I notice he hasn’t said it back, but I know why. He’s trying to raise his shields, to prevent himself from being hurt, but I know he loves me. Looking up into the scruffy face, the steel eyes, the face of my king, I know what he needs. He needs my strength, and in that sharing of our strength, we’re more than the sum of our individual abilities.
So I give it to him, unconditionally. “I love you, Dominick. Yeah, there are some things we’ll have to talk about and some fights we’re probably going to have—fair warning, I fight dirty—but I’ll let you in on a little secret . . .”
He lifts his eyebrows, waiting, and I can’t help but grin. “My secret plan to always get my way is to annoy the fuck out of you until you give in.” I smile like it’s a genius idea. It actually really is. He just doesn’t realize how annoying I can be when I put my mind to it.
He smirks. “Ah, but if you misbehave, you already know there will be consequences.”
He says it like he’s already imagining some dirty punishments he could mete out, and though I have a quick mental flash of blood blooming on Tony’s forehead as the punishment he received, I willfully choose to let that go, knowing that though Dom might be a dangerous man, he would move heaven and earth for me and would never hurt me.
I tap his nose. “Silly man. If I like it, is it really a punishment? It’s a win-win for me either way. I get my way, or I get a good punishment that’ll leave us both sweaty and satisfied. And I’m betting that I could get you to agree to just about anything if I pouted enough or had you gag-deep in my throat. Or maybe . . . well, there are things I could tease you with that nobody’s had before.”
He swallows, then laughs fully at my sexy tease, and it’s like beautiful music to my soul. I want to record it and dance around to the sound of his chest-rumbling baritone.
I smile, just taking it in.
He smiles too, but when it’s over, he sighs, sounding a little sad. “I don’t remember the last time I laughed that hard. You bring out good things in me, woman. Though they may be few and far between and buried beneath layers of mud and muck in my soul.”
I smile big enough for the both of us. “I’ll find them, but you only get to share them with me. I’m a greedy, possessive girl like that.”
His face is serious. “And I’m an obsessive, overprotective asshole. But I love you, Allison Bancroft.”
And finally, the dark question in my core dissolves.
Chapter 27
Dominick
She sleeps peacefully, and I dread waking her, but know it’s inevitable. We made our peace last night, but there are still landmines to traverse that could blow the whole accord to smithereens.
But I need to know. I need to make sure she understands what I’m giving her, what I’m offering, and that I want to take those steps to have her fully at my side without a barrier between us.
So I’m ripping my mask the rest of the way off, exposing it all to see if she truly wants no secrets between us. To see if she truly wants me.
Placing my hand on her shoulder, I shake her gently, my voice soft but firm. “Allison.”
She stirs but moans softly before wiggling in place and drifting back into sleep. I set the hot cup of coffee I’ve prepared for her on the nightstand and run a hand through her hair, rubbing my fingertip along the curve of her earlobe where I know she’s slightly ticklish.
“Wake up, Allie.”
She does so in stages, almost putting on a show with it as her long legs stretch under the blankets and she twists her body this way and that before her arms stretch overhead, almost in a caricature of wakefulness. Finally, her eyes open and a smile breaks across her face.
“Rule one. If you’re waking me up, there’d better be coffee or sex involved.”
I can’t stop the curl of my lips, and I have to tease back. “Do you have a preference?”
She looks me up and down, eyes tracing the tattoos on my broad chest and down to where my hips disappear into my sweatpants. Her gaze leaves a trail of heat in its wake, and I suddenly feel a small dose of what she must experience when she performs, that sexy sway of power I hold knowing she wants me.
I play with her, picking up the coffee mug and taking a sip of the bitter roast, moaning softly as the hot liquid rolls down my throat. As soon as the cup’s clear of my mouth, she lurches for me, sheets falling to her waist and giving me quite the morning view.