Page 130 of For the Love of the Gods

I scoffed, and said “You’re wrong.” Trying to convince myself as much as him.

“No. I’m not.” Dominic took a step toward me and I threw the knife, watching as it whistled an inch away from his head and embedded itself into the far wall.

“I’ve seen you throw knives, Rose,” Dominic said, after not even flinching an inch. “You don’t miss. If you wanted to hit me you would have.”

I wordlessly shook my head, then pulled another knife out of the sheath at my thigh. Dominic needed to be knocked back into sense. To remember what he wanted for me before the Fates got involved.

“The closer you get, the easier it will be for me to stab you,” I warned as he took another step toward me. I almost, almost took one back, but stood my ground.

“Okay.” He took two steps forward. I stayed still. The sound of his boots hitting the ground were echoing off the walls and my hollow, drained heart.

“Dominic,” I said. It almost sounded like a plea.

“Rose,” he returned, now three strides away from me.

“I’m going to stab you.”

Dominic stopped, then casually crossed his arms over his chest. “No, you aren’t.”

I shook my head again. “You don’t know me.”

Dominic laughed, full and rich and familiar. “Oh, yes I do, sweetheart. Now, I’m not moving toward you another inch. If you really want to kill me, you’ll come to me.”

“I’m better than you at hand to hand combat,” I said. But I didn’t move.

“That’s true. So come over here and show me. Kill me,” Dominic said, his voice steady. “And don’t think I missed that deflection.”

I tightened my grip on the knife. I could do this. Just a couple well placed jabs to get him riled up and then I’d conveniently forget to block and he’d get what he wanted.

“Come on, sweetheart,” Dominic goaded. “Kill me.”

I growled and tensed my entire body for a step forward. I still didn’t move.

“I’m giving you one more second to come at me, or I’m knocking that knife out of your hand.”

I raised the knife toward him, the only movement my body would allow. I could keep it steady, all he had to do was walk into it.

My throat went dry. Just an abdominal flesh wound, but the thought of Dominic bleeding made my knees weak.

Dominic and I stared at each other in the dark room. I still didn’t move.

“Second over,” Dominic said, then came toward me. When he was within arm's reach, he knocked the knife out of my hand and I just watched as it clattered to the floor next to my feet.

But then Dominic grabbed my face and I panicked at the familiar comfort of his touch. On instinct, I wrapped my foot around his leg, digging into the back of his knee to set him off balance and twisting so that he went to the ground with me on top of him.

Dominic grunted as his back hit the ground and the air was pushed from his lungs. The second I realized what I did, I pulled back, my hands lifting off his chest. Dominic looked shocked for a moment, then registered something in the way I released him.

Quicker than I could blink, he had me on my back, his legs encasing mine. If I couldn’t deal with his hands on my face, how the fuck was I supposed to deal with this?

I scrambled out from under him, grabbing the knife and backing up a few strides. Dominic looked pissed now. Good, he’d end it soon.

“If anotherrelievedthought about me killing you runs through your perfect head, you’re not going to like what happens,” Dominic cursed out.

I gaped like a fish.

“What, Rose? I told you I know you better than anyone else.”

“You want revenge,” I said softly.

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