Page 119 of Hard Bargain

“Okay,” he said eventually.

Dominic turned before anything else could be said and headed for the bedroom. He pulled open a drawer, grabbed a clean shirt, and held it out. “You can put this on if you want.”

Knox took it, his fingers brushing Dominic’s before stepping back. “Thanks.”

Then Knox started undressing. Nothing deliberate about it. Just a tired boy pulling his shirt off, but it captured every shred of Dominic’s attention anyway.

His hand moved for his phone without his eyes ever leaving Knox. Cassian picked up on the second ring. “Yeah?”

“I just got home. Going to bed,” Dominic said, watching Knox’s shoulder blades move as he reached for the clean shirt. “Don’t call me for a while.”

“What happened?”

“I won’t be reachable for the next few hours.”

“You’re not going to tell me why?”

“No. Later.”

Cassian exhaled on the other end. “Alright.”

Dominic hung up. Knox was pulling the shirt over his head, fabric settling into place. It was too big on him, the collar sitting wide, exposing the line of his throat. A possessive thrill moved down his spine before he could stop it.

Mine.

The thought was there before he could catch it.

He shut it down. “Get in,” he said, already pulling the covers back for him.

Knox climbed under without arguing and turned onto his side, facing away.

Dominic stripped to his boxers, faster than necessary, and got into bed before he could think about it too hard. He was done talking himself out of things today.

He reached for Knox and pulled him back. Arms around him, chest to spine, no space left. Knox’s breath hitched and his entire body went rigid, shoulders locked and muscles braced.

“Relax,” Dominic whispered against the back of his neck.

Knox didn’t. Not immediately. The tension held for a few more seconds, and then, slowly, it gave. His shoulders dropped and the rest of him followed, easing back enough to settle against Dominic.

Dominic tightened his arms around him and pressed his face against Knox’s hair, breathing in.

What am I doing?

He didn’t know.

What is this?

He didn’t know that either.

All he knew was that Knox was warm against him and wearing his shirt, and that the thought of letting go was physically intolerable. He’d held dozens of people at arm’s length for his entire life without effort—and this boy had walked through every single barrier like they were made of paper.

Knox’s breathing evened out as he fell asleep.

Dominic lay awake in the dark, not able to deny it any longer. The boy meant something to him. And he had no idea what the fuck he was supposed to do with that.

* * *

A few hours later, the sound of a phone cut through the dark. Dominic woke instantly. For a second, he didn’t move, disoriented, aware only of warmth and the fact that he wasn’t alone.