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Who up until last night, approached interactions with me in the exact opposite way. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t spend a large portion of the time I wasn’t dreaming of him last night wondering if things will be different with us now. If him saving me in the club and showing that he’s capable of treating me with something resembling kindness is an opportunity for us to turn over a new leaf.
Heavy footsteps clunking up the steps of the back porch ring out, breaking me out of my thoughts. I look up just in time to see Dominic pull off his sweaty t-shirt, wipe his face and neck with the soiled fabric and then toss it on an empty chair on the back porch. Leaving the bronzed skin of his shoulders and bulging cords and veins in his arms on full display. His chest and midsection are barely covered by a black tank top that clings to his abs and highlights his sculpted pectoral muscles.
He looks up at me, a heavy gaze that burns into mine, and there’s no hiding that I’ve been staring at him through the glass of the screen door. I bite my lower lip and turn my attention back to the cutting board in front of me. A second later, he breezes through the back door and presses a kiss to Mal’s cheek before catching Mama up in his arms for a hug that has her giggling like a teenage girl.
When he releases her, he moves over to the fridge and pulls out a bottle of water. Taking a long pull before leaning back against the counter and burning the side of my face with the heat of his stare. It’s the only indication he sees me. The only way he acknowledges my presence. Because he doesn’t say a word to me.
Not while he’s talking to Mama about the shed she wants him to build in her back yard. Not while he tells Mal about some old friend he ran into that, judging by the disgusted sniff she responds with, she doesn’t want to hear about. Not while he washes his hands and helps Mama roll dough for the cobbler crust. And not when I get up to leave the cramped kitchen with my hands clenched into fists and a flimsy excuse about needing air on my lips.
So much for turning over a new leaf.
.
9
Sloane
Then
“Your mom sounds like a real sweetheart.”
I scrunch my nose at Eric as I slide my phone back into my pocket. The sarcasm in his voice is as evident as my aggravation with my mother and her sudden interest in parenting. After eighteen years of ignoring me and pawning me off on every nanny, housekeeper, and seemingly competent person within a five-mile radius, she’s decided that now—when I’m living on campus and trying to carve out some semblance of an independent existence—is the time for her to get in touch with her maternal instincts.
And all you had to do to get her attention was cut loose for one night.
One night where I did what I wanted when I wanted. One night where I made decisions and didn’t worry about how it reflected on my family or what it said about my worth as a woman in society. One night where I was free and blissfully unaware of the ramifications I would still be facing months later. And all of the aggravation and nagging would’ve been worth it if I could remember more than a few bits and pieces of it.
I toss myself back on Eric’s bed and frown up at the ceiling. Phone calls with my mom always leave me agitated and spoiling for a fight, and I don’t want to direct any of that at him. “She’s a monster.”
“True, but that doesn’t mean you have to let it ruin your day.”
He lays down beside me, forcing me to turn on my side to accommodate his wide frame on the twin-sized mattress, and an easy grin stretches across his face. It’s all dimples and straight white teeth surrounded by full lips that make me want to spend all my time kissing him.
We’ve only been dating for a few months, but I already feel safe and at home with him in a way I never have with anyone else. He just has this calming energy around him. A serene aura I want to soak into my bones until letting things roll off of my back comes to me as easily as it does to him.
“You’re right.” I scoot closer to him and tip my mouth up for a kiss, which he happily gives. “I’d much rather spend the rest of my afternoon kissing you.”
“Mhmm. That sounds like a plan.” He gives me another short peck before breaking the kiss to look at his phone. “One we’ll have to make a reality as soon as I get my clothes out of the dryer. I’ll be right back.”
He’s off of the bed and bounding out of the door before I get the chance to sit up all the way. The door snaps closed behind him, leaving me with nothing but silence and the leftover agitation from my mom to keep me company. I lay back down and close my eyes, hoping to shake off the last vestige of irritation before Eric gets back. A few moments later, when my breathing has evened out and I feel as close to chill as I’m going to get, I hear the key in the lock and the faint sounds of the doorknob turning that let me know Eric’s back.
His heavy footsteps ring out against the tile floor, stopping short at the foot of the bed. I can’t stop the goofy smile that takes over my face as I imagine him standing over me.
“Are you just going to stand there or are you going to finish what you started before you abandoned me for laundry?”
“Wrong guy.”
My eyes fly open, and I sit up when I see the tall, male figure looming over me. A deep frown marring his features as he watches me process his words with rapt curiosity. His voice is still ringing in my ears when I swing my legs over the side of Eric’s bed and stand. I regret the move instantly.
The walkway between the beds is narrow, and his big frame is already taking up most of it. He stares down at me, and for a second he looks like he isn’t going to do the proper thing and back up a little but eventually he does. With his eyes still on me, he takes a seat on the bed on the other side of the room.
“Oh my God.” I hold my hand over my racing heart and try to arrange my body in a more suitable position. “You scared the hell out of me.”
“All I did was walk into my room.”
“Yes, but you could have announced yourself.”
He crosses his arms over his chest. “Why would I do that? This is my room.”
