Reba’s POV
Dominic’s expression softened. “Reba, if there’s one thing I’m certain of, it’s your independence. Your determination to stand on your own feet is admirable, if asionally frustrating.”
I looked up, meeting his gaze. “Frustrating?”
“Yes,” he admitted with a slight smile. “You refuse help even when epting it would make your life easier. You insist on taking the subway when I have a car and driver at your disposal. You work in a jewelry store despite having design talent that could earn you much more elsewhere.”
I felt a flush rise to my cheeks. “I’ve always had to be the responsible one. Ever since I was a teenager, I’ve been taking care of my family in one way or another. My father’s illness, my mother’s anxiety, Jason’s… well, Jason’s everything.” I sighed deeply. “It’s just the way it’s always been.”
Dominic was quiet for a moment, his expression thoughtful. When he spoke again, his voice had dropped to a lower register. “Do you know what I find most painful about watching you?”
The question caught me off guard. “What?”
“How hard you fight to carry everything alone.” His eyes had darkened, and I could see genuine emotion in them. “You’re so strong, little doe, but you don’t have to be strong all the time. Not with me.”
Something in his tone made my heart rate quicken. The air between us seemed to change, bing charged with an energy I couldn’t quite name. Dominic rose from his seat and moved to sit beside me on the sofa, close enough that I could feel the warmth radiating from his body. His thigh pressed against mine, solid and warm through the fabric of our clothes.
“Do you know what I’m thinking right now?” he asked, his voice low and intimate.
I swallowed, suddenly very aware of his proximity. My skin prickled with awareness, every nerve ending suddenly
alert. “No.”
In one fluid motion, Dominic had me pressed back against the leather sofa, his body hovering over mine. The weight of him, the heat, the scent of his cologne mixed with something more primal made my pulse race. His face was inches from mine, his eyes dark with intent.
“I’m thinking that watching you stand up to your brother–seeing that fire in your eyes–made me want you in ways I probably shouldn’t admit to in a professional setting.”
My breath caught in my throat. A rush of heat flooded through me, settling low in my abdomen. “Dominic… this is
your office.”
His lips curved into a smile that sent another wave of heat coursing through my veins. “The soundproofing is
excellent. And no one enters without my permission.”
<b>63 </b>
Before I could form a coherent response, his mouth was on mine, hot and demanding. Whatever objections I might have had melted away as I responded to his kiss, my hands sliding up to grip his shoulders. His fingers trailed down my side, then found their way beneath the hem of my blouse, his touch burning against my skin. I gasped against his mouth as his hand spread across my ribs, his thumb tracing tantalizing circles just beneath my breast.
The rational part of my brain was screaming that this was inappropriate–we were at work, in his office, in the middle of the day–but my body had other ideas. My back arched involuntarily, pressing me closer to him as his kiss deepened. I felt dizzy with want, my fingers digging into the firm muscles of his shoulders.
His hand slid higher under my blouse, his thumb brushing the underside of my breast. A small moan escaped me, and he took advantage of my parted lips to deepen the kiss further. I was drowning in sensation, in the taste and scent of him, in the weight of his body partially covering mine. The leather sofa creaked beneath us as he shifted, his thigh pressing between mine in a way that made me whimper.
With tremendous effort, I turned my head slightly, breaking the kiss. “Wait,” I gasped, my voice barely recognizable to my own ears. My chest heaved with each breath, my lips tender from his kisses. “We shouldn’t… not here.”
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