Page 97 of Training His Pet

Erika’s heart sank an inch at the mention of the cabin. She’d hoped to avoid that part of the camp, but she wasn’t about to ask for anything special after Devin and Kara were willing to let her come at all.

“Sounds wonderful. I can pull my car around that way, then?”

“Yeah, just take the road around and follow it to the cabin.” Devin pointed to the drive on the side of the building.

“Thanks again.” Erika picked up her bag and carried it back to her car. Of course they wouldn’t give her one of the rooms in the main house. Those were for close friends, and she was not that. She was just a journalist writing an article for a sex website.

Leaving theChicago Evening Postto freelance for Positively Sexy and other kink-friendly blogs and magazines hadn’t been as difficult of a decision as she had thought it would be. Dax hadn’t been wrong when he said there were plenty of places online that would buy articles about the lifestyle. This was going to be her first real assignment with Positively Sexy, and she wouldn’t mess it up.

When she’d mentioned the resort to her editor, she had intended for one of their more seasoned journalists to take the assignment. It didn’t work out that way, though, and now she was driving down the same path Dax had walked her on her leash two months ago.

Her breath caught when the cabin she’d shared with him came into view, but she shook her head and focused on finding the narrow drive that would take her to her own cabin. She had to push him from her mind, no matter how much energy it drained from her.

After she parked and pulled her bags out, she made her way up the porch. She couldn’t see the cabin from her porch; a thick line of bushes secluded each cabin space. It didn’t matter anyway. Dax was gone. Long gone.

She’d stopped at his apartment twice trying to catch him, trying once more to apologize. But the last time she stopped, his neighbor informed her he’d moved. And she didn’t know where to, only that a bunch of movers came one day and cleared the place out.

Going to Velvet was out of the question. Corbin probably knew less than she did, and if not, she didn’t want any connection to him or the Persuccio family. Her drive to get to know them, to get information on them, had caused the colossal mess to begin with. She was done with them.

By the time she had her bags in the bedroom and changed into her jeans, she was beat. It was near dinnertime already, so she decided to make her way up to the café and see if anyone felt like chatting. Grabbing the press pass lanyard Kara had given her, she slipped it over her neck and headed out of the cabin.

Erika stepped out onto the front porch and zipped up her sweatshirt. Fall was coming, and the evenings were cool.

“Erika.”

The gruff voice came from behind her, freezing her into position.

“Dax?” she whispered, sure she was just hearing things. She slowly turned around to see him standing at the foot of the steps. The same strong physique, the stern set jaw and dark stubble covered his jawline, but his eyes, warm and sweet, stared up at her.

“I-I didn’t know you were here,” she hastened to say.

“I know you didn’t,” he said, coming up one step. “I knew you were coming, though.”

“You did?” And he hadn’t run from the resort? He was there, standing on her steps.

“I did. Devin told me about the article you’re working on, and about the paper.” He pressed his hip to the wooden railing.

“You were right,” she shrugged. “I was chasing big stories, and I let it become too much of my life. I would have defined myself by which column had my name on it.” She paused. “It wasn’t important anymore.”

His brows went up.

“I was wrong, Erika,” he stated flatly. “I didn’t give you the benefit of the doubt. I didn’t take the time to hear everything you had to say. To let you answer my questions. I jumped straight from your apartment to five years ago finding out I’d been betrayed.” He shook his head gently. “That wasn’t fair to you—or me.” He moved up a step.

“We both made mistakes,” she said softly, watching his boots move up the last step, bringing him to stand eye level with her.

“Looks like you were heading out; I won’t keep you. I just wanted to say... I’m sorry.” His stare pinned her. Everything other than her franticly beating heart stilled while she promptly lost herself in his eyes.

“That’s all you came to say?” she prompted, taking that chance, hoping she wasn’t going to get her insides pulled back out again.

His left eyebrow rose.

“I haven’t seen you in two months. You’ve ignored my calls, my texts... hell, Dax, you moved out of the city. You couldn’t have been any clearer about wanting me out of your life... yet here you stand.”

“All of that is exactly why I’m sorry is all there is to offer. I couldn’t ask you to trust me again after walking out on you like that. I’m no better than the other assholes—”

She stopped him with a finger pressed against his lips.

“None of those assholes ever apologized. None of them ever regretted walking out. And...” She cleared her throat, unsure but risking it all the same. “And I never wanted any of them to come back. Not like I do with you.”

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