Page 45 of Axe Marks the Spot

I rack my brain to think who else could teach this course. I know it’s not Fox or Nathan, so—

“Oh, there he is!” She points to a part of the course made of ropes. My eyes track her finger, and I’m met with the jean-clad ass of a man who’s bent over. I can’t tell what he’s doing, but I’m guessing he’s tying his shoe. None of that matters, though, because his ass is what I and the other moms are focusing on.

“Okay, I should go before I have a hot flash,” Mandy says from beside me. “Go say hi to him. I didn’t see a ring, so I bet he’s single. Maybe he’d come out of the woods for you.”

Mandy’s words and soft laugh fall on deaf ears, because I know that butt. It sounds ridiculous to think, but I do. Because I’ve stared at it on Loopr for far too long.

My mouth goes dry as DomInTheWoods, my Sir, stands to his full height.

He’s even more massive in person, and the afternoon sun highlights his broad shoulders covered by a fitted white T-shirt. When he turns, all the air leaves my lungs, and I’m speechless.

Salt-and-pepper beard, cut jaw, perfect nose, and determined eyes. A nose I’ve seen before. Eyes I know I’ve seen before. I would bet millions of dollars that if I got closer, I’d see their hazel color, the pretty mix of blue and green with flecks of golden brown and a dark-brown ring around the iris I found so fascinating while he was staring back at me.

Everything clicks into place all at once. The reason I thought I recognized DomInTheWoods’s nose, why his voice sounded familiar and safe. My gaze trails down his neck, the tattoos I studied online greeting me. Peonies on the right and a sparrow on the left. On his left forearm is the unique compass tattoo I couldn’t stop looking at during our video call.

I feel lightheaded as it all makes sense. How could I not have realized it before? He’s the man I ran into at the games this past weekend. Not only that, Mr. Perfect Nose is my Dom and now my kid’s obstacle course instructor. I don’t swear a lot, but what the fuck?

I flick my gaze back to him, and his eyes lock on mine. The way he’s watching me says he recognizes me, too. He visibly tracks his gaze over my curves then back to my face. Is he remembering how my nipples got hard against his chest, how his hands held me firm to keep me from falling over?

My heart pounds wildly, and my blood pressure has got to be spiking. I stare, unblinking, taking in the full experience of him. He’s intense. Beautiful. And there’s no question in my mind why he’s a Dom. His mere presence commands attention, and his focus remains zeroed in on me. The corner of his lips tips up a bit, and my skin prickles.

That near smile tells me he knows who I am to him, that he knows I’m Lindsey, his submissive. Did he know as soon as he found out my name when I emailed him? Has he seen me before? Did Morgan tell him? Did he already know I’m a mom?

I have so many questions, and it’s becoming hard to breathe. My brain tells my feet to move, to grab him and find out the answers I need to know.

“He’s staring at you,” Mandy says giddily.

“More like eating you with his eyes,” another mom adds, and the group laughs.

I inhale a sharp breath as my cheeks heat. Mandy bumps my shoulder, and I pry my focus from Sir to look at her.

“Do you know him?” she asks.

“Sort of.” I would’ve preferred to say no, but it would be obvious to everyone that that’s a lie.

“He’s coming over here,” the same mom from before whispers.

Goose bumps break out over my arms, and I turn my head to my approaching Dom. The group of parents next to me all stand up straighter, and the air around us seems to vanish.

“Ladies.” He addresses everyone before stopping my heart with his next word. “Lindsey.”

His deep voice zips through my body, and my mouth goes dry. He does know it’s me. I don’t know what to say back, though. I don’t know his name, and there’s no freaking way I’m going to call him Sir or DomInTheWoods. Mr. Perfect Nose might be even worse.

He turns his gaze from mine back to the parents. “For those of you who haven’t met me, I’m Dane. I’ll start in a minute; you’re welcome to stay and watch or pick your kids up at three.”

The parents mumble their thanks, but their attention is on me and the dominating man before us who I now know as Dane. D. Woods. I guess that is his real last name. I want to roll the full thing around in my mouth, let it fall from my lips and hear it out loud. But I don’t need to say it to know it suits him. Dane Woods.

“Can I talk to you for a moment?” he asks me directly.

“The kids…” I say.

“We’ve got them,” Mandy chirps, pushing me toward Dane. It catches me off guard, and I almost fall forward. He comes to my rescue, grabbing onto my bicep much like the first time we ran into each other. His touch is searing, and my damn nipples harden like they’ve been conditioned to pop out when he touches me. Thank god I’m wearing a real bra with pads today so they’re not visible through my shirt.

“You okay?” he asks as he rights me.

I nod, pulling back so we’re standing side by side and I can avoid his eyes. His hand drops from my bicep to my lower back, not touching me but hovering over my skin. The phantom feel is hot against my body, and even though I don’t know what to think right now, I wish he’d just touch me.

Dane dips his head until his lips are by my ear and says, “Let’s go next to the bathrooms.”