Page 27 of These Shoes Weren't Made for Stalking

“Maybe doing this in the kitchen wasn’t the best idea?” I giggled, the pitch hovering just this side of hysterical. My damp palm slipped against the laminate surface as I scrambled for a better grip. Dominic’s hold on my hips readjusted, his hands sliding against the sweat gathering at the dip of my waist.

“Dammit.” He snarled.

Heat flooded my cheeks. I wanted to please him so badly, but I just couldn’t get it right. Dominic’s eyes flashed, a predatorygleam overtaking the frustration. He gripped me tighter, taking full control.

“Fine. I’ll do all the work.” His voice dropped to that dangerous purr that made my pulse skitter. He repositioned me on the countertop, nudging my knees wider as he hauled me closer.

His next thrust punched the air from my lungs. My squeal bounced off the tile walls, mingling with the rhythmic clatter of ceramic jars trembling on open shelves. Heat exploded behind my eyelids when he angled upward, striking that secret place that turned my muscles to liquid strobe light.

“Not—” I gasped as his tempo quickened. “Not fair… you’re—ah!—way more experienced than me.”

Dominic’s ragged laugh ghosted across my nape. Callused palms mapped my shuddering torso as his thrusts became harder, deeper. The new intensity stole my breath. My body trembled, overwhelmed by the onslaught of sensation. Dominic’s aggression awakened something primal in me. Despite his ferocity, or perhaps because of it, pleasure coiled tighter in my core.

I cried out on a particularly hard thrust, my hands scrabbling for purchase on the smooth surface behind me. I felt Dominic freeze, his body tense against mine. His sudden stillness made me wonder if he feared he’d caused me pain. I tightened my legs around his waist, urging him deeper.

“Please,” I whined. “Don’t stop.”

“Fuck, you’re so tight,” he groaned, his voice rough with restraint. His breath was hot against my skin. “Follow my lead, okay?”

I agreed with a quick jerk of my head, panting heavily as he resumed thrusting. We finally fell into sync. The sound of flesh slapping against flesh filled the room. I met his thrusts, rising to meet his body as he drove into me, again and again. The pleasure coiled within me, tighter and tighter, a spring ready to release.

“That’s it, omega,” he groaned. “Tighten around me. Take all of me.”

I felt Dominic’s control slipping, his thrusts becoming wilder, more desperate. His fingers dug into my hips, leaving marks I knew I’d wear much later. Sweat beaded on his forehead, a single drop sliding down the sharp angle of his jaw as he fought to hold back.

“Come for me, baby,” he panted. “Come for your alpha.”

His words pushed me over the edge. I shattered into a million pieces, my release pulsing around him. Dominic followed, his body tensing as he found his own peak. He buried his face in my neck, his breath hot against my skin as he rode out the waves of pleasure.

We stayed joined for endless moments, our hearts pounding in unison. Slowly, we untangled, our limbs heavy and sated. Dominic’s hands gripped the counter on either side of me, his chest heaving.

His lips curved into a satisfied smile. My gaze fixed on his sharp, prominent canines—a trademark of his alpha nature. “I’ve wanted to do that since the moment I first saw you in your shop.”

His words hit me like a bucket of ice water. The lies. The secrets. Reality came crashing back.

“Oh god.” I shoved him away as I scrambled down from the countertop. “What have I done?”

I stumbled, my legs still shaky from our encounter.

“Steady now.” Dominic’s hands shot out, gripping my arms to keep me upright. The touch of his skin ignited a fresh wave of desire in my belly, followed immediately by guilt and shame. I shoved him away, desperate to put distance between us.

My hands trembled as I frantically searched for my pants. Dominic, in stark contrast, languidly pulled on his trousers, his movements slow and deliberate. He dangled my pants from his fingertips, a hint of amusement dancing in his silver eyes as he held them out to me.

I snatched them from his grasp, fumbling to step into them as my hands and legs quivered. Meanwhile, Dominic remained motionless, watching me. My gaze darted to his exposed bare chest. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from his sculpted torso, glistening with perspiration. His trousers—still unbuttoned—sat dangerously low on his hips, barely clinging to his waist. He looked like sin personified.

I tore my gaze away, shame burning through me. How could I have been so foolish? So weak?

“Baby, listen?—”

“Don’t.” I held up a hand, refusing to look at him. “Just... don’t.”

The air between us crackled with tension. I’d never felt more exposed, more vulnerable. And it wasn’t just because I was naked and raw from my first intimate encounter with an alpha—or anyone, for that matter.

“I... we shouldn’t have...” I stammered, as I fumbled to pull my jeans up, my fingers clumsy and uncooperative.

I watched as Dominic’s fingers raked through his dark locks, his face betraying his exasperation. “Leo, I?—”

But whatever he was about to say was cut off by the sound of shattering glass. We both whirled towards the direction the noise had come. I yanked my t-shirt over my head while stumbling down the stairs toward my shop and raced toward the storefront with Dominic following close behind. I circled my worktable, finding the floor covered with glittering shards of glass.

“Watch out!” A strong arm suddenly wrapped around my waist and bodily lifted me off my feet.

Dominic pulled me back from the shimmering mess before my bare feet could come in contact with it, but not before I spotted what had come through my shop’s window.

A brick.

And, tied to the brick with a frayed piece of twine, was a note scrawled in jagged, angry red letters: