Page 50 of Swept for Forever
He was an older man, and he was probably leaving town eventually. Great to have right now and great to fantasize about, but let’s be real. Boys had baggage. Grown men had entire matching luggage sets.
And if I let myself fall any harder for him, I’d have no one to blame but myself.
“I, uh…I’m gonna head to my room,” I said, clutching the key a little too tightly.
Dom scooped up Lulu as if he were sneaking her past border control, scanning the parking lot before steering me toward my room.
The second I was settled, he turned toward the door. Was he reminding me that this thing, whatever it was, had an expiration date?
Lulu, at least, had no such reservations. She flopped down beside me on the bed.
Dom watched as I buried my fingers in Lulu’s fur. She smelled of…
I paused to think.
Candy shampoo.
I pulled back slightly, sniffing again. Yep. Sugary, fruity, and definitely not “dog.”
My eyes narrowed. “Did Dom?—”
Lulu yawned, stretching out with no shame.
I glanced at Dom and laughed. “Oh my god. You bathed her.”
He shrugged, deadpan. “Can’t bring a dirtball into civilization. She’s officially cuddle compliant.”
I laughed even harder.
The man who saved me, carried me, and tucked me into a hospital bed like some guardian angel—he gave “my dog” a bath.
“Hey, you want dinner? Pizza here’s not bad,” he offered.
If I were going to eat with him, I wanted to be all there—bright-eyed, chirpy, and presentable. And I wasn’t hungry. Not for food, anyway.
“Actually…I think I’ll go straight to bed, if that’s okay.”
“Of course,” he said.
I sauntered to the bathroom but left the door ajar, then quickly swapped my clothes for the baggyIBuffaloberry HillT-shirt.
Then I climbed back into bed.
He said, “If you need me, I’m in room 109. Two doors down.”
After surviving a near-death hike, a storm, and one very cramped tent, I figured I’d earned a little nerve. “What if I need you now?”
His brows ticked up, just slightly. And beneath his calm smile, there was something else. Relief, maybe, as if he’d been hoping I’d ask.
“Well, I’m here.”
I reached for his hand. “Please stay. Just until I fall asleep.”
He didn’t pull away. But he didn’t sit either.
12
DOM
