Table of Contents 17 страница

The regulars of Better Blues milled around the room, varying in looks and undoubtedly from all walks of life, but they all had one thing in common, they all came here to feast on beautifully laced words and drink lyrics that flowed from an endless tap. This was where Dominic took Eden, to this mecca of creativity that had been an integral part of her last year of true happiness, before everything had gone to shit. He should not have known this part of her. This intimate, private part of her that she’d never shared with anyone. And what’s more was she hadn’t realized how much she’d craved this until now. She wanted to turn and ask him questions, questions to answers that only he could provide, but words deserted her as the feminine voice from the makeshift stage had her turning instead. She was backed by only an acoustic guitar; she sang the blues like she was born to do it, with a breathy intonation that provoked goose bumps on Eden’s skin. Shutting down all thoughts, Eden allowed herself to be swept away, and when the woman finally whispered the last heartrending lyric, stretching out the note so that everyone felt the word, Eden was sure that she cheered the loudest.

When she finally returned her attention to Dominic, it was to find his glimmering gaze focused on her, watching her intently and very likely garnering emotions that she could not hide from him. “Did you enjoy the performance?” he inquired, genuine interest coating hard bone features.

“Yes, it was good.” She wasn’t up for small talk, not when the questions from before returned with a vengeance, demanding answers from him. “This…how do you know about this place? I’ve never told you.” They’d never progressed to that intimate part in their relationship.

“This is where I first saw you.”

Startled, Eden looked at him with a frown. That was the last thing she’d expected to hear from him. “What do you mean? I thought—”

“I saw you long before I knew you were involved with Lucas,” he said softly. “I had never wanted anything more than I wanted you that night. I dreamt about you, your voice singing to me about things I needed but did not want to understand. So I allowed my lust to blind me instead, and you consumed my thoughts, became an obsession. I did everything I could to get my hands on you.” There were more than a dozen people around them, the dissonance of their chatter and laughter should’ve impeded on this moment, but all Eden heard was the poignant timbre of Dominic’s voice, all she saw was the grimness of his green gaze as he anchored her gaze, refusing to let her look away. “I wanted to bring you back here because this is where I remembered you being the happiest. I have taken so much of it from you these last five years, that I wanted to return a little of it tonight. Seeing you happy is something that has become very important to me.”

Eden swallowed around the lump in her throat, the words that she wanted to say plummeting back into her stomach, which was just was well because she was sure they wouldn’t have made much sense anyway. A wave of female delight rippled through every inch of her body at his words. She knew they shouldn’t have affected her this much, but they did, burrowing into her racing heart and making a home there. Caught in the trance of his gaze, unable to formulate a concrete thought, she ran her tongue across her lower lip and marveled at how his eyes dilated at that one simple action. For a man who had very little practice in romance, Dominic surely knew how to appeal to a woman’s heart, and he made it so incredibly difficult for Eden to remain unmoved when he did and said things like this. “Thank you, Dominic,” she said, reaching for his hands across the table, and though he seemed surprised by the gesture, he instantly interlaced their fingers, his larger hand engulfing hers. “This means a lot to me.” More than you will probably ever know, she thought silently.

The remainder of the evening continued on in the same the note and though Eden knew this wasn’t his scene, there was nothing in his mannerism that indicated his displeasure at being there with her. In fact, he appeared completely at ease as they listened to poetry and watched the performances. She found that she couldn’t really keep her eyes off him; the rarely seen smile making frequent appearances throughout the evening was like the sun peeking out after a rainstorm, and his laughter, even more warming, roused a series of flutters in her stomach that had nothing to do with the cheap beer they were drinking. When they arrived home a few hours later, Eden was quick to identify that tumultuous thrum in her veins as anticipation. It had been building all night, slow and burning, arcing through her body in search of a proper outlet. Dominic. Her drug in Hugo Boss. In the privacy of her mind, Eden could shamelessly affirm that she was irrevocably addicted to him. She needed the dopamine inducing opiate of his kisses, and the total body orgasm of his touch. At the bottom of the staircase of this palatial home that had been both heaven and hell, he looked at her and she back at him, compelling him to close that gap between them and take her up to the master bedroom to satisfy her withdrawal. But he didn’t move an inch, in fact the space between them only grew wider as he seemed miles away from here.

“Dominic?” she queried expectantly.

When he did finally close the gap between them, it wasn’t to drag her frame to his and ravish her mouth as she’d hoped. He simply pressed a kiss to her cheek, his intoxicating scent invading her senses in the best way possible and turning her brain to mush. “Thank you for letting me share this evening with you, Eden.” He was gone before she could register what just happened, leaving her physically and emotionally unsatisfied.

* * *

It was not something he wanted, but it needed to be done in the hopes of salvaging what remained of their marriage. It didn’t make the least bit of sense, at least not in the way some would perceive it, and if it had been years prior, months even, the idea, the very notion would have never crossed Dominic’s mind, let alone bear contemplating. But now it was all that consumed his thoughts. Vacillating more times than he could count but nearly always returning to same conclusion. It did not need to make sense in order to be right. Freedom was what she craved, what she’d always wanted, and so freedom was what Dominic would provide. He peered down at the first page of the documents his attorney had left him nearly an hour ago and the curving scrawl of his signature on the bottom of the page. Legal and notarized. He’d never thought he’d find this day so dissatisfying.

He rose to his feet and expelled an exasperated breath, a deep contemplative crease settled between his dark brows while his mouth compressed into a grim line. He moved to the full length window of his office without really seeing, his mind too far away to admire the sprawling metropolis at his feet with its kaleidoscope of twinkling lights and the death of the sun splashed across the horizon. Everything in him rebelled at this decision and even his attorney had questioned him several times when Dominic had requested the divorce papers be finalized. But regardless of his misgivings, Dominic had scrawled his name before he could talk himself out of it. He had been selfish for far too long. And as much as it pained him to let her go, Dominic wanted her happiness more than anything. This was a step in the right direction. There were things that needed to be done, steps he personally had to take if he hoped to find his way to back her again. And he would find her again.

“Mr. Armstrong?” a monotone voice inquired, drawing a reluctant Dominic from his thoughts. He gave a heaving sigh before turning around to finally acknowledge the woman seated primly on the aesthetically pleasing but wholly uncomfortable leather couch in the corner of his office. He regarded Naomi Stanford with an analytical stare, she came highly recommended, one of the best in her field, but not at all what Dominic had expected for a psychiatrist. She appeared quite young for one thing, pegging her somewhere in her late twenties. She was pretty in the prim and proper sort of way, blond with a pair of horned rimmed glasses poised on her button nose. She didn’t flinch away from his stare or react to the skepticism that he made no point in hiding. “Should we get started?” she asked after a time, placing her tablet on her lap and looking at him expectantly.

Dominic moved around to the front of his desk and leaned back against it. Crossing his legs at the ankles, he folded his arms and asked, “You’ve been seeing, Bruce?” He was clearly insinuating something, knowing fully that she was too much temptation for Bruce not to sample. If his best friend was fucking the prim Dr. Stanford then Dominic needed to know before he revealed anything to her that could inadvertently spill out during late night pillow talks. Despite his ongoing efforts to change, under no circumstances did Dominic want his past revealed to the philandering politician. Best friend or not.

“What exactly are you asking, Mr. Armstrong?”

“Have you slept with Bruce?”

The appalled look of indignation that swept over her pale features was answer enough for Dominic. “I think we’re done here.” She rose to her feet in a huff and stuffed her tablet in her bag before hastening toward the door.

“Come back, Dr. Stanford,” he called, and she hesitated, “I apologize for my rudeness, please have a seat.”

“Another comment like that and you can find yourself another psychiatrist,” she bit out coolly.

“Of course,” he assured, “should we start again?”

Once again settled, she held her tablet on her lap and regarded him. “Why don’t we start with why you’ve requested to see me today.” The note of anger in her voice couldn’t easily be quelled, but she was anything if not a professional and well worth the two hundred dollar an hour she was being paid. “Anything significant in your life you wish to discuss?”

Dominic chuckled drily, returning to his chair he pinched the bridge of his nose for a moment in an effort to gather his thoughts. When he finally looked at her, it was with unfailing certainty that he said, “I want to be a better man.”

* * *

She searched him out, not really knowing she was doing it until she stood outside his office door. The handle gave beneath the downward push of her hand, and she entered without a second thought. Missing him had become a debilitating thing that lived inside her now, so Eden had convinced herself that if she only had one good look at him she could put the thing to rest and leave. She’d expected him to be alone, but the sight of his half-brother put an immediate halt to her progression. She’d walked in on something deep apparently, because the energy in the air was so palpable that it settled on her skin like mist. Dominic sat behind his desk; darkly handsome, hard boned features set in granite but seemed to soften slightly when his green gaze flicked in her direction. The look was a minor one, barely discernable unless one was really looking, and it seemed Lucas had been doing just that as he turned to see what had brought on the sudden change in his brother. Lucas looked at her, but she only had eyes for his brother. Always his damnable brother, the proverbial pain in his ass. How did someone who should’ve had nothing end up with so much? Even the devotion of a woman who should’ve rightfully despised him? Eden should’ve been his to begin with, but Lucas had dulled the ache of losing her with good liquor, countless women, and a few good rounds at the poker tables. Through every bout of disappointment, he’d had his family’s wealth to make him happy. But now it appeared that too was gone. All thanks to Dominic.

“You have no legal right to cut me off.”

“Actually I do,” Dominic retorted with infallible calm, leaning back in his chair to regard Lucas in that imperious way that made one feel like they were nothing beneath his gaze. “I have been named the trustee to your trust fund, and as I’ve said earlier, you are to meet certain requirements before I will consider relinquishing it back to you.”

“Rehab,” Lucas spat the word. “I’m not an alcoholic!” he roared, rising he swung his arm and everything on Dominic’s desk came crashing to the ground, causing Eden to jump at the loud clatter.

Dominic stood. “It appears alcoholism is the least of your problems, Lucas.”

“I didn’t have a fucking problem until you came into my life!” he roared, and when he rounded the desk and invaded Dominic’s personal space, Eden knew they would come to blows. She didn’t know what good she was going to do, but she at least needed to try and diffuse the situation before it got completely out of hand.

“Dominic…” she called tentatively.

Dominic ignored her. “The problem with you is that you are an entitled, spoiled little boy too lazy to get off his mother’s teat and do something with your life.”

Lucas shoved at Dominic’s chest with enough force to have the other man stumbling backwards and when he grabbed the lapels of Dominic’s shirt bringing them face to face, he snarled, “Your goddamn cum bucket of a mother should’ve killed you the very second she found out about you. You’re nothing but a mistake, Dominic, no wonder why she wanted nothing to do with you.”

“Lucas!” Eden grabbed at his arm to try and pry him off, the words he’d just uttered more than hateful, provoked her protective instincts and she wanted to physically attack him for hurting Dominic this way. “Let him go!” she railed tugging for all she was worth on Lucas’s arm.

“Fuck off!” he jerked his arm back and shoved hard so that she went sailing, crashing first into the desk before falling to the floor from the impact. With her eyes closed from the pain, she didn’t see exactly what happened next but when she did reopen them, Dominic was pummeling at Lucas, fists crashing down connecting with the sickening crunch of bone hitting bone. Eden knew she wasn’t in a condition to move with her head spinning and her back screaming in protest, but she had to get Dominic to stop, otherwise he was going to kill his brother.

“No more…” She crawled to where he stood grounded and wrapped her arms around his leg because that was all her body would allow and held on. “Please…stop…” He did.

“Be very grateful for this day,” he grated, his laborious breath coming in short and fast. “Because the next time you come at me like this, you had better be ready to kill me yourself, Lucas.”

When Lucas finally stumbled out of Dominic’s office, it was not only with a bloodied and battered face, but his bruised pride kept his head down. Eden didn’t pay much attention to him, all that mattered to her was seeing to Dominic. She called for someone in the kitchen to bring up a towel and some ice which thankfully they weren’t made to wait too long for. Seated in front of him on the carpeted floor, with her legs curled beneath her buttocks, Eden put a few cubes of ice in the towel and folded it tightly closed before gently applying it to his bruised knuckles. The adrenaline was wearing off now, but she was still shaken by the display of violence she’d witnessed.

Dominic watched her work almost too diligently on his wounds and knew he’d up screwed once again. He had known when he’d called Lucas over to notify him of his inevitable visit to rehab, that things would get out of hand, given Lucas’s explosive temper, and the very real possibility of losing his trust. The situation had been volatile from the start. Which was why Dominic had endeavored to remain calm. A calm that abandoned him the very second Lucas made the mistake of shoving Eden. He’d lost it there for a second, admittedly. However inadvertent the shove may have been, Dominic had failed to see the difference. There’d been a haze of red and the undeniable need for violence. It had taken her touch and her voice to clear that haze and draw him back from the edge of the consuming violence that had felt too good to be right. He didn’t like himself that way. Dominic didn’t relish her seeing that violent side of him. But these were the demons he was attempting to exorcise.

“There’s no bleeding,” she whispered unevenly. “Just some bruising…”

Dominic peered down at her auburn head, her hair concealing her face from his view, but he could tell that she was visibly shaken, even if the tremors of her hands didn’t give her away.

“Eden.”

“I think we need more ice.” She didn’t meet his gaze when she came to her feet. Her legs felt like jelly beneath her she wavered, but his fast reflexes caught her before she could tumble back down.

With his hand at her hip, he interlaced their fingers together. “We don’t need more ice,” he murmured.

She blinked. “But your hands…”

“Will heal. I just…don’t leave.” The slightest tug brought her to his lap. He gently pried the towel of ice from her cold, damp hands and set it down on the edge of his desk, before drawing in a ragged sigh. “I’m sorry you had to see that.” His arm banded possessively around her waist, but he didn’t need to do much to keep her there because Eden wouldn’t have moved if he wanted her to. “I could have handled it better.”

Eden turned to look at him, staring into his stunning green eyes that had so much control over her, her heart especially. “You handled it exactly how you should have.” The tips of her fingers slid along his bristly cheek, caressing, delighting, and taking her absolute fill because she’d gone so long without. “He shouldn’t have said those things to you.”

“It’s nothing,” he murmured succinctly. But still waters did indeed run deep, he said very little yet having come to know him as well as she did, Eden found that there was so much more meaning beneath that flippant reply. Emotions that could not simply be verbalized. She felt him almost like they were her own, and it broke her heart that he had to convince himself that it was okay.

“I know,” she agreed, surprising them both by wrapping her arms around his torso and laying her head on his chest, his strong, steady heartbeats thudding beneath her ear. “I’m still sorry he said them.” She would bear this burden with him. Whatever emotion he wasn’t capable of displaying, Eden wanted to display them for him. “I’m sorry.”

Dominic’s brows creased at the catch in her voice, “Hey,” he tilted his head down to look at her but she hid her face against his chest, her warm tears dampening his shirt. “Why are you crying?”

“I’m not,” she sniffled.

A half smile upturned the corner of his mouth. “Then why your eyes sweating?” She snorted and Dominic’s smile spread wider. He moved back slightly, enabling him a chance to cradle her cheek in one hand and swipe at her tears with his thumb.

“I just…I didn’t like hearing him say those words to you.”

She heard him take in a breath before releasing it slowly. “The words did not bother me. The fact that he touched you did. It bothered me a lot.” That he would feel so moved to come to her defense when he’d been the one assaulted flooded her with overwhelming warmth. “Are you hurt?”

Eden sat up and sniffled again, chancing a look at him she said, “I just had the wind knocked out of me, but I’m fine now. Honestly, I wanted to jump on his back and scratch his eyes out when he shoved you.” That brought a deep, rumbling chuckle that made her instantly giddy. “What’s so funny?”

He shook his head, the remnants of his laughter in the ghost of his smile. “I’m just imagining what that would have looked like.” Resting his forehead against hers for a moment, he took a deep breath and the scent of her shampoo filled his lungs. “I’m touched that you feel so protective of me.”

“I’m…” Eden didn’t know what was about to come out of her mouth, but she was sure it wasn’t meant to be said as she was interrupted by the ringing of his cell phone. “You should probably get that,” she said, swiping at her cheeks while hastening off his lap.

“Eden,” he called, but she was already by the door holding the dripping towel over the bowl of ice she had in her hand.

“I’m going to go check on Liam,” she floundered feebly, before taking her exit.

It shamed her to know that she’d used her child as an excuse to run away. But it’d been the first thing that popped in her mind. She’d panicked because she knew if the phone hadn’t rung she would’ve been prompted to say something that would’ve embarrassed her. Eden practically ran down the hall almost afraid that he would come after her and demand she finish what she had been about to say. Her heart was racing, and she was trembling but it was for a completely different reason now than the shock she’d received earlier. Taking a detour to the kitchen to drop off the items in her hands, Eden continued up to Jenna’s room and before entering she drew in a deep breath and released it slowly.

“Are you alright?” It didn’t help.

“I’m fine.” Eden smiled a little too brightly, resolved not to think any further on what she’d been about to inadvertently reveal to Dominic. Something she had not even admitted to herself yet. She took Liam into her arms and hugged the chubby boy close. “Any luck on those apartment searches?”

* * *

Dressed casually for the day, Eden met Jenna downstairs with Liam. They had a few errands to run before they took him to the park later in the afternoon. Jenna had found a two-bedroom apartment that had looked incredible online, but Eden had wisely cautioned not to take it at face value, considering the amazing things people could do with Photoshop these days. In her experience, a two bedroom apartment was far better than a two bedroom split; it was all about careful wording when it came to hawking property. Eden could even admit of doing it several times herself. They piled inside her car and commenced their day.

“I don’t know if I’m ready to do this, Ede.” Jenna said nervously as they stood in the front office of the community college.

Eden looked at her friend and smiled. “You’ll be fine, Jen. This is the first step in you owning that business. You need to get your GED and everything else will be a snap,” she quietly reassured, wrapping a hand around Jenna’s arm to move her out of the way of incoming students.

Jenna pursed her lips. “You say it like it’s so easy. I haven’t been to school in like ages. I dropped out when I was sixteen, remember?”

“Yeah, I remember, but I know it’s never too late for you to get your education. Besides, not only do you have this GED class to help you, but I’m here, too. I’m not going to let you give up so easily. I want to come to you for some business advice when I open up my own brokerage firm one day.”

She snorted and flipped her blond hair over shoulder. “Please, like you could afford me.” In saying that, she pushed Liam’s stroller forward, crying out slightly when Eden pinched her shoulder on her way inside.

The apartment, located on the fringes of Langston, but not quite in the suburbs wasn’t as bad as Eden expected. In fact, it met eight out of ten of her requirements and that was great considering she hadn’t hoped for much coming in. The floor plan resembled more of a duplex, with metal stairs winding up to the two bedrooms and bath upstairs, meanwhile the on the first floor the living room and kitchen existed in one large open space delineated by beautiful cheery wood flooring. The walls were newly painted a neutral beige that was meant to go with any sort of furniture and décor. There were four large windows in the living room that allowed plenty of sunlight, and the French door that opened to a small patio was a nice touch.

“So…what do you think?” Eden saw the expectation on her face as she finally turned to look at both Jenna and the property manager, who’d allowed them access to the apartment. “Gorgeous, right?”

The stairs presented a problem for Liam who was quickly showing signs that he was ready to crawl. But that was a problem they could easily fix with a stair gate and another one would need to be placed between the kitchen and the living room. The apartment was beautiful, ready to move in, and if they baby proofed, it would be a great place to live. “Definitely gorgeous,” she agreed with a smile. And the first and last month’s rent, and security deposit would put a dent in their pockets, but Eden had a good job now, granted it was based on commission, but it was commission she knew how to make. Jenna would move in first as they’d agreed, and Eden would join her when the divorce was finalized in a few months. They could make this work. “I think we should discuss this a little further before giving Steve our final answer, what do you think, Jen?”

Jenna nodded. “Of course. You don’t mind do you, Steve?” She smiled at full wattage and did the girly hair flip she excelled at. Steve didn’t stand a chance.

“I’ll wait for your call.”

“You didn’t like it?” Jenna asked once they were inside the car. “You won’t hurt my feelings, Ede, I can keeping looking. We need to both love it.”

“No, it wasn’t that I didn’t love it. I think it has great potential. I was just thinking about baby proofing and…”

Jenna looked at her profile with a frown. “And…?”

“I’m just realizing that Liam isn’t going to get to be around Dominic that much anymore.” That very notion was a wound on her chest. “We’re going to have to work out visitations.”

“But it’s what you wanted.”

Was it? Was this what she still wanted? Eden didn’t know anymore. She was at a crossroad, facing that thing she’d convinced herself for so long would make her happy, while on the other side laid the uncertainty of a future she found herself wanting more and more with a man capable of taking her through every spectrum of human emotion and still have her needing more.

“Yeah,” she muttered without much conviction, “yeah it is.”

* * *

Carver’s was only a distant memory now. More sweet than bitter but nevertheless a little sad. There would be no more skimpy outfits for her. Goodbye to reeking of alcohol and grease and icky customers who didn’t know how to keep their hands to themselves. Standing beneath the blistering hot sprays of the shower head, she watched as the dirt from her last night of work trickled from her skin and around the shower drain beneath her feet. However brief, Carver’s had been a big part of her life these last few months. It would be hypocritical of her to say she wasn’t going to miss it, the girls especially. But that part of her life was gone now. A brief chapter closing with another taking its place. She released a slight squeal of excitement. She started working at Archer Realty next week, and the very idea very nearly put her over the moon. Rinsing out the rest of her shampoo, she conditioned her hair, and exfoliated with a loofah before jumping out of the steaming shower.

She would’ve been a stupid woman had she allowed her pride to interfere with her decision in taking this job. Dominic’s interference may have gotten her through the door, but as he’d painstakingly pointed out to her, it was her own merits that had cinched the deal. This was a huge opportunity for her and Eden vowed to herself that she wasn’t going to blow it, not this time. But then, her mind was quick in reminding her, she hadn’t exactly blown it the last time. Waiting for the all too familiar feeling of animosity to overtake her, Eden was startled to find that she no longer held the same sort of resentment as she previously did. In fact, it seemed most of her antagonism towards him had ebbed considerably to the point where she could even find herself understanding why he did them.

Dominic did nothing without reason; every bit of his actions was motivated by something. And in this case, it appeared, she’d been that motivation. As he’d said, he’d done everything he could to have her. What woman could say that she wasn’t flattered by that, even if his intentions had been less than admirable? The very idea that he’d known her long before he’d seen to interfere in her life and marry her did incredible things to her insides. He did incredible things to her insides. Things that Eden couldn’t believe she was able to feel for him considering everything he’d put her through. But things have changed, and it wasn’t only recently.

Thinking on it, she realized the changes in him had begun the moment she’d barged into his office and confronted him. It had started there and had only progressed for the better after he’d met Liam. There were all these knew facets to him now that were so very appealing to her. She’d seen him at his most vulnerable when he’d opened up to her and allowed Eden to see him for what he was, allowed her to look into his horrible childhood and see how deep his emotional and physical scars ran. He’d been marred in the worse way possible, those adversities shaping him into this indomitable, hardnosed man who did not compromise when it came to his work ethics, but could so easily display his altruism when it came to those of lesser means. He went after what he wanted with an almost frightening zeal, eliminating all obstacles if need be. That was a trait that she both admired and feared, because there was no knowing his limits. But with all that, Dominic’s devotion to Liam was remarkable and Eden had never been happier to be proven wrong each and every time she had the privileged of seeing them together.

Дата добавления: 2015-10-29