Page 105 of Out of the Shadows
Sierra huffed and flicked her perfect blonde hair over her shoulder but didn’t acknowledge his comment.
“Oookay?” Ella sounded unsure of how to handle the situation. “Hey, Dom, why don’t you go downstairs and putall those muscles you’re lugging around to good use?”
Ella looked at her brother as she spoke, but I didn’t miss the way Sierra’s blue eyes darted over Dominic’s muscular arms with lightning speed.Uh-oh.
“Sure,” he drawled, then strolled toward the door as we moved to unload the stuff in Ella’s room.
Dominic was about to step over the threshold when he almost collided with another equally tall figure.
“Oh, sorry, dude,” my boyfriend’s voice rang out, and my head whipped around.
“No problem. Hey, congrats on the draft!” Dominic sounded a little starstruck, and I had to stifle a giggle.
“Thanks! Cool tattoos. Are you Ella’s brother?”
“Yup. What gave it away?” he said, laughing.
“Might’ve been the hair, dude.” They chuckled. “Oh, wait, that means you’re going to be my replacement, huh? You’ll love it, don’t worry. The guys are great.”
“Sure am. Definitely, I usually get along just fine wherever I go.”
Sierra snorted in her corner, then disappeared into her room without a word. Both of them glanced after her, Colt rather confused, but Dominic once again with mischievous amusement.
By the time I had deposited the things in Ella’s room, the two of them had finished their conversation, and Colt came in alone. Over the past few months, he had begun to ditch the oversized shirts more and more, and I happily checked out his beefy biceps straining against the sleeves of his shirt.
“Aren’t you going to help him?” I asked, confused.
“In a minute. I have something to show you first.” He smiled his crooked smile at me, walked over and kissed mein greeting. “Hi, Princess, missed you.”
“Ugh, that’s my cue. Don’t make out too long, I still need your help,” Ella said, feigning repulsion and leaving her room, presumably to grab more stuff from downstairs.
“Where have you been?”
Colt’s grin widened. “Got myself a little souvenir.”
My brow furrowed as I looked up at him. What the hell was he talking about? “Okay? What kind of souvenir?”
“The kind that’s permanent.”
He pulled up his shirt, and just above his heart was something covered in the clear film I recognized from my tattoo.
“Oh my God, you got inked? Without telling me?” I swatted him lightly on the arm, and he winced playfully. On my tiptoes, I examined the ink that would adorn his skin forever.
“What is it?”
“A star map from the day we met. The day you took my heart and lit up my life.”
I stared at him speechless, then slowly placed my hand over it. “You’re crazy.”
“So you keep saying. I’m only crazy when it comes to you.” He placed his hand over mine and pulled me in for another kiss. “Besides, I don’t think this is crazy. You know it and I know it. It’s been you since day one.”
“Since day one,” I echoed. And hopefully every other day for the rest of my life.
THE END
