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Two

Chapter 2

Arin

The Centurion Lounge at JFK doesn’t let just anybody walk in through their big blue doors. My first-class ticket alone isn’t good enough to grant me access. But when Dominic flashes his Amex Black, the peppy receptionist welcomes us in with a big smile and a sweeping motion of her arm. The place is relatively empty—no doubt thanks to the exclusivity—but that’s not what I’m choosing to focus on right now.

It happens fast.

Dominic has clearly been here before because he guides me to the back section of the lounge where the private showers are. He takes my hand and pulls me inside, immediately moving in to crash his lips against mine, his demanding tongue sweeping over mine like it’s new land to claim.

I’m rigid and awkward at first. This is all so new, after all. I’ve only kissed one other person before, and it turns out he’s a cheating douchebag. Kissing Dominic is like trying a new cocktail. The taste, the feel, the tingling sensation he leaves on my lips—it’s all exciting and new and requires a bit of adjustment.

“Relax, Marina,” he says, loosening his tie as he speaks.

“I’ve never done this before,” I admit, thirstily helping him with the top buttons of his shirt.

Dominic pauses, pulling away a few inches. A soft whine escapes me at the sudden lack of warmth. “Are you sure you want to do this? We can stop at any time.”

“I’m sure,” I rasp, tugging at his belt greedily. “I’m just letting you know I don’t… have a lot of experience, that’s all.”

“With quickies?”

I roll my eyes. “Sex in general. I’ve only been with—” “The cheating scumbag?”

“Yeah.”

“Don’t worry, dolcezza. He was just a boy. I’m going to show you how a real man fucks.”

I shiver, my knees practically jelly. The wet heat between my legs is starting to grow unbearable. “Then what are you waiting for?” I mutter against his mouth.

It’s all the permission he needs. Dominic circles me in his arms and lifts me up. I wrap my legs around his hips instinctively, clinging to him as his lips slot together with mine. His kisses are rougher, but I like it infinitely better this way. He’s rough and demanding, proof that he wants not just my mouth, but the very air I’m trying to breathe. It’s all-consuming and wonderfully dizzying.

Dominic carries me into the shower stall, the polished tiles cool to the touch. His big hands are surprisingly deft, peeling my clothes off piece by piece with amazing fluidity. I don’t even have time to feel awkward about it

—because on some level this should be awkward. God knows it was the first time Corey and I had sex. Back then, I’d been self-conscious and unsure with no idea what I was supposed to do.

But Dominic leaves no time for doubt. He looks at me like he’s ready to devour, pressing hard kisses against my throat, down to my chest, squeezing my breasts while teasing my pebbling nipples with his teeth. He sucks marks against my breasts, a hand slipping between my legs to gather up the slick heat there. A heady groan rips itself from my lungs when his fingers slide over my folds.

“Hurry up,” I rasp. “Shouldn’t you be naked by now?”

Dominic rises to full height, peering down at me with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “It’s called foreplay, dolcezza. Ever heard of it?”

I chew on the inside of my cheek. “Honestly? Corey didn’t usually—” “Don’t say his name.”

Swallowing, I nod. I don’t even want to think about him right now. “My

ex didn’t usually bother with that stuff.”

“Stuff,” Dominic grumbles derisively. “Dear God, you were really going to marry the man?”

“I didn’t know better.” “Now you do.”

He brushes the pad of his thumb over my sensitive clit, sending sparks flying through my body. Pleasure ebbs and flows through every fiber of my being, punctuated with his kisses and caresses. I claw at his shirt, eager to see

him naked and equally exposed. The hard press of his cock against my thigh thrills me, hard and hot and doing its best to escape the confines of his pants.

He works me over with his fingers, teasing me until I’m on the edge of insanity, so consumed by pleasure I can’t help but scream against his shoulder as I crash into my climax. I accidentally bump the shower knob, turning on the high-pressure spray. We’re drenched through in seconds, steam filling the already hot space.

“I’m sorry,” I half-laugh. It’s hard to feel genuinely bad now that his shirt is transparent, revealing the mosaic of dark tattoos beneath the white fabric.

Dominic doesn’t seem too upset. “That’s fine. I’ll just buy a new suit.”

He finally—finally—shrugs off his shirt while I reach between us and make quick work of his belt. Hooking my fingers over the waistband of his pants, I push down and marvel at the sheer size of him.

Good God, the man’s massive. His cock springs free, hard and standing at attention. Corey doesn’t even compare. I know it’s not the size of one’s tool that matters, but how you use it—and I’m starting to get the sense that Dominic has both.

“Are you, um…” I lick my lips, the spray trickling over my hair and shoulders.

“It’s a little late to be shy, dolcezza.” “Clean. Are you clean?”

“I am but let me grab the condom I have in my wallet.”

“Okay. I mean, I’m on birth control, but there’s nothing wrong with being extra careful.”

Dominic leaves for a minute. I stay under the warmth of the shower’s spray, willing my heart to calm down. This is exciting and wild. I don’t believe in fate or karma, but my chance run-in with Dominic is starting to feel like a sign from above, reinforcing that leaving Corey’s sorry ass was the right decision.

Why waste my time with a selfish boy when I can have a man instead?

When Dominic returns, his cock is sheathed and ready for me. He holds me close, his arms secure and comforting. It’s strange how safe I feel with him. His kisses take a more tender turn, gentle and teasing as he presses his weight against me, my back pinned against the shower wall. I bristle against the cold, but quickly adjust, too distracted by the earthy scent of his skin and his tattoos to care.

“I’m going to ask you one last time,” he says. “Are you sure you want to

do this?”

I nod. “Yes, Dominic. Please fuck me. Help me forget about him.”

“I’ll do you one better. When I’m done with you, you’ll forget how to

walk.”

I barely recognized the pitched moan that bubbles past my lips. “I can’t wait.”

Dominic grabs my thigh and lifts my leg, hooking it over his hip for better access. He doesn’t get straight to it, rubbing the head of his cock slowly over my wet folds. My pussy clenches around nothing, desperate to feel full. He distracts me with a deep kiss, tongue dancing over my own in a waltz for dominance. He lifts me like I weigh nothing at all, pinning me against the shower while my feet dangle on either side of him. I gasp, circling his neck for stability.

“I’ve got you,” he mutters, pressing the head of length against my entrance. “Ready?”

“Please. Please, please, please—”

He shoves into me, my walls stretching to take him. The sensation is divine. I’m so full and warm and drowning in pleasure. I don’t think I’ve ever felt this way before, complete and satisfied before the fun has even begun.

Dominic’s first thrust is careful, testing the waters, but then his pace picks up. Before long, we’re fucking in earnest, our bodies moving as one as we work together to find pleasure. The hot slap of skin against skin makes me even wetter. His hot, low grunts against my ear make me feral.

It’s almost shocking how quickly I lose control. The tight, bright coil in the pit of my stomach suddenly burns with such intensity that there’s no time to brace against the euphoria flooding my veins. I moan languidly against Dominic’s mouth, clinging on for dear life as ecstasy erases my thoughts.

“Oh, God,” I pant, breathing in the steam. “Wow, that was—”

Dominic huffs, snapping his hips against me. Sparks fly across my vision. “Not done with you yet.”

“But I—”

“You’re going to give me one more.” “What?”

“You heard me.”

My head spins. Holy crap, what did I get myself into?

Dominic sets me down carefully so I’ve got one foot firmly planted on the shower floor. I lean against the side, hands pressed against the wall as

Dominic lifts my outside leg and slots himself between my thighs. The new angle is heavenly, the head of his cock sweeping over a spot I’d only ever read about. It’s a new kind of pleasure, this sweet spot, something so deep and powerful that I don’t have the words to describe it.

He grasps me by the chin, holding my gaze as he thrusts his cock in and out of me. “Lovely,” he praises. “So nice and tight for me, dolcezza. Tell me, has he ever made you feel this way?”

“Dominic—oh—”

“Tell me.”

“N-no, never.”

He curses in something that sounds like Italian. I’m about to ask him what he said, but he interrupts my train of thought with another bruising kiss. He pumps into me faster, harder, the head of his cock sweeping over my sweet spot over and over again until I shatter around him, my whole body trembling as the climax claims me. It’s a good thing Dominic’s holding onto me because my jelly legs likely would have collapsed out from under me.

“That’s it,” he encourages roughly, breathing in the scent of my wet hair. “Absolutely wonderful.” He kisses my cheek, surprisingly sweet for a man being so deliciously rough.

Dominic turns me around so I’m facing the shower wall, my palms pressed up against the tile as he bends me over. The water trickles over my back, but the only sensation I’m focused on is his big hand stroking the length of my spine, dipping down to grab my ass. His softening cock rubs against my cheeks with a satisfied hum.

“Such a tease,” I grumble, backing up slightly to grind against his length.

He claps me across the ass, not hard enough to be painful, but it’s definitely still a shock. “Such a gorgeous body. You’re so beautiful, Marina, you know that?”

I squirm, unsure what to do with all this praise. I think Dominic senses my mild discomfort because he asks, “That bastard didn’t tell you that often.”

I shake my head. It’s so weird that now is the moment my brain decides to feel ashamed. Not when Corey was caught fucking our wedding planner, not when I screamed bloody murder in first class, but now when it’s painfully obvious how little Corey actually cared about me. Compliments were rare, and what little praise I did get was half-assed and often empty.

“Bella mia,” he says with a sigh, slipping an arm around my waist to pull me against him. I don’t think I’ll ever stop marveling at how gentle this giant

man is capable of being. “Why did you even agree to marry him?” he asks, a whisper.

A single tear betrays me, slipping down my cheek just to be washed away with the rest of the water. I’ve been too angry to cry. The irony isn’t lost on me. I recognize how strange it is for me to feel safer and more open with a stranger than with the man I was going to marry. Yet it feels like the most natural thing in the world to wear my feelings on my sleeve. For some reason, telling Dominic my deepest, darkest secrets is as easy as breathing.

“Because I loved him,” I admit. “I loved him more than he loved me, and I was too naive to see it until it was almost too late. I was an idiot, that’s why.”

He kisses the back of my shoulder, the crook of my neck. “You’re not an idiot.”

“You don’t even know me.”

“Yet I feel like I’ve known you my whole life.”

I turn just enough to offer him a smile. “I was thinking the same thing.” Dominic kisses the corner of my mouth. “You’re not an idiot, Marina.

There’s nothing wrong with loving someone despite their flaws. What’s unforgivable is how he didn’t give you the same level of love and devotion in return.”

I laugh softly. “You should write a romance advice column.” “If I ever get fired from my day job, I’ll consider it.”

“Thank you, Dominic. I really needed this.”

“I have a proposal for you,” he says as he pumps some complimentary guava and papaya scented shampoo into his hand. “It’s going to sound crazy.”

“I’m down for a little crazy,” I reply with a smile. “Don’t go to Hawaii. Come with me to Italy.” “Are you serious?”

“This… connection,” he says slowly, “it doesn’t happen to me often. I’d like to spend more time with you, and I’d rather not think about you spending your honeymoon all alone.”

I grimace. “It’s sad, I know.”

“Come with me, then. I’ll cover all the expenses.”

“Do you want me to be the pleasure portion of ‘business and pleasure?’”

He gently pinches my ass, earning himself a bubbly giggle. “That’s not a no.”

I take a moment to think. This is all happening so fast. I’ve never been the kind of girl to fly at the seat of my pants. I like to plan things, be organized, micromanage every penny. Spontaneity has never been a part of my character. My choices are always safe and calculated and without risk.

Deep down, I think I was looking for security when I said yes to marrying Corey. A loving husband, a couple of kids, and a big back yard for them to run around in. That’s what people are supposed to want out of life, right?

Not having sex with a stranger in an exclusive VIP lounge at JFK. Not traveling to a foreign country on a whim with a handsome stranger. But my safe choices are what landed me here. If I pass up this opportunity, I might regret it one day.

I look at Dominic and nod. “Let’s do it.”

He smiles, a real, genuine smile that lights up his whole face. It’s so beautiful, my heart skips a beat and my breath hitches.

Maybe there is such thing as fate.

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