Shoulda Been A Cowboy (13 page)

No. That couldn't be right. Cam wasn't
just…leaving after he'd screwed her nearly unconscious,
was he?

He tugged the robe tie, freeing her arms. He massaged
her shoulders and slid the silk scarf off her eyes.

Blinking several times, Domini let Cam roll her onto her
back. Very gingerly, he untangled the strands of her hair covering
her face. Then his thumb followed the arch of her eyebrow as he
cradled her head in his hand. “Jesus, Domini. You're
beautiful. You stun me.”

Not what she was expecting. Nor did she anticipate his
achingly gentle kiss that lingered on her mouth and seemed to seep
into her soul.

Domini lifted her hand, needing to touch him, but the
second her fingers connected with the scar, he retreated.

“
I have to go,” he said, as if he were
trying to convince himself. “Sleep well and I'll see you
tomorrow.”

Before she pushed herself upright, she heard the door
close and he was gone.

What the hell had just happened?

She'd done everything he'd demanded or asked
of her—true, she'd done it because she'd wanted to,
not just because he'd commandeered her sexual responses as his
right.

Why had Cam dressed fast and raced out like he suddenly
remembered he had another engagement?

Dressed. Wait a minute. That was the third time they'd
had sex. The fourth time they'd had sexual contact if she
counted the time they'd messed around on the couch. By all
rights she should've already explored his remarkable body.
Sucked his nipples and raked her fingernails down his muscular back.
Licked the bulging muscles in his arms. Traced his rippled six-pack
abs with her tongue. Kissed her way from his belly button to his
hipbones. Scraped her nails down his thighs. Nibbled on his knees.
Tested his feet to see if they were ticklish.

Knees and feet? Cam only has one knee and one foot.

Domini clapped her hand over her mouth as the truth
jarred her. His reaction tonight wasn't an oversight in a
moment of passion; it'd been calculated, like all their sexual
encounters had been.

Cam, that sneaky jerk, didn't want her to see his
prosthesis. Tonight he'd blindfolded her so when he did strip
down, she couldn't see anything.

Domini tried to wrap her head around the fact he always
bent her over the closest horizontal surface. He'd not allowed
additional touching, no eye contact. And by bending her over, three
freakin' times now, she wouldn't feel the difference of
his artificial leg as he pounded into her from behind. She'd
just remember how hot and kinky it was that he fucked her so
thoroughly.

Don't move. Keep your hands just like that.

If he commanded her during the actual act of sex as well
as foreplay, then she'd be less inclined to disobey and reach
back to grab his thigh. Or the stump where his thigh used to be.

Damn him. Cam could continue keeping her off balance by
seeing to her sexual needs, especially when she'd already given
him control. Was Cam hoping all Domini would remember in the
aftermath when she was alone was the blazing hot sex?

Yes.

Well, she had news for him. Not happening. Next time
he'd come to her honestly, with the same trust she'd
shown him, the same willingness to put himself out there, or he
wouldn't come to her at all.

And neither of them would come.

Domini grabbed her robe off the floor and hoped a shower
would cool her burst of anger.

But somehow she doubted it.

Chapter Seven

“
Domini, can I have a glass of milk?”

She set the blue marker in the crack of the coloring
book. “Pretty soon you'll start mooing.”

Anton shrugged. “I like it.”

She ruffled his blond hair. “To be honest, your
milk addiction gives me an excuse to keep cookies around.” She
filled Anton's favorite Denver Broncos mug. As she plunked it
on the table, she peered over his shoulder at what he'd been
working on with such diligence.

Her jaw dropped. She'd always considered Anton's
artistic skills advanced for a seven-year-old boy, but this was
beyond anything she'd seen so far. It was a pencil drawing of
the road leading out of town. In the left hand corner was a small
rendering of the building she lived in, which had a glow about it.

The depth perception was incredible, the telephone
poles, the fence line, the pavement decreased in size and breadth,
fading away until it was barely a speck. The landscape was stark and
minimal, but it was the overall tone of the picture that left Domini
feeling bleak.

Did Anton feel that way? Or was this just a picture?

Domini realized he'd gone utterly still. Was he
waiting for her to criticize his work? “Anton, this is amazing.
Did you just do that today?”

He reached for his milk and his legs began to swing
under the table again. “Uh-huh.”

“
Can I have it when you're done with it?”

A beat of hesitation, then, “You really want it?”

“
Sure. Why wouldn't I?”

“'
Cause it's not happy. My mom only
wants the happy pictures I draw.”

“
I like all kinds of pictures.” Domini
couldn't resist smoothing his cowlick. “What were you
thinking about when you drew this?”

Another drink of milk. “Sometimes I watch out the
back window when mom is driving home. I keep watching until your
building is tiny. Just like this.” He pointed at the drawing.
“I'm thinking about you because I miss you.” He
paused and said softly, “I wish you still lived with us.”

“
I miss you too. But I understand why your mom
wanted to have a place for just the two of you.”

Anton's head whipped up. His pale blue eyes shone
with accusation. “But it isn't just the two of us.
He
comes over all the time now.”

Domini froze. Only one nameless
he
in Anton's life. “Your father has been there?”

“
Betcha she didn't tell you that, huh?”

“
No, she didn't.” Nadia and Rex. There
was a good reason Nadia kept her contact with her ex to the absolute
minimum—the man was an abusive asshole. “Is she trying to
make you spend time with him?”

His shoulder lifted. “No. He doesn't talk to
me at all, but I don't care. Really. I don't.”

Although she was upset with Nadia, she pasted on a smile
for Anton. “Well, I'm glad she's letting you spend
time with me, even if my artistic skills are limited to coloring
inside the lines.”

Anton hopped up and used a magnet to attach the picture
to the fridge.

Domini set her hands on his shoulders. “Looks
good, doesn't it?”

“
Yeah.” Anton cranked his head around and
smirked. “So were you lyin' about the cookies?”

“
Talk about impatient.” She snagged a cookie
from the breadbox and slid it into the microwave, so the dough would
be warm and the chips inside gooey, just the way Anton liked it.

After the snack, they watched TV. Domini covered Anton
up with an afghan when he conked out.

About ten o'clock, Nadia knocked on the door. “Is
he asleep?”

“
Yes. You want a cup of tea before you go home?”

“
Sure.” Nadia dropped into a dining room
chair with a heavy sigh.

Domini turned up the kettle and gathered her thoughts as
she lined up mugs, sugar cubes and milk. She poured and sat across
from her friend.

She and Nadia had met in Sundance right after Domini
relocated. At the time, Nadia had been in an abusive relationship
with her ex-husband, desperate to get out. After Nadia wised up, left
the man and filed for divorce, she and Anton had moved in with
Domini.

Things had worked out well as roommates, but something
changed and Nadia started hinting about finding a new place to live
for just her and her son.

Around that same time, India Ellison married Colt McKay,
and the apartment above the restaurant sat vacant. Domini let Nadia
take over the lease on the house they rented and moved out. It eased
her loneliness that she saw Anton frequently, but the close
relationship she shared with Nadia had cooled considerably. Now
Domini knew why.

Nadia sighed after the first sip of tea. “I miss
having tea with you.”

“
Me too.” Domini fingered the handle of her
mug, dreading this conversation. “I'm worried about
Anton.”

“
Why?”

“
He doesn't seem the same the last couple
times I've seen him. Tonight he told me…”

“
What?” Nadia asked sharply.

Domini's eyes connected with Nadia's. “That
Rex has been coming around a lot lately. Is that true?”

“
So?”

“
So?” Normally the “stay out of it”
train of thought won out and Domini would shut her mouth and seethe
in silence. Not this time. “Do you really need me to remind you
that Rex used to beat you? And verbally abuse you? And a big part of
the reason you left him was because you were worried about Anton's
safety?”

When Nadia's gaze fell, Domini's hopes fell
right along with it.

“
He's changed.”

No he hasn't!
Domini
bit the words back even when it seemed she'd choke on them.

“
He loves me. He wants me back. He wants us to be
a family again.”

“
What about what Anton wants? Does that matter to
you at all?”

Nadia became defiant. “Anton is seven years old.
Rex is Anton's father. He has a right to know his son. And
Anton needs to get to know his father.”

“
Even if that means going back into an unsafe
situation?”

“
It's not unsafe. He's changed,”
Nadia repeated stubbornly.

“
This man threatened to kill you.”

“
That was in the past.”

Domini dug her fingernails into her palms to keep from
grabbing Nadia and shaking her.

“
He's asked me to give him another chance,”
Nadia said softly. “I'm just supposed to say no?”

“
Damn right you should say no. I'd say no.”

Nadia drained her tea. “I'm not you. I'm
tired of being alone, Domini. Maybe if you don't know what
you're missing, it's not so bad, living alone all the
time. But I do know what I'm missing. I want someone to hold
me. I want an adult to talk to at the end of the day. I want to share
my life with someone. We have a history. That means something.”

“
You have a violent history,” Domini
retorted. “And if I remember correctly, he used to hold you
down and smack you. That is not
holding
you, Nadia. Is that really what you want? For yourself? For Anton?”

“
I knew you wouldn't understand.”
Nadia stood stiffly. “I'm tired. Thanks for watching my
son tonight.”

Domini wanted to keep the dialogue open, but she knew
Nadia well enough to recognize the conversation was over. She
swallowed her anger. “You're welcome. I love having him.
You know that.”

Nadia's defiant posture softened. “I do.
Sometimes I think you've been his mother more than I have
been.”

That didn't sound like something Nadia would say;
that sounded like something Rex would say to undermine Nadia's
confidence. But pointing it out would be…pointless.

At the doorway, Anton hugged Domini fiercely before
allowing his mother to lead him out into the night.

As Domini tidied up the kitchen, her gaze landed on the
picture on the refrigerator. Was Anton facing backward in the car,
watching her building disappear? Fearing she'd disappear?

A sob escaped. She slid to the floor, curled into a ball
and cried, not for herself, but for the little boy who'd bear
the brunt of his mother's bad decision.

Her cell phone buzzed in her back pocket, jarring her
out of her crying jag. She dug the phone out and stared at the caller
ID. Cam. She debated on answering, but if she let the call roll to
voicemail, he'd stop by to check on her. She couldn't
face him right now. “Hello?”

“
Hey. Sorry to be calling so late.”

“
I was just about to go to bed.”

Silence. “What's wrong?”

“
Nothing. I'm just tired.”

“
Bullshit. You sound like you've been
crying.”

The man had radar-like instincts when it came to reading
her emotions. Part of being a cop? Or part of being so tuned in to
her needs?

Right. Wishful thinking.