Second Chance at Love (Love Conquers All) (20 page)

A gigantic force of fury shot through Dom as he watched the woman he loved crumble before his eyes. Her face had twisted into a mask of embarrassment, disbelief and agony. Her normally, dark, sparkling eyes were clouding over with tears and pain. He was sure it was from the most intimate parts of her marriage being aired out. Before he could rein in his temper, he had the older man gripped up by the collar and lifted off his feet.

“Don’t you ever talk to her or about her like that again or I’ll kill you,” he threatened through clenched teeth, the veins in his temple protruding. Dom’s grip tightened. He wanted so bad to snuff the life out this lowlife.

Mrs. Johnston gasped in horror as her husband struggled to breathe against the choke hold. Dom ignored the man’s attempts to pry his large fisted hand from his collar.

“Dom, please! Let him go!” Karen cried. She would love for Dom to pound the old goat into the ground, but he wasn’t worth it. He wasn’t worth Dom getting into any legal troubles.

Hearing Karen’s pleas, Dom dropped the man to the floor. Pacing back and forth, his nostrils flared like a caged animal. Oh, how he wanted to just punch the hell out of him…just once.

Some of his anger evaporated when he glanced over at Karen. She looked so broken, so wounded. When he went to her, wrapping his protective arms around her, she slumped against his chest.

Could Gregory have said all those things? She knew he had been miserable and expressed that he had wanted to wait before they started having kids. But to tell his parents that he never wanted them. That he was planning on leaving her for another woman. Wow, that really hurt. Had he ever loved her? Loved the kids?

Dom held her close, feeling her body trembling next to his. He had heard and seen enough. These idiots weren’t going to stand here another second and hurt her. He kissed Karen’s temple affectionately.

` “It’s time for you to leave. Now.”

They didn’t budge, but it could have been because the man was still collecting himself. Dom released Karen and took a step toward them. Even Karen jumped when he roared like the almighty king of the jungle. “Did you hear me? I said get out!”

Scampering to the door, Mr. Johnston turned back to look at Dom and Karen. “This isn’t the last you’ll hear from us,” he threatened before storming out and slamming the door. Mrs. Johnston had the sense to get moving and keep her mouth shut.

Turning Karen to face him, he tenderly stroked her cheek. “Baby, are you all right?”

Karen nodded her head. “I’ll be okay.” She walked over to the sofa, sat down, leaned over, and put her head in her hands. “I just need to get myself together before the kids come back down here.”

How had the day gone from being beautiful to ugly in the matter of fifteen minutes? That’s literally how long it had taken from the moment the in-laws from hell showed up and left. And this new revelation of how her deceased husband had felt about her and the children almost had the ability to crush her. Almost. True she had been a little shook up by the revelation. But Karen knew in her heart she had done everything to be a good wife. And as far as her tricking Gregory, he was the one who didn’t want to use condoms whenever he
was
in the mood. He may not have wanted their babies, but she did. And now she had a man that loved and wanted them too.

Dom sat next to Karen, his large hands rubbing smooth, soothing circles over her back.

Karen offered him a sad smile. “Thanks.”

Pulling her onto his lap, he kissed her forehead. “Baby, you don’t have to thank me. I’m going to always protect you and the children. Y’all belong to me now.”

And just like that, all was right with the world again. Karen may not have gotten the love thing right the first time around. But this time…this time…she struck magic. She wasn’t even going to cry over her past with Gregory. It was what it was. She had too much of a good thing with Dom to give what’s his name a second thought.

Tenderly kissing his lip she whispered, “I love you so much.”

Kissing her back, Dom swept his tongue around, hitting every corner of her mouth, claiming her again as his woman. Threading his fingers through her hair, he brought her closer, if that was at all possible. “And I love you, too.”

They held each other for the longest time, saying nothing. They just enjoyed the comfort of each other. Dom was the first to break the trance. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

Karen nodded her head. “Yeah.” He could feel her shoulders rise and fall when she let out a deep breath. “I’m not so sure about my babies though.”

“
Our
babies,” Dom corrected.

Karen smiled. “
Our
babies.” Turning serious again she said, “They were really upset. They’re not used to a bunch of mess.”

Squeezing her tight, Dom assured her, “They’ll be okay. Come on, why don’t we call them down? I think we deserve to go out for lunch after this hellish nightmare.”

Karen laughed. “Honey, you ain’t neva lied.”

After the dust had fully settled Dom and Karen agreed the children needed something fun to cheer them up. Having lunch at Nifty Fifties and then going roller skating was a real treat. The adults had just as much fun as the kids whizzing around the skating rink. Ashley and Kyle couldn’t believe their mom was such a good skater. “Go Mommy! Go Mommy!” Brother and sister cheered. Karen laughed and showed off more of her dance-skating moves from back in the day. Of course Dom wouldn’t be out done; he had to show off his skills from his skating days at the Carmen Skating Rink. Ashley and Kyle cheered just as loud for him.

When the DJ called for couples, instead of Karen and Dom skating together, Dom had taken Ashley’s hand and Karen had taken Kyle’s. Karen grinned over at Dom as he shortened his strides so Ashley could keep up with him. Her heart swelled up with not only love, but gratitude for Dom. He had so unselfishly and willingly stepped up to plate where her children were concerned. The look on Ashley’s face beamed with daughterly pride and happiness as she made her way around the rink hand in hand with Dom.

And Kyle…the boy had called Dom Daddy during his distress. Once things had cooled off, Kyle had gone back to calling him Mr. Dom. Though Dom thought he hid the disappointment, Karen had seen it sweep across his features. She had felt a pang of sadness for her lover. He so wanted to be a father to the children. Hopefully, she prayed it would be soon.

Working up an appetite, the group decided to head back to Dom’s to order takeout. Before they reached their destination, Dom threw everyone for an unexpected loop. He didn’t know how Karen would react, but decided he would take his chances. If she refused, he’d have to persuade her. Coming to a red light, he looked in the rearview mirror at the kids and then over at Karen. “I want you and the kids to stay the night with me.”

There was no way he was letting them out of his sight after what happened earlier. For some reason he had a strong need to watch over and protect them even more than before. He wanted to do it every night from this point forward, but knew that was impossible until they married. But for one night, just this one night, he needed them close.

Karen turned in her seat to face him. She wanted to say yes, but was she doing the right thing? What would the children think? When she looked over her shoulder at the kids, they had that sad, puppy dog look they gave her whenever they begged her for something. She nibbled on her bottom lip. Just because they wanted to stay the night with Dom and she wanted to stay the night didn’t make it right. She didn’t want to get into the habit of them bouncing back between their place and his. With that thought she said, “I don’t know, Dom…”

Pulling off through the green light, he briefly cut his eyes at her. “It’s just this one time.” He dropped his voice so low Karen had to strain to hear him. “Baby, I just
need
to have you and the kids close by tonight.”

Karen’s heart melted. He didn’t have to spell it out for her. His tender voice and loving eyes brought the message home. He wanted to protect her and the kids and couldn’t do it while he was in one place and they were in another. No way would she stomp all over his manly desire to protect what would be his family. “Okay, this one time. Until…” She whispered, letting her words trail off because two sets of ears were in the backseat listening for any tidbits of information.

Dom grinned in the rearview mirror at the kids. “Your mother said yes.”

“Yay!” They both screamed.

“This is going to be so much fun! Just like a sleepover.” Ashley squealed.

“Where will we sleep? My sleeping bag is in the garage.” Kyle asked.

Karen looked over at Dom, raising an amused brow. “Yeah, where are we going to sleep?”

Dom chuckled. “You and Ashley can sleep in my bed, Kyle in the guest room, and I’ll take the sofa bed.”

“Are you sure? Ashley and I can take the sofa bed.”

Shaking his head, he told her, “No. I’ll be fine on the sofa bed.”

“Okay, if you say so.”

“I do.” Looking in the rearview mirror at the kids, he said, “How about we swing by your house so you can pack an overnight bag?”

With big grins, they both nodded their heads. Making sure the adults were looking ahead, Kyle leaned over to his sister. “I think it’s working,” he whispered in her ear.

“So do I,” she whispered back, her large eyes twinkling with laughter.

Moving around in the small kitchen, Karen and Dom worked together as they prepared breakfast. Reaching up on tippy-toes to grab a mixing bowl from the cabinet, Karen muffled a yawn. She hadn’t gotten any sleep at all. Sleep eluded her as she replayed the day’s events in her mind. She still couldn’t believe her in-laws, coming back after all these years to make a claim on her children, but for what reason? Their explanation of wanting to be a part of their grandchildren’s lives just didn’t sit well with her. After putting that out of her mind, she tossed and turned, remembering the last time she was in Dom’s bed. She remembered the things he had done to her in his bed. Although Ashley slept like a log, she found herself burying her face into her pillow several times throughout the night to muffle her screams of sexual frustration.

Coming up behind her, Dom reached over her head, grabbing the bowl she was trying to reach. Why did he have to kiss her on the neck? Didn’t he know she was about ready to explode with need for him? Snatching the bowl from his hand, she went over to farthest end of the counter, which wasn’t far at all considering the size of the kitchen.

Dom lifted a thick brow at her. “Grumpy this morning, aren’t we?”

She went to the fridge and took out the eggs and milk for the French toast. “Yes.”

Dom leaned against the counter next to her as she cracked the eggs into the bowl. Scanning her from head to toe, he appreciated how her curves filled out her jeans and the yellow sweater clung to her breasts. Unable to keep his hands off of her, he maneuvered himself so he was behind her, his strong arm circling her waist.

“Did I do something?”

“Yes.”

“Baby, what did I do?” He whispered low in her ear, sucking on her lobe.

Closing her eyes and forgetting her task of cracking eggs, she leaned into his hard body. His sensual play had her shivering though the dwelling was nice and toasty. “You forced me to stay here and then I had to sleep in your room and you slept on the sofa bed. I didn’t get an ounce of sleep,” she pouted.

She could feel the vibrating rumbling of Dom’s chest as he laughed. “Welcome to the club. You have no idea how hard it was for me not to come in that room once the kids were asleep.”

She turned around and feathered his lips with a kiss. It was nothing like the one they shared earlier when they first got up. Slipping her arms around his waist, she laid her head on his wide chest. “I hope we don’t have a long engagement. I don’t know how much longer I can last without being with you every day.”

Dom held her tight. She had no idea that he felt exactly the same way. He felt bad about not seeing her and the kids every day, but he was on a timeline to get the brownstone project completed. He had hired extra manpower just so the process could be sped up and he could at least spend a few days during the week with Karen and the kids. Hopefully, he could get his parents or Starr and Kevin to babysit so he could take her out for a nice romantic dinner and dancing.