Page 24 of Between Love and Loathing

“You had enough of mingling with the team?” His voice rumbled out from the shadows, and I screeched before I lurched forward, losing my balance and stumbling straight into him.

Dominic’s reflexes were faster than mine because he caught me against his chest, not letting me bounce off him into the water.

I looked up to thank him, and my body instantly reacted, and not in a way that I would have liked. The way I melted for Valentino didn’t compare at all to the electricity that coursed through my blood now. The butterflies in my stomach were free-falling, and heat flew over my cheeks as I turned to face him.

“Might be time for you to go home?” he said softly.

I shook my head no. “Oh. I’m fine.”

“You fall into people all the time when you’re fine?”

“You know what?” I poked him in the chest. “You scared me because you sneaked up on me.”

“I don’t sneak up on people.”

“Yes, you’ve been lurking around all night instead of just going to the party.”

“Oh I was at the party.” He crossed his arms and continued. “I was at the party fucking around with the baker—”

I felt my eyes widen. “Be quiet.” I threw my hands up. We might have been fifty feet away from everyone else, but I didn’t want the chance of someone knowing what I’d just done. “I’m going back to the party.”

But of course, when I started to walk back up to my friends, I stumbled. And he freaking caught me again. He sighed before he ground out, “We’re going home.”

My response was way too laid back as I covered my mouth to keep from laughing in his face. “God, you’re way too good looking to be such bad company.”

His jaw might have clenched at how candid I was being with him now, but I was a nervous talker, and the alcohol was flowing. “Come have a drink, Dominic.”

“Remember what I told you about my name?”

“Um …” The answer to that was no. The wheels were not turning perfectly in my brain since the margaritas froze them all up, apparently. I did remember how his cock felt against my pussy, though, and I smiled lazily at him. “No, but I do remember how you felt—”

“Go say goodnight to your friends,” he commanded before I could finish my sentence. Then he leaned in to whisper, “I’m taking you home.”

That had me sobering. “Don’t ruin the party.”

He eyed the beach like he had all the authority in the world to do just that. “Don’t want me to? Then, let me take you home, or I’m shutting the whole damn thing down.”

“Is that so?”

“Don’t play with me, Clara.”

“I’m not playing with you anymore. We already did that, and we barely even got started.” I scoffed and pushed past him, done dealing with him popping up out of nowhere and demanding something from me.

It only took about two minutes for the music to cut out and Rita to announce, “Party’s over, everyone. We’ll be cleaning the beach, so please file out immediately. Fireworks have been rescheduled and …”

I didn’t hear anything else. Everything in me froze so my blood could boil as I felt the anger fly through me.

He wouldn’t have.

Of course he would.

I pivoted around to find him standing there in the moonlight, glowing green eyes on me, his backdrop the ocean. He looked powerful. Cruel. And invincible.

Instead of filing off the beach with everyone, I murmured to Paloma that I’d call her when I got home. Then I stomped—or wobbled— right up to his selfish ass. “You’re a complete dick, you know that?”

“I didn’t claim to be anything else. Let’s go.” He started walking toward the resort, but I squinted out in the water.

“Are those my shoes?” There they both were, red-bottom heels, floating away. “And my bag?”