But even the more normal guys just faded for me. It always fizzled out, and I’dneverhad sex like what Dominic and I just had.
They all felt like drops of water in a hot pan. A little sizzle, but everything dried up in seconds. Compared to them, Dominic was a whole bottle of alcohol in a burning hot wok until flames licked the ceiling.
But how the hell was I supposed to know if that was all it took? Maybe the flames were just blinding me to the reality that I was making a huge mistake. Was I putting my career and the last two years of my life on the line because I was horny?
I let out a breath and decided to drop it for now. The answer wasn’t going to come from circling the idea in my head. I’d just have to keep taking one step forward and see where this thing led. But I decided I wasn’t going to run out of fear that I was making a mistake. It was better to follow my heart to a mistake than it was to shut it down and sleepwalk toward my grave, wasn’t it?
“Sorry,” Dominic said over his shoulder. “I usually eat out after work. I don’t have much here, but I think I can manage peanut butter and jelly.”
“That’s great.”
“All I have to go on the side is… more peanut butter and jelly.”
I laughed. “That’s fine.”
A few minutes later he set down a plate of two sandwiches in front of me. They were both cut diagonally across and stacked on top of each other . He had two for himself as well.
“So what’s our plan for Monday?” I asked. “I’m assuming we tell nobody, right? I think maybe we should even try not to seem so pissy with each other at work. Like, I know we don’t interact really, but maybe we should aim more for indifferent than angry non-contact, you know?” I asked the last part around a mouthful of salty peanut butter, soft bread, and sweet jelly. It had been so long since I’d eaten one of these that I was thinking I might have to ask him for a third. I’d skipped breakfast to get out for the run, had mind-blowing sex, and hadn’t eaten all day.
“Yeah,” he said. “My dad will also scrutinize business decisions. He’ll be looking at articles I’ve approved and things like my decision to start a political column.”
“What do you think he’ll say?”
“It depends. Right now, sales are slipping, so he’ll probably come in swinging. He’ll suggest more aggressive changes and claim they’ll boost sales. He won’t make it easy for me to stick to my vision.”
“What will you do?”
“Tell him I’m not budging. If I’m lucky, he won’t bother taking things to the next level. For now, I’m the CEO he hired to run this magazine. If he wants to intervene, he’ll have to make things messy.”
“If he finds out about us, you think he’ll take it there?”
“Yeah,” he said. “He will.”
I looked down at my sandwich. “Are you sure you don’t want to call this off? It’d be safer.”
“I should,” Dominic said. He reached across the table and took my hand in his, eyes holding mine. “But I’m not done with you, Darcy. Not even close.”
I smiled, cheeks burning. “So am I still going to get fired if I don’t nail this interview with my boss?”
“Yes,” he said, half smiling. “A deal is a deal.”
“Good. I don’t want special treatment just because you’re becoming obsessed with me.”
I expected him to object to my word choice, but all he did was smirk.
“Well, it’s rainy and nasty out. I’m sure you were planning to show me how romantic and thoughtful you can be by taking me somewhere special. What’s the plan now?”
“The plan was always to get you fed and then get you back into bed.” His eyes were like blue flames, and just like that, I felt my body start to heat up from my belly down to my core.
“Oh,” I said. “You’re not worn out from earlier?”
“That was just a warm up.”
Dominic had barely touched his sandwich, but he moved around the table and scooped me up. I laughed and swatted at him, but he carried me away from my delicious, unfinished sandwiches toward his bedroom again.
He took me on the bed slowly this time, like he was savoring every moment of it. All the frantic lust of last time was replaced with a careful, tenderness. He spent a long time kissing me as he peeled me out of the dress shirt he’d let me wear. He pinned my wrists down and kissed my neck to my breasts until my nipples hardened into sensitive peaks for him.
I rolled my head to the side, watching the drops of rain on his windows gather and grow until they slid down, colliding to make streaks on their way down. I felt like one of those drops as Dominic’s mouth roamed the bare skin of my chest and neck. Helpless. Carried along by forces outside my control. It should’ve felt scary, but all I felt was excitement. Sure, there was a little fear in not knowing what the future held, but I was on the ride. I didn’t want to get off.