Bondage Buddies (Masters of Marquis #1) - Golden Angel Page 0,7

and “doing the right thing.” Domi had made it clear she didn’t want the latter—at all—but Julia had to live with the knowledge Marcus had considered leaving her for Domi and Ana. It became even worse when they started trying for a child of their own, and it quickly became clear getting pregnant was going to be a struggle for Julia.

She never, not once, took that out on Ana.

But sometimes, she took it out on Domi. Domi tried to be understanding but was only willing to tolerate to a point. She also couldn’t help but roll her eyes every time Marcus came by to pick Ana up and Julia was with him. It was literally a five-minute drive, and Julia had only missed it twice in five years—once when she was on an unavoidable trip for work and once when she was with her mom at the hospital. It was as though she thought if she wasn’t there, Domi would throw herself at Marcus and change his mind about becoming a family.

Watching Marcus get out of the car, Domi could admit he was a good-looking guy. Tall, dark, and handsome with a great smile and broad shoulders, he was a total catch, but he was so vanilla, she’d rocked his world by suggesting doggy style during their night together. Great guy, great dad, but she had absolutely no romantic or sexual desire for him. Maybe one day, Julia would actually believe that.

The woman in question got out of her side of the car, waving at Ana with a smile, but pointedly didn’t look at Domi. Almost as tall as Marcus, curvy—aka, totally stacked—with pale skin and red hair, she looked like a young Christina Hendricks.

Domi was mostly comfortable being short and skinny at this point in her life, but she still struggled to understand how someone who looked like Julia could be insecure over someone who looked like her.

“I’m gonna miss you, Mommy,” Ana said, throwing her arms around Domi’s neck and smacking a kiss against her cheek. Every other week, she said the same thing, and Domi knew it was true, but Ana was also excited to spend time with her Dad and Julia.

“I’ll miss you more,” Domi countered, squeezing her tightly.

Thankfully, Marcus and Julia lived close, so it was easy to split up time between them. Ana went back and forth each week, which meant Domi was only a single mom about half the time. She both dreaded and looked forward to Ana’s weeks away.

The alone time was blissful, the chance to catch up with her friends was wonderful, but she missed her baby girl the whole time she was gone. She was growing up so fast.

“I’ll miss you most!” Ana said, giggling wildly, giving Domi another kiss before jumping off the couch to run and let her father and stepmother in. She was far too big now for Domi to pick up and carry to the door. The thought made Domi’s chest ache a little with nostalgia. Unlike Domi, Marcus was still able to pick up Ana, even if he couldn’t carry her for the distances he used to. She threw her little body at him, squealing with happiness.

“Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, I missed you!”

“I missed you too, baby girl,” he said, giving her a kiss on the forehead as he tucked his arms underneath her.

“I missed you too, Ju-ju!” Ana said, reaching out her hand toward Julia, who laughed and caught the little hand in hers, giving it a kiss.

“And I missed you, Ana-bug.” Julia grinned. “Are you ready to go to the zoo today?”

Ana cheered, wriggling enough Marcus had to put her down so she could jump around in excitement. “I want to see Monkey Island!”

All of them laughed, and Marcus curved his hand over Ana’s brown curls, which were so much like Domi’s. “I think we can make that happen.” He looked up at Domi, still smiling. “Do you want to come with us?”

For the sake of their daughter, the three of them did a lot of things together, including holidays, but the innocent question still made Julia’s lips tighten into a flat line. Her expression softened with relief when Domi shook her head.

“No, thank you. I have things I need to get done today.”

Specifically, things to get herself ready for a night at Marquis. Every weekend Ana spent with Marcus and Julia, Domi spent either at Stronghold or Marquis. Tonight she wasn’t going with Master Mitch, though. She and Rae were having a ladies’