Page 29 of The Scandal You Started
The idea of needing such protection as a grown-arse woman was highly questionable to Rayna. But like most Studies, Dominic was a product of his time and genuinely held an innate belief that it was true. She couldn’t fault him for that, but being who she was, how fiercely she valued her independence and choice, it still felt wrong to be told a man knew better.
Even if Dominic was one of the good men who was sincere about his“protection,”considering historically, men were the thing that caused women the most problems. Yeah, women didn’t need a man’s protection, but to be protectedfromthem.
Taking a deep breath, she approached the topic diplomatically. “Victor cares about me immensely, because he allowed me to do my job, knowing it wasn’t entirely safe. He knew I’d be livid if he ever tried to stop me on the basis that I’m a woman and therefore can’t face the same danger a man can.
“In some cases, that might be true. But in your case, it wasn’t. And it was a collective decision, not just mine or his. But he did want to protect me, which is why he was watching the whole time from outside your quarantine room.”
“Your idea of care might be to keep a woman sheltered, but that isn’t V’s idea. He cares by loving me and trusting me to make the right decision, while offering me his opinion and concern where he sees necessary. But at the end of the day, he knows and appreciates that the final choice is mine. He knows that’s important to me, and I love him for that.”
The buzz of the bathroom fan vibrated off the white tiles in the seconds that followed as a stormy shadow cast over Dominic’sface. She couldn’t figure out why he was so angry about what she’d said, but her hackles were rising, readying to defend against an incoming crash of arguing words.
His jaw rocked back and forth before he uttered, “Who is he to you?”
“He’s family.”
She didn’t want to elaborate further by telling him exactly how he was family. That only led to Studies asking questions she wasn’t comfortable answering. At least not immediately.
Like some children’s cartoon, a blue sky launched across Dominic’s face as his brows softened. “Family?” He slanted his chin. “So...he is not your lover?”
“Lover?” she echoed, reeling back. “What the fuck? No.”
“Ah.”
She caught sight of the little twitch in his mouth before he straightened his head, and realisation rose through her with disbelieving slowness. “Wait. You thought he was my lover? Is that why you were so rude to him?”
“I was not rude to him. I simply…could not understand why he was so openly affectionate towards you.”
Rayna’s mouth hung open. There was no way he was admitting to what it sounded like he was admitting to.
“Are you fucking serious? Were you jealous?”
He sniffed haughtily. “I admit to no such feeling.”
Well, that was just another way of saying yes.
Her mouth collapsed further before she quickly snapped her lips together. There was no way he was being real. There was no way this man, who she’d justmet, was envious that another man had fussed over her. What the actual fuck?
Rayna felt an absurd impulse to cackle hysterically, but there was one very distinct alarm bell ringing in the back of her mind that suppressed her warped amusement.
She didn’t mean to do it, but her fingers instinctively curled into Dominic’s soapy hair and yanked backwards, tipping his face up again. He growled a sharp sound, baring his teeth from one corner exactly as a cat that had been poked would.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?”
“Wrong with me?” he snapped back. “Did your governess never rinse your mouth with soap for cursing like a sailor?”
Grinding her teeth, she flashed him a vicious grin. “Did no woman ever smack you for acting like you own her when you just fucking met her?”
“I have never before made the mistake of expressing interest in a wicked little pixie.”
This bitch just called me a fucking pixie!
“How about you don’t express anything unless you want me to bury you under with your balls out for the crows to peck on?”
His lips fell apart before riled amusement quirked his wide mouth. “You,” he growled through a chuckle. “How dare you speak of my manhood so shamelessly, let alone threaten it?”
He seized both her wrists and swiftly tugged her down, bringing her face right over his.
“I take back what I said,” he purred. “You are a maddening, feral barn cat.”
