Chapter 12

Dominick

Heading back up to my office after speaking with Chloe was a must. I shouldn't have done it in the first place or come into the club at all.

"I just…she has to be safe."

And I'm the safest person for her right now. I can handle myself against some chump, and I have people at my back if I need them.

Watching her from the cameras as the rest of her shift progresses, I try to remind myself that this is just to be certain there's not another hoodie-clad asshole out to snatch her.

It's definitely not because watching her do just about anything in those clothes makes me so hard it hurts. Dammit, Dom.

She's just so fucking stunning. The way her curves create a full hourglass and the memory of how good she tasted are impossible to ignore.

Eventually, the night comes to a close, and I see Chloe counting out her drawer at the bar. I look at the time and the several unanswered emails I have waiting for me.

I should really see to those. Developments are coming up, and I'm sure they're important.

As my eyes flick back to Chloe on the screen, I watch her get ready to head to the back to leave. She's going to that crappy car of hers—alone.

I shut my computer and head downstairs.

Chloe is in the locker room, opening things up to get changed, and this time, I don't stare because I don't want to scare her again.

I knock on the door frame. "Hey."

She turns around, cocking a suspicious grin. "Hi. What's up?"

"Let me drive you home."

"I have my car, Dom. I'm fine."

Still eyeing me, Chloe squints and turns back around, grabbing her clothes out of the locker.

"Consider it payment for the new uniform."

"Ugh!" She huffs at me. "The one you destroyed?"

"Fine, fine." I sigh. "Just…"

I remember the words I used last night, and all my attention zeros in on her.

"Just let me take care of you. Please." There's no softness to my tone, and I don't break my gaze as Chloe squirms slightly.

"Dom." She shakes her head but then throws up her hands. "All right. Whatever. Just let me change. Okay?"

"I'll be right out front."

She smirks, narrowing her eyes at me. "I'm well aware."

I leave, letting her get changed, and wait with as much patience as I can muster outside the door until she's finished.

It takes longer than I expect, but then Chloe walks out of the locker room, dressed in her casual gear, and stops in front of me.

"Okay, boss. Where'd you park?"

I can't help but laugh as I guide her out toward the employee lot and to my car, which is beneath the only small awning we have back there.

The Cullinan has a remote start, so I fire it up as we walk in that direction, and Chloe laughs to herself as she shakes her head.

"What?"

She looks over. "You certainly have come a long way from that beat-up Jeep, haven't you?"

Looking back at the car and then at Chloe, I find myself feeling a bit defensive of the SUV. "It's a nice car. And it's still, you know, rugged."

"Ha!" Chloe puts a hand to her chest. "Trust me, there is nothing rugged about a Rolls-Royce."

She has a point, but that's exactly why I chose the SUV style and not a typical sports car. I'm the least flashy of all the Shaw brothers, but even I couldn't get away with having a no-frills car.

I'd be the talk of the damn town, and not in a good way.

"You should see Luke's."

"Oh, Luke. Man, I haven't thought of your younger brother in ages. Still a big flirt?"

I smile, rolling my eyes. "You have no idea."

When we arrive at Chloe's apartment, I have to physically stop myself from keeping her in the car. This can't be right.

"This is your place?" I cock a brow, not hiding the judgment I have for the run-down hovel that some shit landlord expects me to believe is actually a livable apartment.

"Yes." I can hear the embarrassment in Chloe's tone. "Not a lot of options when you're flat broke."

Oof. Okay, I suck. I should have realized that was why. I mean, she wouldn't choose to live here for fun.

"Sorry. I didn't mean anything by it." I offer a crooked smile.

"I know you did." She sighs. "But it's fine. I hate it, too. At least it has a roof and isn't connected to four wheels and an engine."

I have to imagine that she means her car, and the fact that she considered or maybe did live in her vehicle for any amount of time has my blood boiling. Fucking Ethan .

"That's true." I look at my steering wheel, noting the Rolls icon etched into the center. Chloe deserves better than this.

"I'll walk you up."

Without waiting for a reply, I slip out my door and walk around to help her out of the SUV. Holding my hand out for her, Chloe rolls her eyes at me, and I can't help but smirk when she's forced to rely on me because the drop to the ground is a bit much.

"Thanks." She pulls her hand back, and I strangely miss the way she gripped it.

But that's stupid, so I just nod and walk next to her down the narrow cracked sidewalk until we reach the front of the apartment. The connected housing has individual doors for each room, which would be great if it weren't for the fact that I know that's one less door for Ethan to have to get through.

There's only one lock on the door, and I frown. "You don't have a dead bolt?"

"No, Dom. I don't." She sighs, sticking her key into the small hole and unlocking it. "You gonna buy me one? Or maybe a new door altogether?"

She smirks up at me as we stand there, and I scoff playfully. I'm laughing before I know it, folding my arms across my chest.

"Just a door? That's small potatoes. I could get you a new place."

Chloe giggles, and the cool air around me feels warmer all of a sudden.

"Please don't." She holds her hands at me, exaggerating her annoyance. "I don't want any grand gestures of help, all right?"

I don't respond. Just stare down at Chole as her keys hang from the lock.

The moment stretches on until that undercurrent of tension that I feel whenever we're close becomes nearly too much to bear.

Chloe shifts on her feet, dropping her gaze to the sidewalk, and suddenly, an image of her beneath me, spread open for my enjoyment, hits me like a truck.

What the fuck is happening? How is she affecting me like this?

Despite my internal frustration, I step closer, lifting her chin so her eyes meet mine again. I want to see them. I want to see all of her—again.

"Dom."

It's just my name, but hearing her say it is like a jump-start right to my dick. I need to hear her screaming it, moaning it.

My lips are pressed to hers in a flash, moving before my brain fully processes what I'm doing.

Chloe is frozen in place for a moment, but then her hands find my face before she wraps her arms around my neck. I pull her up toward me, lifting her easily and opening the door to her apartment.

We're a tangle of movement and limbs as I carry her inside, shutting the door with my foot as I look out of the corner of my eye for a place to set her down.

There's a tiny loveseat in the living room. It's way too small for what I want to do, so I keep walking, taking Chloe to the unimpressive bedroom down a short hall.

The feel of our tongues dancing together as I get us to the bedroom is intoxicating. Chloe tastes like perfection and kissing her makes the rest of the world disappear.

With a slam, the door to her bedroom shuts as I shove it closed with my foot, and Chloe jumps slightly in my arms.

"Dom! I have neighbors." She looks up at me with a worried smile.

"I don't give a fuck."

Lowering her to the bed, I begin pulling the layers off her body. That sweater of hers and the jeans have to go.

Chloe shoves off my jacket, her fingers working desperately to unbutton the top of my shirt. She gets through a few before I steal her concentration with kisses down her collarbone and chest.

Pushing her pants past her knees, I don't bother with getting them all the way off, instead gliding my hand back up her leg and finding the soft fabric of her panties.

As I kneel on the edge of the bed, I hold Chloe's arms over her head with one hand, dipping the other beneath her underwear.

Chloe arches up with a hiss as I smooth my fingers across her slit.

"Already so wet for me." I lean down, gently biting her hard nipple. "And I'm so glad you didn't bother with a bra."

She moans, pressing herself against my hand. "It's in the wash."

Chuckling, I up the ante, slipping a finger just a tiny bit deeper to rub across her clit. Chloe jerks as the sensation hits her, and I smile.

"So responsive." My cock throbs behind the zipper of my slacks, but I'm keeping this about her again. "How long can you last, Chloe? How much will it take to get that pussy of yours fluttering around my fingers?"

Another caress of her clit, and Chloe moans loudly, her legs squeezing around my hand.

"Dom. Oh, fuck."

"That's my good girl."

Pushing a finger inside, I rub against her clit with the heel of my hand as I find that magic spot inside her, and Chloe's cries pick up.

"So very good."