Starlet: A Dark Retelling - Cora Kenborn Page 0,70

me with a mask of resolve. “Because I don’t. And I can’t. Ever.”

I stare at the floor a moment, then lift my gaze to his, my stomach sinking to my toes. “I should go.” Grabbing my purse, I head toward the back exit Noah mentioned. I don’t stop until I’m outside, staring into the night sky as if it holds all the answers to my brand-new, fucked-up life.

“I’ve never known you to walk away from an argument.” Dominic appears behind me, the faint scent of whiskey faltering my steps.

I bite my lip and turn an impassive gaze on him. “I’m not walking away from an argument. I’m walking away from you.”

I have to rip whatever is between us off like a worn Band-Aid. It’s not just Rosten’s threats that stand between us. It’s the constant dreams. It’s the static. The scratching. The zigzag lines that are becoming more and more frequent. It’s the voice in my head whispering words I don’t understand.

And that damn room at the estate. The one I sit in night after night because it’s the only one in the whole godforsaken mansion that quiets everything. The place where I count away the monsters as I wait for the nameless boy with frozen eyes to appear out of the shadows.

But I don’t tell him any of that.

“I care too much about you to do this,” I whisper. “You have no idea the fire we’re playing with or how badly you could get burned.”

Dominic’s features harden. “Fire doesn’t scare me.”

I shake my head before turning on my heel. “It terrifies me.”

I barely have time to react before his strong arms swing me against the side of the building. I open my mouth to tell him to stop when he pins me against the bricks and slams his lips against mine. Relenting to the fire welling inside of me, I melt into him.

I finally break away. “No, stop...”

His voice dips low with want as he pulls back, his lips resting against mine. “Is that what you really want? Because if you do, say it again, and I’ll walk away. But we both know you want me to fuck away whatever shit you’ve got bottled up in your head.”

“Dominic…”

“Just say it.”

I press myself as far back into the wall as possible. My body possesses no self-control around him, and it pisses me off. “I hate you,” I whisper, shivering as his hands slide down to my hips.

“Hate me. I don’t care as long as you come home with me.”

“I’m still mad at you.”

He trails a hand down my cheek. “I don’t remember asking.”

I slowly nod as he slides his hand down my arm and locks his fingers in mine. As we walk away from the restaurant all I can think of is that this is a mistake.

And it’s going to cost us.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Dominic

If you ever get the chance to ride down Sunset Boulevard with a Hollywood starlet on the back of a Harley, I highly recommend it. Under the disguise of a helmet, no one knows who she is, and you feel like a god.

A god that should get a medal for waiting this long to fuck her.

“You’re so tense.” Angel releases her hold on my waist, her voice scattering across my neck from behind. “Are you all right?”

Nothing about tonight is all right. I’d planned to tell her a watered-down version of my past with Luciano. But somewhere between sitting down at the table and opening my mouth, my plan went to hell. We started arguing, and before I knew it, words became lust. I still haven’t figured out when the tables turned.

However, even the most patient man has his breaking point. Mine was her walking out of that restaurant.

Without saying a word, I turn off the ignition and wait for her to get off first before swinging my leg to the concrete. Narrowing my eyes, I stare at her, starting at her fuck-me heels and working my way up to that black skirt and fancy blue shirt.

Angel shifts nervously. “Dominic?” She fidgets with the diamonds dripping from her neck. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

Why? Because I warned her outside that bar in Chula Vista that this would happen. She asked me what I wanted from her. I told her everything. And here I am, taking everything.

I stalk toward her, and she steps back. “Wait, Dominic, I’m not so sure—”

“I am.”

Another step back. “But Rosten will—”

“Shhh.” A smirk creeps along the corner of my mouth as