Page 62 of Laced With Secrets
“We should get out before we turn into prunes,” he said, but his voice was warm, satisfied, completely free of the anger that had driven us here.
“Don’t want to move,” I mumbled against his chest.
“I know, baby.” He pressed a kiss to my hair.
“I’m cold,” I said, my teeth nearly chattering.
“Okay,” he said, his arms enveloping me as he stretched forward to pull the drain. His lips brushed against my ear, whispering sweet nothings while his hands traveled across my back, shoulders, and down my arms as the bathwater swirled away. The last drops disappeared with a gurgle before he sealed the drain again and twisted the faucet. I exhaled contentedly as he splashed warm water onto my back.
“The baby likes that.”
He barked a laugh. “You and the baby enjoy it for a bit longer. Then we need to get you dried off and back to Blake’s. You’ve had a long day.”
“Whose fault is that?” I asked, but I was smiling.
“Entirely yours.” Dominic’s breath escaped in a huff. “You’re the one who decided to have lunch with a mob boss.”
“The baby has good taste in food,” I defended weakly.
“The baby,” Dominic said as he splashed more warm water across my skin, “has terrible judgment. Just like their Dam.”
I should have been offended. Instead, I nestled my head against the solid warmth of my alpha’s chest and smiled like the cat that got the cream.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“The moving truck just pulled up,” Jake announced from his position at Blake’s floor-to-ceiling windows, his face pressed against the glass like an excited puppy. “Holy shit, that’s a huge truck.”
“Language,” Penny said primly, though he was already abandoning his coffee to join Jake at the window. “Oh wow, that IS a huge truck.”
I smiled, my hand drifting unconsciously to my stomach. My small bump was definitely more pronounced—harder to hide in anything fitted, impossible to dismiss as bloating. Soon I’d need to transition fully to maternity clothes and oversized sweaters.
Today, Dominic and I were moving into our new apartment today. The space where we’d bring our baby. Our first real home together.
“Ready?” Dominic appeared beside me, pressing a kiss to my temple. “Marcus is coordinating with the movers downstairs. Blake’s already there with his tablet, supervising.”
“Supervising,” I repeated with amusement. “You mean standing there making sure everything is placed according to that meticulously detailed floor plan he foisted on us?”
“Exactly.” Dominic’s smile was fond. “Which means we should get down there before he starts color-coding the furniture placement.”
“Too late,” Penny called from the window. “I can see him from here. There are definitely color-coded diagrams happening.”
Jake laughed, the sound bright and genuine in a way that still seemed to surprise him sometimes. Jake was finally starting to believe he might actually be safe. That good things could happen to him without immediate disaster following.
“Come on,” I said, linking my arm through Dominic’s. “Let’s go make sure he doesn’t have the movers ready to quit.”
The movers were already carrying in boxes and furniture, following Blake’s directions with the kind of efficiency that came from dealing with someone who knew exactly what he wanted and had no patience for deviation.
Dominic squeezed my hand before striding across the room to join Blake.
Penny’s eyes widened as he spun in a slow circle, his gaze drinking in the bare walls and soaring ceilings. “Swanky,” he breathed. “Those windows are amazing!”
Heat flooded my cheeks as flashes of tangled limbs and heated breaths from mine and Dominic’s last visit played through my mind.
The space smelled like fresh paint and new carpet, everything pristine and waiting to become home.
“The sectional goes against the west wall,” Blake said, drawing my attention. “Not the north wall. West. The wall with the—yes, that one. Perfect.”
Dominic caught my eye and grinned. He flashed a wink and my heart performed a perfect gymnastic somersault behind my ribs.