Ginger solved our problem. She took herself out of the equation. Dom had bought several trays of the premium canned tuna. Now I wasn’t sure if it was a bribe, but it certainly sounded like it. He personally opened the can and dumped it in Ginger’s bowl, stood back, and crossed his arms.


    He wasn’t sold on cats yet and made no attempt to pet her.


    In return, Ginger eyed him suspiciously, but the aroma of the gourmet feline food was too much to resist. She snuck to her food bowl and started gobbling.


    Dom shot me a triumphant look.


    I rolled my eyes. “You must have had help. Ginger is very picky.”


    “My uncle loves cats. I called him when I was at the pet store and he told me what to buy.”


    “Wait…your uncle…the Chicago boss.”


    “Yep.”


    “That sounds oddly domesticated.” And oddly disconcerting.


    “Luca likes cats more than people.”


    “I like him already,” I murmured, then remembered something from past conversations with Bianca. In the early days of her captivity when she was forced into a marriage with the Rossis, she was cursing Dom’s uncle, Luca Moretti, for facilitating Sandro’s eptance into the made man sanctum. “He’s your uncle who’s still looking for his wife, right?”


    Dom shifted ufortably and moved away from me to go through the grocery bags to put the items away. My pantry and fridge were sparse of contents to begin with, so he had free rein on how to arrange them.


    I didn’t push him to answer, and Ginger distracted me. She finished eating and jumped on the window ledge and proceeded to groom herself. I knew her well enough that she was going to demand to be let out. She enjoyed traversing the fire escapedder to the rooftop after she ate.


    I opened the window. Since it was November, a chilly breeze swept through. It was two weeks before Thanksgiving, which reminded me I hadn’t checked on Delphine’s holiday schedule yet. Harriet moved in this year, but if I remembered right, next weekend would be the residents’ Thanksgiving dinner. Nursing school didn’t assign us a rotation on Thanksgiving Day itself, so I was looking forward to a break. Our supervisor said we could expect plenty of missed holidays when we became licensed nurses.


    After a while, Ginger was done, and without another meow or purr, she left my apartment.


    “So, she just left you with a stranger after you went through the trouble of rescuing her from a shelter.”


    Dom leaned nonchntly against the counter and was watching me. The cold draft sent goose bumps racing across my skin, but a furnace heated somewhere below my belly.


    “In case you haven’t noticed, cats do as they please,” I told him and crossed my legs.


    “They have no sense of loyalty, unlike dogs.”


    “So I’m taking you do at least like dogs, but they shed too.”


    Dom straightened from his lean and approached me. “I grew up with dogs, but it makes little sense to have one if I don’t have time to walk him since I live in Manhattan.”


    “That’s why there are dog walkers.”


    “I’m rarely at my penthouse, even in the evenings.”


    “Then maybe you need a cat. They’re self-sufficient.”


    Dom’s gaze drifted to the window. “I can see that. But so far, I’m not convinced to get a pussy…cat.” The way the word pussy rolled over his tongue made me swallow.


    He leaned closer, bracing his arms on either side of me, but kept our bodies from touching.


    “You seem determined to get to mine.”


    Dom chuckled. “Are we still talking about Ginger?” His mouth was by my ear. “Or redheads in general.”


    My body seemed to sway toward his and my breath hitched. “You know what I’m talking about.”


    “I have a different menu in mind.” He leaned back and shot me a heated look that made my toes curl. Damn this man and the potent sexual cloud that surrounded him.


    Before I got caught in the tailspin of his seduction, I blurted out, “So what are our rules for the weekend?”


    “I always fuck with a condom,” he said.


    “I don’t have any right now.”


    “I’ve got that covered. I always use my own.”


    I quirked a brow. “Paranoid much?”


    “Just careful.”


    “What about?—”


    “Enough.” He nipped my bottom lip, and before I could react, he crushed my mouth in a bruising kiss. His hands went under my ass and lifted me. No forey, no teasing. Outright domination. His tongue forced its way between my lips and dueled with mine. Actually, there was not much forcing, but my pussy spasmed against his torso and I had the urge to ride his belt buckle. Cold metal against hot pussy. Oh, God. I was a hair trigger away froming.


    Our mouths continued shing before I heard my bedroom door m.


    He broke the kiss and snarled, “I swear, woman, I have a lotta patience, but you’ve pushed my limits more than once.”


    “Your stitches,” I screeched.


    “I’ll survive.” Then I went flying across the room andnded on the bed. Dom pulled off his henley, and sure enough, he was already bleeding.


    “You’re going to ruin the mattress,” I breathed. But did I care? No.


    “I’ll buy you a new one,” he growled. “Now shut up and let me have you before I lose my damn mind.”


    He tossed my sneakers and he was yanking my joggers off. “I wanted to do this with more finesse…” he continued to mutter. “But you’ve been driving me crazy sincest night.”


    I braced on my elbows, utterly fascinated to see Dom fumbling with my clothes. “What? No forey?” I managed to tease before he peeled my panties away.


    “Forey?”


    The sinister gleam in his eyes subdued my teasing. It looked a lot like retribution and I was anxiously anticipating, achingly aroused, and all out of fucks. I was getting filled with a Dom-sized cock and it better be worth it.


    He positioned himself between my thighs, his expression hungry. “This is all the forey you’re getting.” He dove in and tongued my clit before letting the rest of his mouth wrap around the sensitive flesh, swollen with all the blood rushing to it. Dom wasn’t even gentle. He ate and bit. Swiping, sucking, and nibbling. He was everywhere, all at once. My orgasm came fast and furious, and the pulses surged and kept on going. I inhaled sharply, not able to exhale. He seemed to know how to pace my orgasm and relented a fraction to let me catch my breath.


    He inserted his fingers. I had no clue how many, but a delicious stretch had me aching for the real thing.


    “Fuck, you’re so wet for me, Firecat.” They glided in and out so easily. I was embarrassingly slippery. “Give me more, baby.”


    I realized I was gasping at the ceiling, but when I looked back between my legs, it was to see Dom watching me intently, devouring me with his gaze while my juices glistened on his lips. And it was the most erotic sight. Like he was salivating and couldn’t get enough. There was nothing more arousing than a man who liked to eat pussy. With his eyes on me, he withdrew his fingers and casually slipped them into his mouth and slowly dragged them out. “Delicious,” he murmured before he resumed his attack between my legs. I lost count of how many times I’de. My voice was hoarse, but Dom seemed to relish making me scream.


    And scream I did, over and over.


    I wondered if I should worry about a neighbor hearing me, but with Dom, my inhibitions seemed to have taken a vacation. He rose above me, scorching me with the hunger in his eyes, and that hunger made me powerful.


    He removed my top and unhooked my bra, carefully exposing my breasts. He visibly shuddered and his Adam’s apple bobbed. From my face, his silently assessing gaze traveled down my body, now bare for his scrutiny.


    I was blessed with fifties-pinup-girl proportions, and this was a rare moment when I embraced my body with pride. I lifted my chin with defiance, waiting for Dom to say something.


    “Good God,” he rasped. “You are perfection.” His belt buckle clinked. The lowering of the zipper was loud in the room. It signaled our point of no return. Then he was on top of me, shoving my thighs apart and surging inside me. Out of control, he rocked into me. Filling me with cock, shocking me with its girth and length. The harsh thrust stealing my breath.


    “Dom!” He withdrew and thrust hard. It was only on the third pump that a warning told me why it felt so good, and on the fourth, I registered that I didn’t hear the rip of the wrapper of a “condom.”


    He froze, his eyes sharpening in horror.


    “Fuck,” he muttered.


    “Put one on,” I urged.


    “Are you on birth control?”


    “Yes! But…”


    He withdrew instantly, and a hollowed feeling reced the loss. I heard the ripping packet, and he slid right back inside me.


    He cupped my face. “Sorry…too excited.”


    Iughed. “Me too.”


    He resumed pumping, but his face grew troubled. “Never happened before.”


    I cupped his cheek. “That’s okay.”


    He gripped my wrist by his face before letting it go to mp his fingers around my neck and squeezed. His pounding intensified, speeding up his thrusts and ramming inside me over and over. Yes!


    “Come for me,” he grunted. His hand around my neck loosened, and an orgasm ricocheted through me, blinding me behind my eyelids like a supernova. I was stilling when Dom folded me over, pushing my knees almost up to my ears. His face was right beside me, panting with his efforts, and his glorious grunts of exertion sent another shockwave rippling through me.


    He thrust in one more time and stilled before giving me his weight. His chin was over my shoulder and he was breathing like he’d just crossed the finish line in a sprint. A film of sweat covered our bodies, and the familiar scent of sex shrouded us. We were quiet for a while and I wondered if Dom hade to the same conclusion I had.


    I wanted to do this again and not just for the weekend. I wanted mind-blowing sex that would leave me satiated and boneless and thoroughly fucked.


    Dom lifted off me and rolled onto his back.


    Random deep exhales were the only rough sounds in the room. I didn’t want to look at him. I was suddenly very self-conscious.


    “That felt more like a main course than a taste,” I teased, trying to lighten the mood. I’d never been devoured to within an inch of my life and I wasn’t referring to Dom eating me out. Just the way he fucked me. It was wild and cathartic. Animalistic. He seemed angry about forgetting to put on a condom, not that I didn’t wee his savagery in pounding me into the mattress. That was delicious. I sensed he didn’t lose control like that and it freaked him out, but I didn’t want to gloat or analyze hisck of control earlier. He did, after all, suffer blood loss?—


    Oh shit.


    I shot up in bed. Sure enough, drips of blood seeped through the bedsheet. Theforter would have helped, but I neglected to fix my bed this morning.<fn133d> ?????? ???? ?ovelFind</fn133d>


    “All right,” I said, patting Dom. “Get up before you ruin the mattress.”


    He winced as he shifted to a sitting position. “I’ll rece it.”


    “We can avoid that if you get off the bed now.”


    He emitted a disgruntled sound and rolled up. He peered at his side. “The stitches are fine.”


    “Good. Still, vigorous activity should be off the table for now.”


    A ghost of a smile touched his mouth. “Does that mean we’re more than just a weekend thing?”


    “Maybe,” I said, tapping my mouth as if I was considering it. I didn’t misread him. He wanted more of me and that gave me confidence to set the rules. “I’m a fan of spelling things out, but right now, I’m hungry for something else.”


    “I’m all for refueling.” Dom opened the bedroom door and paused. “What the…your cat is a pervert.”


    “What?” I went around him and dissolved intoughter when I saw Ginger sitting primly at the entrance, looking curious.


    “I guess you’re used to her eavesdropping or voyeurism?”


    “Let’s just say it was a good idea you shut the door.” I didn’t have to tell Dom that one time Ginger scared one of my regr hookups into noting back when she positioned herself in close proximity to his hairy balls.


    I needed Dom to fuck me again.<hr>


    “No gifts?” Dom raised a brow at my second rule below the “no dating” one.


    We had both showered and I rechecked Dom’s stitches. We were currently in the kitchen eating shrimp fried rice, lo mien, and beef broli from the Chinese restaurant next door.


    “Is it because it’s the holidays?”


    “Not really. But seriously. No gifts. No demands on time and I’m sure you’ll appreciate that, too.”


    He made a humming sound while chewing on a bite of noodles. He chased it down with beer, appearing contemtive. “Look, I said that I don’t like the expectations thate with the term girlfriend or mistress, but it doesn’t mean I’m a scrooge. I enjoy giving jewelry after I have a good time with a woman.”


    “Or when you end things?”


    “Well, there’s nothing to end, remember?” He exhaled an exasperated breath.


    “True, this isn’t a rtionship.”


    “You have a very negative perspective about rtionships. Worse than mine. Who hurt you?”


    “That’s not important, but we’re shaped by our pasts, right?”


    “But we’re not allowed to talk about anything personal. How would I know not to trigger you?”


    “I’m more Teflon than you think.”


    Dom grumbled something unintelligible, attacking his te with chopsticks. “I don’t have a problem with that, Sloane, but I have to go to events and I might have to take a woman as a date. Can you handle that?” He shoved a mouthful of noodles into his mouth.


    “As long as you’re not sleeping with her.”


    “I can’t im you in public. It’ll be disastrous for you when we end our…whatever this is.”


    His remark should hurt, but I was weirdly relieved. I wasn’t kidding when I said I had to at least like the person I had sex with and not simply bang random strangers I met at a bar. So this monogamous, no-strings-attached-sex arrangement was the perfect solution for me. Now that I’d proven that Dom could deliver on orgasms, it was a plus that he wanted a nomitmentmitment like I did.


    Keeping it under the radar would prevent other crime families from getting ideas about using me against him. Being out in public with him was a disaster for my independence. That was probably another reason he didn’t do girlfriends, especially if it was an ordinary person like me whose family couldn’t afford a legion of bodyguards.


    He finished chewing before he answered, “There might be tabloid spections about anyone I’m seen in public with.” At least he wasn’t one of those annoying men who talked with their mouths full.


    “I promise not to cause drama as long as you’re honest with me. Besides, that might be advantageous so people won’t be suspicious about us.” I rose from my chair because I was craving wine for this discussion. I never expected the “no gifts” rule to open so many avenues of discourse. I grabbed one of my $10.99 bottles and twisted the corkscrew into it. “You don’t always have to tell me when you have an event because you only call me when you want to hook up.” I wiggled the cork out and dropped it onto a tray where I’d been collecting them. “I might not always be avable because I’m in thest year of nursing school, but I’m not down with you having sex with someone else while you’re fucking me.”


    He narrowed his eyes. “Same.”


    “You don’t want any drama. You won’t get any from me. But I’d appreciate a call or a text to tell me we’re done.”


    Dom spooned over a mountain of fried rice on his te and resumed eating. “You know this sounds like a guy’s dream rtionship but?—”


    “We’re not calling this a rtionship.”


    “If this is about money?—”


    “Maybe it is.” It totally was. After Dad left us penniless, my mother always reminded me to have my own money. To never surrender financial power to a man or be dependent on him for survival. Dom and I were worlds apart, both financially and in social status. But if what he gave me was just sex and after receiving a prelude to what was toe—no pun intended—I wanted more. What I didn’t want was theplication that came when money was involved, because what he would give me would be more than I could ever afford. It wasn’t the same as a cleaning job where I charged exorbitant prices. In my twisted mind, because of our wealth imbnce and because we couldn’t be seen in public, it was like he would be paying me for sex. Fuck that. In the bedroom, we were equally matched.


    “I’m still recing your bed. No arguments.”


    His blood had ruined the mattress. I wasn’t attached to it since it was lumpy as hell.


    “I said ‘no gifting.’” I paused and took a dramatic sip of my wine. “I didn’t say I wasn’t practical.”