Page 17 of Their Domme

“I’m not opposed to sex.” She grinned, running her hands up her body. I’d like to think it was because she was teasing me, though, knowing Nicholette, it was probably just a habit. “But I was thinking of swimming, then we could find someone to chase through these woods. I need some exercise to get my blood pumping and someone else’s blood spilling over me. You said people keep to themselves here… Let’s have some fun.”

“Who are we killing?”

Nicholette smirked before turning around to head back to the pool. “I don’t care as long as they fight back and make it interesting. If I need more stress relief, you can fuck me afterward. Now, come on. Get in with me. We can plan our little game of hide and seek before we get someone to join us. Unless you’re too old to keep up with me.” With those final words, she jumped back in and started swimming toward the other end of the pool.

A snarl curled my lips before I stood up and slowly undressed. Folding my clothes, I placed them on the chair and joined her. The water was refreshing, so I slipped under and pushed off, heading right for Nicholette. I came up for air right in front of her. This section of the pool was only five feet, letting us both stand up. Her gaze went right for my shoulder, eyes widening for a second before she hesitantly reached out to touch it. Funny how she had never reacted to any of my other scars, and I had plenty of those all over my body, like she was with this one.

Had something changed between us, or was there just something different inside her?

“A gunshot?” I nodded in answer to her question, and her fingers ghosted over the injury before she met my gaze. “Frederick?”

“What makes you think it was him?”

“Because Em and Blake wouldn’t have missed. If they had, you would have been pissed.” She chuckled, the sound soft. “You missed the kill shot?”

“What makes you think I would have missed?” I asked, challenge sparking something inside me. Did she truly think thatIwould miss? Without warning, I grabbed her throat, applying enough pressure for her to feel the strength in my hands.

“You weren’t aiming to kill him, or you wouldn’t have been hurt at all,” she said confidently, only the slightest hint of strain behind her voice. Her hand rested on my chest, showing she wasn’t the least bit bothered by my hand on her throat. “Or your emotions got the best of you.”

“Emotions?” I scoffed.

“Yes, even you have them. Try as you might, you’re not a sociopath.” Her eyes were bright with laughter as she stared up at me. “You’re just insane.”

“You’re with seven men, Nicholette,” I pointed out, and she dropped her hand from my chest. “I think insanity applies more to you than me. Plus, you’re in a pool, naked, with someone whoisn’tone of those seven men.”

She waved dismissively. “We’re friends.” My chest tightened at her easy dismissal of me, but I wouldn’t push it. Hell, I couldn’t be with someone who was with seven other people.What the fuck am I even thinking? How is that even the damn line? She’s been with Blake, Emmerich, Frederick… Fucking her was one thing, but being with her is something else altogether.“Now, do you have someone in mind for our playmate, or am I going hunting on my own?” she purred, pulling me from my thoughts.

I studied her face. There was a hint of a smile playing at the edge of her lips, but the vulnerability in her eyes made me pause. She was putting on a brave face, maintaining her damn walls as long as she could, and I respected the hell out of her for that. Stepping back from her to get some distance, I ignored how hard I was in favor of looking out at the forest in front of us.

“I have someone,” I told her after a longer-than-necessary pause. “You should tell Emmerich where you are so he doesn’t come banging down the door.”

“He will anyway,” she said with a snort. “He’s bossy like that.”

We let the quiet settle between us. Instead of our normal, easy silence, it was charged, or at least it was for me. My awareness of her was keeping my senses on high alert, and I wasn’t sure what to do about it. I was fighting with myself, trying to figure out my next steps, until there came a loud banging from my front door.

What the hell? Who could that be?

Nicholette

Monday

Ansel looked surprised and annoyed by the interruption, throwing a glare over his shoulder, and I chuckled before grabbing the edge of the pool and pulling myself out with ease.

“I’ll get it,” I told him, curious to see who was here.

“Nicholette…” Ansel growled behind me, and I picked up my pace, knowing he wouldn’t be far behind. Sometimes it was just fun to make men chase after me, especially when I got to poke fun at the ones that weren’t used to someone questioning their demands.

I snagged his shirt on my way past and slipped it on as I walked up to the front door and opened it. My eyes widened in shock, my mind racing as I tried to figure out why he was here, not to mention the man behind him. The two men had similar expressions, so I quickly schooled my mine and stepped back to wave them in.

“Ansel, you have company!”

“I’m right here, Nicholette.” His hands landed on my shoulders, pulling me tight against his chest as Christopher then Detective Allen came inside. Ansel had put on his undershirt and pants since I had taken his button-up. “What are you doing here?”

“We have a problem,” Christopher said, his gaze flicking from my face up to Ansel. His eyes narrowed as he studied us, especially Ansel’s hands on my shoulders. “Did we interrupt something?”

“And if you did, what business is that of yours?” Ansel crooned, the promise of violence clearly written in his tensing muscles. I looked between the two of them, confused about the entire situation, really.

“Why is it always like this with you, Nic?” Allen asked, pinching his nose and releasing a long-suffering sigh.

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