Page 58 of Ominous: Part 1
But it’s not fear that causes me to obey as I stare into Dom’s eyes.
It’swant.
I release Dominic, who groans, and I step back, putting distance between us as I slowly turn to face Eli, his knees still wide, the water bottle now beside his hip, the coke between his fingers, resting on his thigh, his other hand, too, splayed wide.
I hear Dom sucking his own finger, pulling it out of his mouth with apop.
Lifting my chin, holding eye contact with Eli, I saunter toward him, until I’m standing between his knees, still staring into dark green eyes, unable to read his calm expression.
He shakes the baggie, and I drop my gaze.
“No,” he says quietly. “Look atme.”
I bite my bottom lip, feeling my cheeks heat. But I look athim.
Behind me, Dominic is quietly laughing. I don’t care.Let him watch.
Eli brings one hand up, curling his fingers into a loose fist, his thumb wrapped around his forefinger. Then he brings the baggie to his teeth, pulling apart the seal, staring at me as he does.
My entire body is warm, my breathing labored, but I keep my mouth closed, inhaling through my nose, exhaling the same way. The party grows louder with the torrential rains outside, slanting against the curtained windows, but the bass beats from speakers somewhere out there still thump, beneath the sound of Eli’s own music, on the nightstand, still SAINt JHN, a different song.
With one hand, he taps scaly powder onto the hollow between his thumb and index finger. Not once does he look away.
I stay still, refusing to squirm under his gaze. At my back, Dominic is drinking water, judging by the crinkling plastic.
Eli lowers the hand holding the baggie, presses the seal together, then tosses the rest on the bed. He brings his hand to my hip, fingers splayed wide, wrapping around to the curve of my ass.
My heart jumps to my throat.
He pulls me closer, and I go willingly, until my knees hit the edge of the bed. Our height difference is so drastic, we’re almost, stupidly, eye to eye.
He drifts his hand up, to the small of my back, underneath my shirt, his cold fingers pressing into my spine.
I suck in a shallow breath.
“Here,” he says, offering his hand to me with a smirk. “Blow it off of me.”
I swallow, my mouth dry as I glance at the coke, not in a line, just sprinkled over his skin.
“Hold onto me,” he says, glancing at his shoulder, and I see the green veins in his biceps beneath the loose sleeve of his shirt. “And come closer.”
I reach for him, clawing onto the hard muscles of his upper arm. With my free hand, I tuck a lock of my bangs behind my ear, grazing my piercings, my hair in two braids.
He drifts his fingers over the base of my spine.
A shiver runs through me.
Dominic is silent, no doubt watching.
I like it. Being watched. With the feel of the thrill, I reach for Eli’s choker, curling my fingers over the leather, and he doesn’t speak. I feel his pulse flutter as I dig my way under the band. It’s a tight fit, and I know it hurts him, or, at the very least, is uncomfortable.
But I don’t wait as his short nails curve into my back. I dip my head, and giving him one last glance, our eyes locking for a moment, I brush the tip of my nose over the powder.
As my pulse roars like the ocean in my ears, I realize I don’t know if I can actually do it like this, holding onto Eli with both hands, with no dollar bill or—
Before I can panic, feeling less confident than I did only a second ago, I hear the floor shift, and I know it’s Dominic’s body behind mine, his nearness warm.
He says, “I’m just going to help you, okay?”
