?
Dominic smirked, and Zoey gave him the finger.
“Well, it’s early days,” she said brightly while waving her hand with the middle finger still extended.
“My intentions for your daughter are entirely honorable!” Dominic blurted out. “I look forward to meeting your family next time you visit. She’s told me so much about you. Congratulations on that tournament, by the way. Go Tigers!” The Tigers were the mascot for her youngest brother’s middle school. How the hell did he know about that?
“Mother, we do need to go now. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”
“Do call me,” her mother said severely.
“Mrs. Monroe, I will make sure of it!” Dominic called out just before Zoey hung up.
“You!” she yelled at him. She dropped her phone into her purse on the kitchen table and pummeled his chest with her fists. It hurt her hands, so she stopped. He was laughing so hard, he had to wipe tears from his cheeks.
“Oh my God. Wow. That was the best-timed phone call ever.”
She put her hands on her hips. “Ju
st go ahead and kiss me so I can go home already.”
“I get to pick where I kiss you.”
“For heaven’s sake!”
He must mean the bedroom.
She stalked into the bedroom, the front of her dress hanging open where he’d ripped it.
The bed had a chrome steel framework and silky black and silver pillows piled on a silvery comforter. Moody black-and-white photographs of modern architecture adorned the walls.
He walked in behind her, still smirking.
“What’s so funny?” she demanded.
“I didn’t mean what room. I meant I get to pick where on your body I kiss you. And for how long.”
“What?” she took a step backward. “That’s not fair!”
“I believe we’ve established I never fight fair. Are you going to keep your word?”
No. “Yes,” she breathed.
He knelt on the ground and lifted her gown, revealing her pale-pink cotton underwear. He pressed his lips against them with reverence and breathed in as if she smelled like a field of roses.
To her shock, he stood and looped his arms around her waist.
“How are you doing, Zoey Monroe?”
“I … I’m all right.”
“You miss your parents, don’t you? You should let them come visit you more often.”
A sudden flood of emotion washed over her. “It can be dangerous here. I’d rather they stay where it’s safe.”
“Always taking care of other people’s needs, aren’t you?” His voice had become quiet and serious.
“I …” Her face flushed. Just when she’d managed to convince herself he was an insensitive jerk, he had to go and say something like that. Like he really cared about her on a very deep level.
She cleared her throat. “I mean … it makes me happy to help other people. I want to see the people I care about do well.”
“Nothing wrong with that. But if they have needs, can’t you have them too? Who takes care of your needs, Zoey?”
The words dried up in her throat.
“What do you need right now?”
“I don’t know,” she confessed. She could have said something snarky—like she needed to go home—but she couldn’t bring herself to lash out at Dominic when he exposed his tender side.
She really didn’t know what she needed. Once upon a time, she’d thought she needed to leave Encantado, but she had good friends there. They couldn’t leave, so even if she could, she wouldn’t leave them behind. It was scary. Navigating life in a portal city could be frustrating and challenging, but it was also magical and fascinating.
“I don’t know anymore,” she said again, a sudden weariness pressing down on her.
“You look tense. I think what you need is a backrub.”
His hands on her body, rubbing all the stress out? She shivered and hugged herself, and it took all of her strength to keep from squealing in excitement. “Well, I wouldn’t absolutely hate it.”
Dominic pretended to look hurt. “Wow. Don’t get overexcited about it.”
Zoey struggled for a snappy comeback, but the words died in her throat.
She let him strip off her clothing, and then he led her over to the bed where she laid face down.
He straddled her and rustled around in the nightstand. A minute later, she felt oil dripping onto her back. Dominic began kneading her back with his strong hands, and she moaned in pleasure. It went on and on as he squeezed and rubbed the tension from her muscles. She could feel her body melting into the mattress. She couldn’t have moved if all the ghouls in Encantado were swarming into her room.
Finally, he slid off the bed, taking off his clothes and folding them neatly and setting them on top of his dresser as she watched. And what a view. Broad chest, a six-pack that looked as if it had been carved in marble, a dark thatch of pubic hair, and a thick erect cock that rested against his stomach as it pointed straight up at the ceiling.
Dominic walked over to the bed … closer, closer … her breath caught in her throat.
He laid next to her and … took her in his arms.
“Goodnight, Zoey,” he said, kissing her lips very lightly.
His erection pressed into her thigh, but he didn’t make a move. She lay there, lightheaded with desire, feeling his chest rise and fall.
Finally, she cleared her throat. “That’s it?” she said. “You could … I mean …” Dammit, was he going to make her beg?
“Nope,” he said stubbornly. “I am going to show you I want you for much more than your gorgeous body. I wanted to spend time with you tonight just to be with you. And that’s what we’re going to do, no matter how much pain I’m in from restraining myself.”
“And how much pain is that exactly?” Zoey hoped it was a lot because she ached so hard for him, she wanted to grab an ice pack and shove it between her legs.
“On a scale of one to infinity? Infinity squared.” Then he grumbled. “You don’t have to smile quite so loudly.”
“You cannot hear me smile!” she protested.
“I have mad skills, sweetheart. Over time, you will learn about all of them.”
They laid like that for hours. He was too stubborn to make the first move, and she was too proud to beg.
Finally, Zoey gave in. “Dammit, you stubborn ass. If you don’t have sex with me right now, I am going to make you regret it.”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
“You thought I’d never– You son of a bitch!” she shrieked and punched him on the arm. She’d forgotten how solid he was. “Ouch, damn you!”
In one swift move, Dominic slid on top of her, his heavy weight pinning her to the mattress. “True, but I’m the bastard who’s going to be your mate.”
He began feathering her with soft kisses, his lips brushing ever so lightly over her skin.
“I love your freckles,” he murmured, pressing his mouth against the dots. She shivered in pleasure.
He kissed her neck, working his way down to her breasts. Cupping her breast in his hand, he suckled the ruby tips, nipping at them gently.
“Oh,” she gasped. “That feels … oh.”
“Yes, it does, doesn’t it?” He trailed kisses down her soft stomach, and for the first time in her life, she had no temptation whatsoever to suck it in.
He slid down so his face was between her thighs and spread her legs roughly.
“Mine,” he growled into her pussy and claimed it with a long, slow stroke of his tongue. Zoey sucked in a gasp of pleasure as he lapped at her, her thighs quivering under the strong grip of his hands.
Hot pleasure swirled through her body, and she felt light as air. Was that her voice urging him on shamelessly? It must have been. Dominic responded by thrusting his tongue inside her and fucking her with it as he stroked her stiff, aching clit with one hand.
Zoey tangled her fingers in his silky hair as he pleasured her, and sensation built inside her until she was ready to peak. Dominic slid away, the heat and sweetness of the moment vanishing.
“Dominic!” she cried out.
“Are you my mate?”
“You bastard!”
“Are you?” He moved up, straddling her and trapping her between his thighs.
“Yes!” she choked out.
Dominic grinned in triumph and adjusted his hips, placing the head of his cock against her entrance. Zoey cried out as he thrusted into her. He was too big, stretching her, and she loved it.
He pumped into her hard and fast, his breath harsh and guttural in her ear. Several times he paused, and she grabbed his ass and urged him on. He chuckled quietly.
“Just need … oh God … to be sure you want it as much as me … oh, you’re so fucking tight and wet for me … oh my God …”
The dam broke, and the waves of pleasure washed over her in a tsunami of sensation. Zoey came hard, her muscles spasming and gripping his cock. Dominic’s answering cry of pleasure sent a jolt of triumph through her. They were so tightly wrapped up in each other as they
found their release, it was impossible to tell where one ended and the other began.
Chapter Fourteen
Z oey woke up to the smell of coffee and pancakes.
Not the worst way to be greeted by a new day.
She padded into the kitchen dressed in the extra set of clothes she carried in her messenger bag—jeans and a t-shirt, her usual work uniform. Dominic was ridiculously sexy in plaid boxer shorts as he flipped pancakes onto a plate. He turned and smiled at her when she walked in.
She grabbed a mug and poured a cup of coffee, added some cream from the pitcher, and took a sip.
“You do make a mean cup of coffee, Dominic. My friend Danielle would like you.”
“Danielle’s a woman, right?” His jealous tone was back.
“Is that a serious question?” She laughed.
“I don’t know. It could be French. Like, the French pronunciation of Daniel.” He set a stack fluffy pancakes in front of her.
“Do hear yourself?” She sipped deeply from her mug. “You’ve apparently dug into my background and my entire life. You should know by now, I’m a one-man-at-a-time kind of girl.” Zoey grabbed the jug of maple syrup and poured it on her pancakes.
“And I’m that one man,” Dominic said firmly.
She winked at him. “For the time being.” She enjoyed his groan of frustration. He was really fun to torture.
“By the way, love the tattoo,” he said. “Right next to my mate-bite scar. ‘Love bites’? It’s like it was meant to be.”
“Huh,” she said. “Never thought of it that way.” He looked so pleased with himself, she had to laugh.
After the best breakfast she’d had in ages, Zoey got her spell phone from her messenger bag and called the dispatch center to let them know she was available.
Dominic frowned. Pushing back his chair, he strolled over to her and gathered her into his arms. She leaned into him, loving the feeling of his broad, muscular chest.
“You could stay a little longer,” he murmured, stroking a lock of hair from her face.
It sounded so tempting, which was why she had to leave. She’d never meant to spend the night, wonderful as it had been. Yes, he was great at sex, made her feel really good about herself, and he was a gentleman in all things. He held doors open for her, he made sure she came first, and often, he brought her snacks in bed. He was all about her pleasure and comfort.
Mated to the Capo (Mafia Wolf Shifters) (Encantado Shifters Book 1) Page 11
