Since they both loved Italian food, Dominic had taken her to a new place in North Myrtle Beach called Nino’s. They’d ordered the lasagna for two and after that . . . things had gotten strange. Gwen had been at her bungling best, and Dominic hadn’t been much better. Between them, they had managed to knock over a glass of wine, and then the bottle before Dominic stuck his elbow in his antipasti salad followed by Gwen dropping a huge bite of her lasagna onto her white top.
When they left, they were both splattered in food and wine, and she was certain the restaurant hoped they’d never come back again. She didn’t know if she’d ever felt that socially awkward before. She should have known it was a sign of the evening to come when she rolled her silverware from her napkin and directly onto the floor where it made a loud bang.
Even the conversation had been sweet and shy. They had each talked more about their families and their teenage and college years. He had opened up about his time in the military with Mac, Gage, and Declan. He had said that it had been very hard being away from his family, but that he’d mostly enjoyed the time he’d served and the brothers that he’d grown to love. Gwen came away from the meal with new insight into the man who had come to mean so much to her.
When they’d returned home, she and Dominic had stood outside her door looking everywhere but at each other. It seemed that the good night kiss stress that usually came after a first date was back, which was absurd since they’d slept together numerous times. If it was possible to turn back the clock on a relationship, then they seemed to have done it. She cleared her throat nervously while Dominic actually scuffed his foot back and forth. To have something to do with her hands, she’d shifted to unlock her door. When she turned back to say good night, Dominic had given her a shy grin, and then she had no idea how it happened, but before she realized what was happening, she was in the entryway of her apartment with her mouth crushed against Dominic’s and her legs around his waist.
Things had moved even faster from that point. Buttons had ripped and a trail of clothes was strewn through the hallway as they stumbled into the bedroom. There was no sign of their previous awkwardness as their bodies came together like perfect matching halves. The first time had been frantic and fast, but the second had been a slow, gradual buildup as they explored each other thoroughly. Thankfully, all condom systems were go, and there had been no malfunctions of the latex.
Dominic had left just a few minutes ago while she was still half-asleep. As far as taking things slowly went, she wasn’t sure how to rank the previous evening. She didn’t think she’d made the first move toward sex last night—but she couldn’t rule it out. After being afraid that she was losing him, it had felt so good to reconnect on any level. In hindsight, she knew that probably hadn’t been the wisest decision. It was hard to be objective though when a man like Dominic started touching and kissing you. Yeah, she’d never stood a chance.
Gwen had another hour before she needed to dress for work so she was drifting off when she heard a chime that sounded like a text alert. She grumbled under her breath, wondering who it could be this early. She fumbled around on her nightstand until she found her phone. She’d had Dominic wait for her in his truck last night while she ran into her cell phone provider and replaced the one she’d destroyed. There was no way she wanted him to see the broken phone. When she finally managed to hit the button to light the screen, it showed no missed calls or texts.