“I got rid of that bastard for you, and this is how you thank me?” he seethes.
My mouth falls open in shock—did he really just fucking say that?
“Thankyou?” I ask, astonished.
“You’re welcome,” he deadpans.
“Stop it, Dante. I’m not thanking you for murdering my boyfriend.”
“Ex-boyfriend,” he quickly corrects me, amber eyes darkening violently. “I did you a favor, and this is how you treat me, Essence?”
I scoff and cross my arms over my chest. “So how should I be treating you? Hmm? Should I get on my hands and knees and kiss your boot in gratitude?”
Dante doesn’t say anything for a moment, then he says in a tone barely above a whisper, “Yes.”
I stiffen. “What?”
“I want you to get on your knees and kiss my boot,” he says in a voice so calm it sends a shiver down my spine. Is that how he spoke to Evan before he killed him,ifhe even spoke at all?
The warm arousal I was feeling moments ago intensifies at his words. I can’t believe he’d expect me to do something so insane, but I'm in even more disbelief that I actuallywantto do it.
I sit back in my chair and look around the restaurant again, face on fire, then down at Lunchbox to make sure he’s okay. He’s licked his whole plate clean and is now lying lazily at Dante’s feet, those black boots of his taunting me.
“I’m not doing that here,” I whisper.
His eyes light up with levity. “Never said you had to.”
We eat our meal in silence, sneaking glances at each other as we stuff our faces with food. All of it is so good, and I definitely want to come back here, but the only thing I can think about is what’s waiting for me when we get home.
CHAPTER 41
ESSENCE
My stomach twistswith nerves as we pull into the driveway. After breakfast, we went to the dog park and let Lunchbox run around and play with other dogs.
The tension between Dante and I was so thick, I felt like I was suffocating from the weight of it. Even with some space between us, and our thick layers of clothes, I could practically feel his body heat radiating off him.
He’d draped his arm over the back of the bench we were sitting on and let his thumb graze the curve of my shoulder. I shivered from the contact through my coat and sweater, but I didn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing how his touch affected me.
An hour later, we got back in the truck and spent another fifteen minutes in tension-filled silence. His hand rested nonchalantly on my knee the entire car ride, and I silently cursed him for making this so damn hard for me.
After he helps me out, I hold onto Lunchbox’s leash and follow him up to the front door. When he unlocks it, Lunchbox pulls on the leash until I let go, and he goes zooming around the living room. Dante and I laugh as we hang up our coats on the hooks by the door.
I expect him to force me to my knees as soon as we get home, but instead he sits on the floor and plays with Lunchbox. I’m very confused, but I don’t question it because I think I might actually die of embarrassment if he actually made me kiss his boot.
The three of us spend the rest of the day in a peaceful little bubble. I make us lunch and we eat outside while Lunchbox explores the backyard, and then I help Dante with some work around the house that he’d started before Leo died but never finished.
Our lazy day turns into a busy one, and by the end of it, Lunchbox is exhausted. By five o’clock, he’s passed out in the middle of the living room snoring soundly. He’s still sleeping when Dante grabs my hand and says, “Let’s go in the bedroom.”
I follow behind him as he pulls me towards the bedroom, then pushes me inside, and closes the door quietly. Then he turns to me with his arms crossed over his broad chest and raises an eyebrow expectantly.
“Well?”
Oh, right.
I should have known he wouldn’t have forgotten.
Clearing my throat, I slowly get down on my knees in front of him. Suddenly, this room feels way too small for the two of us. Dante is massive, and down here on the floor, on my knees in front of him, he feels like a giant.
