Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 76415 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 382(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76415 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 382(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
Instead, he ignores me—doesn’t even spare me a glance—but leans over me to get the attention of the fans to my left whom I’d barely paid attention to.
I take them in. A group—two men and two women—approximately my age, all wearing Vengeance jerseys.
Dominik shifts over me a bit more to reach out a hand. “Pardon the interruption… not sure if you know who I am—”
One man jumps up. “Dominik Carlson,” he exclaims, shaking Dominik’s hand enthusiastically.
“Bingo,” Dominik replies with a laugh. “And I’d like to offer the four of you the opportunity to sit in the owner’s box for the game. Any interest? There’s free food and liquor.”
“Hell yes,” the other man exclaims, and all four bounce out of their chairs.
That’s weird.
What’s even weirder, the evil grin Dominik shoots at me. As he starts to back out of the aisle, I dismiss it, though. I have to stand and scoot back so the group can barrel past me to follow him.
I mean… is he trying to make me jealous by taking four strangers to the box? As if that would matter to me.
I catch surreptitious glances as Dominik congregates with the four fans and the usher in the main aisle. He gestures with his hands and motions at the usher, who starts moving up the steps with the group following behind him.
And Dominik stays put.
He watches them for a moment before turning back to me, his mischievous grin now going positively triumphant as he once again edges into our row, past my mom, dad, and Regan, to where I sit.
When I don’t move, he’s forced to step over my legs. As he flops into the seat beside me, he proclaims, “There’s more than one way to skin a cat, Willow.”
My jaw drops as I stare incredulously. It’s clear the man wants to watch the game with me, and he found a way to do it despite my trying to stop it.
On top of that, it’s clear he knew I’d refuse from the get-go by the fact he brought an usher to guide those fans up to the owner’s box. He’d known I’d say “no,” and he’d get the seats beside me. In fact, I have no doubt had those fans refused, Dominik would have started offering obscene amounts of money for those seats—or at least the one right beside me—merely to get what he wants.
I don’t know whether to be offended or impressed.
“So romantic,” Regan says on a sigh. When I glare her way, she smirks.
I dare to let my attention move past her to my parents, who are also smiling. It’s apparent they think it’s patently obvious to the entire world Dominik Carlson is interested in their daughter, and they couldn’t be happier about it.
I rotate in my seat, swiveling to face the brutishly controlling man to my left. “Are there no lengths you’ll go to have your way?”
Dominik’s eyes bore into mine. “Not where you’re concerned. Might as well roll over, Willow, and just submit.”
“Never,” I hiss as I focus on the ice.
But deep down, something inside of me is inherently turned on by his aggressiveness. By his sheer confidence and the power of his ego. By his determination to take what he thinks is his.
It’s such a cave-man tendency.
What the hell craziness is wired into my DNA that causes me to actually like it?
CHAPTER 8
Dominik
I smile to myself as I watch Willow. She’s in my home again, right where I want her. Standing beside her mom, dad, brother, and sister-in-law.
Getting her back here so soon was a little harder than I had anticipated. When I dropped her off at Dax’s house just this morning after our very long and very satisfying night together, I had asked for the pleasure of her company tonight after the game.
She’d declined, stating she wanted to spend time with her parents who were flying in.
It was a legit reason, but I also sensed that wasn’t the entire truth. So I’d asked, “If your parents weren’t coming in, would you come stay with me?”
And as I had suspected, she shook her head. “No. This isn’t going to be an every-night type of thing, Dominik. That sort of implies a relationship.”
“No, Willow,” I’d corrected in a low voice as we stood on Dax’s front porch. “That merely implies I want to fuck you every night I have the opportunity.”
She’d snickered, given me a quick but final kiss, and turned for the door. Her parting shot was, “See you around.”
It had been meant to put me in my place. To wield a little bit of power over whatever is between us.
Which is absolutely unacceptable to me.
Hence, I orchestrated being able to sit with her during the game tonight. I would have preferred she agree to come up to the owner’s box with her family, but I was not about to be put off. I had no doubt I could get the people beside her to move if need be, and it had worked out nicely.