Page 9 of Exile

“It’s kind of a long story. I’ll explain in the car.” I flash him a smile that doesn’t quite reach my eyes as I take his hand and give him a tug towards his black Dodge Charger. Dominick gives me a terse nod of understanding before opening my door for me like a gentleman. I can’t help but bask in the feeling of protectiveness and being cared for that washes over me from such a simple gesture. Outside of Kai, who I wouldn’t exactly call gentlemanly, my dad was the only other man in my life to look after me, and I’ve missed that feeling of being taken care of. I’ve been carrying such a weight on my shoulders, taking care of Mom and myself—it feels nice to let go for once and let someone else be in control.

Once my butt hits the smooth buttery leather of the seat, Dominick leans in without hesitation and buckles my seatbelt for me. His hard body is so close to mine, I can feel the heat radiating from him, and his sandalwood cologne invades all my senses. I can’t help but gasp and take in a deep breath, becoming intoxicated by his entire presence.

Before he pulls away, I feel his lips brush against the shell of my ear as he whispers, “I take care of what’s mine, Serena. Get used to it.” My core clenches as a rush of arousal pulses through my body at his possessive words. I find myself thinking that I will have absolutely no problem getting used to being taken care of by Dominick.

For our date, Dominick takes us to a nice restaurant. One of those locally sourced, seasonal menu type places with handcrafted cocktails and words used to describe foods I have never heard before. I’m pretty sure half of them are either in another language or entirely made up. This type of dining experience is not within my work-two-jobs-to-get-through-college budget. I am staring at the Mortar and Pestle menu, trying to discreetly puzzle out what Maître d'Hôtel Butter is, when a waitress in a crisp white button-down shirt accessorized with a skinny black tie approaches our table.

“Good evening, folks. My name is Kelsey, and I’ll be your server tonight. Can I start either of you off with a cocktail or a glass of wine?” Kelsey’s voice is friendly, but all of her attention is directed at my date.

“I’ll have a glass of Blanton’s Single Barrel, neat.” Dominick orders without hesitation. I bite my lower lip as I look over the drink selection on the menu. I don’t turn twenty-one for another three months, and I’m not sure what Dominick’s stance is on underage drinking, so I decide to play it safe and order a blackberry and basil mocktail.

“Wonderful, would you like any appetizers to start while I get your drinks started?” Kelsey keeps her eyes glued to Dominick when she speaks, making me feel completely invisible.

“That’ll be it for now.” Dominick dismisses Kelsey without even a second glance. His eyes are fixed on me, with a mischievous glint in them. Kelsey lingers for a moment longer, seemingly hoping he will finally look up and notice her, but gives up after a long awkward moment.

“I’ll have those drinks right out to you, sir.” She leaves with a tight smile on her face that doesn’t quite reach her eyes anymore.

“You worried I’ll bust you for drinking, Serena?” Dominick says as he hides his sly smirk behind his water glass.

“I’m not twenty-one until November eighteenth. I didn’t want to risk you tarnishing your stellar reputation as Birch Falls Officer of the Year, three years running, by being seen out with an underage delinquent.” I shrug one shoulder as I take a sip of my own water, hoping I am coming across cool and nonplussed about Dominick mentioning my age.

The surprised guffaw that leaves him is contagious, and I find myself laughing as well. “Oh, Kitten, I can’t wait to show you how tarnished my reputation actually is.” Dominick winks at me, and I can feel heat rising up my cheeks as I take in the implication of his words. I hide my face behind my menu, perusing it studiously like it holds the answer to the meaning of life while I wait for the burn of embarrassment to cool from my face.

“Nuh-uh, Kitten, don’t hide from me,” Dominick commands as he reaches across the table and pulls down my menu. “I don’t ever want you to hide that pretty face from me. Your face is my favorite view.”

Kelsey returns with our drinks then, ready to take our orders. My mind is still in blue screen of death mode from Dominick’s compliment, so I just order the first thing my eyes land on. Pan-seared halibut and dashi broth with a side of crispy Brussels sprouts. I have no idea what dashi broth is, and I’m not even sure if I like halibut, but the ability to parse the fancy terms on the menu has completely abandoned me for the night, so I will make do with what arrives at the table. Dominick orders the bison ribeye with the fancy butter I was puzzling over and confit Dutch potatoes.

“Can I get you anything else at all, sir?” Kelsey asks, a false sweetness to her voice as she keeps her attention fixed on the man sitting across from me. Dominick hands her his menu without sparing her a glance as he keeps his eyes trained on me.

“I have everything I need right here, Katie.”

I bite my bottom lip, trying to hide my smile at his obvious dismissal of our waitress. Normally I’m not one for being rude to waitstaff, but with the way she’s ignoring me and overtly flirting with my date, I don’t feel even a little bad about him putting her in her place.

From that point on, our date is full of easy conversation while we eat delicious food (it turns out I do, in fact, like halibut, and Mâitre d'Hôtel Butter is just a fancy way of saying compound butter). I tell Dominick about my mom and her memory issues from the accident. I see a flicker of sympathy cross his face when I recall the night of my parents’ accident, and he never lets his attention stray from me once. We are sharing a dessert of maple brûlée custard when my phone chimes out with a text notification.

“Oh shit, sorry. I thought I turned my ringer off,” I apologize as I reach into my purse to turn off my phone. I glance down to see who the notification is from, and I see a new message from Kai on my home screen. I almost give into temptation to open my phone to see what he has to say after being radio silent for over twenty-four hours but Dominick clears his throat, drawing my attention back to him.

“Your mom checking in on you?” he asks, his expression serious and maybe a tad bit annoyed.

“Oh no, it’s my friend Kai. I guess he’s finally responding to my text message from last night.”

“Who’s Kai?” Dominick’s tone turns from light to serious in a heartbeat.

“My other boyfriend. Why? You jealous?” I joke, trying to bring the lightness back to our evening.

Dominick’s eyes darken from silver to a stormy gray when he responds, “Incredibly. I want to be the only man you refer to as your boyfriend.” My mouth goes dry at the molten heat in his gaze licking over my skin. Instead of poking the bear more, I slide my phone, ringer now turned off, back into my purse.

“Come on, Kitten. Let’s get out of here.” He signs the receipt left by our waitress and leads me out of the restaurant by the hand.

“What are we doing now?” I ask as I let him pull me along to his car. He doesn’t answer me until we reach the vehicle. His response comes as he cages me in with his large body against the hard metal of the passenger door, cool from the crisp fall air.

“Now, we are going to kiss, and I am going to show you how thoroughly you belong to me.” One of his large palms grips my hair at the base of my skull as he tilts my head back, angling my face up so he can crush his lips against mine. His lips are full, soft and demanding. He tastes sweet, like maple and vanilla, with a hint of smoky caramel from the bourbon he was drinking. His other hand cups my cheek as he licks against my lips, seeking entrance into my mouth. I open for him, becoming pliant under the heat of his body. How long we stand there kissing in the moonlit parking lot, I have no idea, but it’s long enough for my breathing to grow ragged and my panties to become damp from my arousal. When Dominick finally pulls his lips away from mine, he leans in, whispering into my ear, “You’re mine now, Kitten. I better be the only man you refer to as your boyfriend from now on.”

I respond with the only two words my brain is capable of forming, “Yes, sir.”

CHAPTER SIX

SERENA

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