Thankful for the suit jacket that would hide my erection, I adjusted myself as I stood and followed her out the door.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Annetta
IHAD TO be losing my mind. That’s the only explanation I could come up with for agreeing to go on a date with Dominico. I’d seen the girl in the pink dress, heard her plans for a future with him, and could tell he was hiding something from me. Maybe lots of somethings. The guy had to be loaded. Each suit he wore probably cost more than my entire wardrobe, and he seemed to wear a new one every day. And he was dangerous. When we were making out on my sofa, I felt something hard on his left hip. A gun? It sure felt like it. Rich, deadly, and possibly taken, yet his kiss had practically melted my panties right off. I had no idea that was actually a thing until Dominico came into my life, but my panties… I needed to hit the restroom and see if they’d combusted.
Get it together, Annetta!
What was wrong with me? I was not the stupid girl who fell for the hot bad boy. That would be my friend Adona for you. I, on the other hand, was the smart, sensible one with a plan for the future that I intended to follow. But one look at Dominico, and all sensible thoughts flew straight out the window. Which explained why I’d agreed to go on a date to an undisclosed location with a guy who was the very definition of armed and dangerous.
“Where are we going again?” I asked.
Dominico chuckled. “Nice try, but it’s still a surprise.”
“What if I don’t like surprises?”
He parked and gave me a cocky smile before his fiery gaze took over, drifting south to scorch my legs and then headed north to consume my breasts. With one look, he had ignited my entire body, and I didn’t know whether to slap him or stop, drop, and roll.
“You scared?” he asked.
Terrified, but there was no way I was going to admit to that. While I tried to come up with a response, Dominico circled the car, opened my door, and hefted me toward him. Our bodies collided and he wrapped his arms around me, drawing in for another deep kiss before releasing me.
I was still struggling to calm down my breathing as he spun me around, covering my eyes with his hands as his hard chest pressed against my back.
“Don’t worry, I got you,” he whispered against my cheek.
Strangely enough, I trusted him. He ushered me out of the sun and traffic noise, into air conditioning and quiet classical music. We took several more steps before he helped me slide into a booth and uncovered my eyes.
Dominico’s smiling face was the first thing I saw. “You good?” he asked.
Better than good. Everything about the man was thrilling and mysterious, bringing all my senses to life. I nodded. “Where are we?”
“Not yet. Give me two more minutes. Wait here.”
He left me at the booth and headed straight for a man in a suit. The two bent their heads together and I checked out my surroundings. Stylish aluminum ceiling, hunter-green walls, numerous gilded mirrors, crystal chandeliers, and a gorgeous oak bar gave the place an old-fashioned feel. The restaurant was small, and the menus were black with no logo. They probably had a sign out front, but we’d parked in the back.
“Can I get you something to drink, ma’am?” a man behind me asked.
I swiveled my head to find the waiter watching me. Yes, a drink would help my nerves. I ordered a Mai Tai and then realized I had no idea what Dominico would want. Thankfully he appeared and ordered a beer before taking his place across from me.
“What is this place?” I asked.
He grinned, clearly having way too much fun with my ignorance. “Don’t you like surprises?” he asked.
“But we’re here. It’s time for the big reveal.”
He shook his head. “Hey, when I do something, I do it right.”
Before I could figure out how to respond to that statement, a loud alarm sounded.
“What’s that?” I asked, covering my ears.
Dominico smiled. “You’ll see. Or hopefully, you won’t.”
The alarm ended, and moments later, a family hurried past the bar entrance. “I toldyou it wasn’tin there,” the forty-something mom said. “If you guys would listen to me every once in a while, we would’ve won.”
Neither the dad nor the two teenage boys replied. Instead, they kept their heads down and sped up their pace, looking embarrassed as they passed.
