Chapter 8 - A Different Kind of Cleaning
He hugged her so tightly she could barely breathe, burying his face in the warm crook of her neck.
"You crazy, reckless, beautiful woman," Dominic growled into her skin, his voice shaking with raw emotion. "I told you to stay in the medical bay."
Avery let the brass tray drop to the carpet. She wrapped her arms around his broad, muscular waist, feeling the intense heat of his body, the frantic beat of his heart against her cheek.
"I don't take orders from you anymore, Mr. Kane," she whispered, a small, breathless smile breaking across her face. "My contract is finished, remember?"
Dominic pulled back just enough to look down into her face. His hands cupped her cheeks, his thumbs gently wiping away a smudge of soot from her forehead.
"Your contract as a maid is finished," Dominic said softly, his dark eyes burning with an intense, unyielding light. "But you are never leaving this house, Avery. Not unless you want to. And if you leave, I'm coming with you."
Avery looked up at him, her heart doing a terrifying, wonderful flip in her chest. "Dominic..."
He didn't let her finish. Dominic leaned down and captured her lips in a deep, desperate kiss.
It wasn't gentle. It was the kiss of a man who had faced death and found his salvation. It tasted like rain, iron, and absolute devotion. Avery melted against him, her fingers tangling in his dark, damp hair, giving back every ounce of passion she had kept hidden behind polite nods and quiet footsteps for three years.
When he finally pulled back, both of them were breathless.
"I loved you when you were scrubbed in dirt," Dominic whispered against her lips. "I loved you when you saved my men. And I love you right now, holding a brass tray after saving my life."
Tears filled Avery’s eyes, bright and clear. "I think I've been in love with you since the day you bought my debt and gave me a safe place to hide, you stubborn, arrogant man."
Dominic let out a low, rough laugh—a sound so rare and genuine that even Leo, who had just limped into the room, stopped in his tracks with a shocked smile.
"Clear the house, Leo," Dominic ordered without looking away from Avery. "Call the clean-up crew. Get Dr. Harris to lock down the wounded. I’m taking my future wife upstairs."
Leo grinned, saluting with his good hand. "Right away, Boss."
Avery’s eyes widened. "Future wife? We haven't even had a first date!"
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Dominic swept her up into his arms, lifting her off her feet effortlessly, ignoring her gasp of surprise.
"Our first date was three years of quiet mornings in the hallway, sweet girl," Dominic said, carrying her out of the library and up the grand staircase. "Now we're doing things my way."
