They all looked at Avery, who covered her face with her hands and groaned.
“There is seriously something wrong with me that I found that hot,” she said.
“No, no, it was hot,” Domi reassured her. Mock growling, Mitch snuggled her closer and nipped her ear, sending a flash of heat through her. She turned her head toward him, patting his thigh reassuringly. “Don’t worry, you’re hotter.”
“Damn right.” Mitch nodded decisively, making all of them laugh.
Was there a part of her still worried? Of course, but… maybe it was all going to be okay.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Domi
Holding the phone in place with her shoulder, she finished her explanation to Marcus.
“So, you want him to come to dinner on Wednesday?” he asked, sounding a little dubious. She supposed it did sound a bit weird when she left out all the kinky sex stuff.
“Yes. Or a Wednesday when he can. Sometimes, he has to work evening shifts.” Why did that still feel so hard to say? Maybe because Marcus’ approval meant something. Yeah, her parents’ approval had meant something, but her mami wasn’t very picky at this point, and they were far away. She had to deal with Marcus every week and finally realized part of the reason she’d wanted to keep Mitch and Ana separate had been because she’d been scared to have this conversation with Marcus.
Scared if he didn’t approve of the guy she was dating, it would upset the balance of their co-parenting or worse, even cause custody issues. Even though she hadn’t had any reason to think Marcus would be a hardass about her dating or introducing a guy she was serious about to Ana, she’d been scared of the possibility.
It was a sobering revelation how fear had ruled so much of her life without her realizing it.
Asking Mitch to a Wednesday dinner so Marcus and Julia could officially meet him was her first step in integrating him into part of her life, although she hadn’t told him what she was doing. She figured she’d wait to see how Marcus felt, then talk to Mitch about it. He’d been great about not pressuring her to let him meet Ana right away, though that may have more to do with him having to go into work right after brunch and barely getting to see each other after that, so she didn’t want to get his hopes up.
This way, she’d be able to tell him either he was invited, or she had at least initiated the process of getting Marcus and Julia comfortable with the idea.
“And you’re serious about this guy?” Marcus still sounded a little dubious, and Domi couldn’t blame him. She’d never brought a guy around before and hadn’t mentioned Mitch to him before Ana’s birthday, though he’d heard plenty about Murse Mitch from Ana. “How long have you two actually being seeing each other?”
She bristled at the question, but she got it, so she tamped down her automatic defensiveness and thought back. Well, if she counted the time they were fuck buddies, which was when they’d been building the relationship…
“Holy shit. Months.” She sounded shocked, even to herself. How had that happened? The time had sped by faster than she’d realized.
“Months?” Amusement crept into Marcus’ voice. “Did you just realize that?”
“Well, we’ve only been official for about two months.” This time she didn’t bother to hide her defensiveness. “We were seeing each other, mostly exclusively for about six months before that. I guess I never really added it up. I’ve known him for longer than that. We were friends before we started… seeing each other.” She wasn’t really sure she should call what they’d been doing as bondage buddies as ‘dating.’
Though it had been… they’d rarely gotten together for just a quick fuck. They’d always talked, joked, and enjoyed spending time with each other, even when they were casual.
Damn.
They’d been building a relationship, and she hadn’t even noticed until now.
“Well, then we’d be happy to meet him. Officially.”
“Really?” Relief flooded through her.
“Should I be insulted you’re so surprised?” Marcus chuckled. “You’ve been seeing the guy for months, Domi. You obviously have strong feelings for him. While last Wednesday might not have been the best first impression, any guy who can convince you to give him a second chance… well, I kinda assume he’s in for the long haul. Plus, Ana will be thrilled.”
There was that. Domi felt almost saggy with relief as she sat back on the couch. After saying goodbye to Marcus, she laid there for a long moment, feeling like she’d run a marathon.
She was still nervous as hell, thinking about including Mitch in her family time, but it was the right step. The next step if she wanted a serious relationship with him, and she did. Why was change so scary, even when it was a good change?
Maybe because it was so out of her control.
A submissive with control issues. Though, she guessed it made sense. She’d hardly be the only submissive who enjoyed giving up control in the bedroom because she felt like she had to be in control everywhere else.
The front door slammed open, taking her by surprise. Domi jumped up with a small cry. Spinning around, she stared at Rae, who stared back at her. Despite her dark skin, she somehow managed to look pale, and her dark eyes were wide and almost frightened. Domi had never seen her look like that.
“Someone bought my book.”
“What?”
“I looked at my sales dashboard, and someone bought my book.”
They stared at each other for another long moment as what Rae said sank in.
“Oh my God!” Squealing, Domi raced around the couch, throwing herself at Rae. Once they were hugging, Rae finally responded, starting to bounce up and down with Domi in happy excitement. “Someone bought your book!”
“Someone bought my book!”
“Someone bought your book!”
“Someone bought my book!”
“I told you so!”
“Woman…”
Mitch
Waking up next to Domi was the best kind of morning.
He’d come over late the night before after his shift. Domi had invited him over to help her and Rae celebrate Rae’s first book sale. He didn’t tell them he’d been the one to buy it as a gift for his mom. What? She liked romances. He wasn’t sure if she read romances with two men usually but doubted she’d object. Plus, it would give his dad something to worry about if his mom told him what she was reading.
And if she liked it, she’d tell her friends. She was in a book group with a bunch of other women her age, and Mitch had overheard them talking before. They were a bunch of filthy perverts, despite their white and grey hair and normally prim demeanors. Mitch wasn’t sure how dirty Rae’s book was, but going by the cover, he guessed it would be at least a little dirty.
Head resting on the pillow next to Domi, he studied her features. She was snoring, very softly, and her curls were a rumpled mess. Soft. Vulnerable. He doubted she’d appreciate hearing either word used to describe her. Content to watch her sleep, he felt warmer, happier than ever.
Last night, she’d invited him to dinner with her family. While he couldn’t go tonight, he’d be able to next week. Scary in its own way but exciting. They were really doing this.