Page 73 of When Morning Comes Around

“No. I wouldn’t lie to you. It’s not my idea of fun. However, I know that it’s something you’ve been looking forward to. And seeing you enjoy yourselfismy idea of fun.” He curled his arms around her waist and drew her to him, making himself smile as he did so. “I hope that when I don’t want to do something that you do – or vice versa – we’ll just be honest with each other. That’s how a healthy relationship works, and you’re going to have to get used to it.”

She nodded slowly. “I’m sorry. I…”

He smiled through pursed lips.

“Okay, now I want to say sorry for apologizing.”

He chuckled. “You don’t need to apologize for a damn thing. I should probably apologize for not wording things more carefully. That’s something I can work on. I suppose what I’m asking is that you relax a little and trust me. I’m not going to test you and I’m not going to stop doing things that I think might make you happy.”

She tightened her arms around him and buried her face in his chest. Her words were muffled against his jacket, but he thought she said thank you.

When she finally looked up at him, his heart sank when he saw tears in her eyes.

She shook her head rapidly. “They’re happy tears. You’re a wonderful man, Dom. And I’m feeling kind of lucky.”

He chuckled. “You’re a wonderful lady, Sadie. And I’m feeling pretty damn lucky, myself. I think we’re bound to have hiccups along the way, but we’ll work through them. I just need to somehow prove to you that you’re safe with me.”

“I probably shouldn’t tell you this, but I knew that right from the beginning. You feel like a safe place – and I’ve always wanted one of those.”

He tightened his arms around her. “Well, you have one now.”

~ ~ ~

Sadie checked her watch as they entered the restaurant. She felt guilty when she saw that they’d spent so much time walking up and down the cobbled streets of the shopping plaza. It was such a cool little place, and she’d enjoyed every minute of it.

She looked up at Dom to ask him if he’d enjoyed it – he’d seemed to. The question froze on her lips when she saw the expression on his face. She even felt the way he tensed beside her. She followed his gaze to see what it was that had caused him to react that way. All she could see was Taryn, who was grinning at them from behind the bar and beckoning them over.

Sadie liked her. She could understand why some people were a little wary of her – she was forthright, to say the least, but she was good people. The two of them had gotten along well. Sadie had been looking forward to seeing her again, but Dom’s reaction had her confused.

“Is everything okay?”

When he turned to look at her, his expression relaxed, and he gave her a wry smile. “Everything’s fine. Sorry, if I looked agitated, it’s because… Taryn.”

“Do you have a problem with her?”

He chuckled. “No. She’s great. But… You’ve met her. She can be… Difficult.”

“Oh! I didn’t get that impression. I thought she was just kind of opinionated. I’m not even sure that’s the right word. She doesn’t pull any punches.”

“Yeah, you probably described her better than I did. She’s not difficult – I guess I’m just hoping that she’s not going to embarrass me.”

She relaxed. “I doubt that she’d do that. The impression that I got is that she thinks the world of you.”

He smiled at her. “You’re right. I shouldn’t be worried. If she gives me a hard time, she’s only teasing. Just don’t let her put you off me, okay?”

She laughed. “She couldn’t do that if she tried – and I seriously doubt that she would ever try.”

“Get your asses over here, would you?” Taryn called as they got closer to the bar.

She grinned when they reached her. “I was starting to worry – I thought maybe something had gone wrong. I saved your table, but I thought you’d be here earlier than this.”

“Sorry, that’s my fault,” said Sadie.

Taryn waved a hand at her. “It’s not a problem. I’m just glad that you’re here. That the two of you are together and…” She grinned at Dom. “And that he finally gets to take you out.”

Dom chuckled. “Where’s that table?”

Taryn made a face at Sadie. “He’s worried that I’m going to embarrass him, but you know better. I already told you how awesome he is. I can tell that he’s not going to relax until he’s out of earshot from me, though.” She gave Dom an evil smile. “I reserved the best table for you, but you’ll still be in my line of sight.”

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