Watch Over Me (Danvers #7)(34)
Through clenched teeth, he growled, “Not at all, baby. Of course, you might have a problem tonight when I extract my revenge upon you.”
Doing her best to look innocent, she asked, “What do you mean?” When he pointed to her chest, she gave what she hoped was a dumb look. “But you didn’t buy me a bra—or panties. You told me to put on what was in the bag. Did I miss something?”
The poor man flinched before asking in a strained voice, “You aren’t wearing panties, either?”
She gave up all pretenses and just smirked. “Nope, afraid not. I guess I follow directions too well. You should have specified that I needed to include my own undergarments along with the clothes you supplied.”
Dominic put his hand on her neck, probably resisting the urge to strangle her. “At any other time, this would be like Christmas come early. Unfortunately, having to walk around in a zoo full of kids with a painful erection seems wrong on many levels.”
Gwen slid her arms under his jacket and wrapped them around his waist. “Awww, I’ll keep everything covered up. You won’t even know.”
“Oh, I’ll know,” he promised as he squeezed her tight before releasing her. “Let’s go feed some damn penguins. I need a change of focus fast.”
* * *
Dominic bit back a smile as Gwen waved good-bye to Max and Sam. When she had decided that morning to go braless, she probably hadn’t reckoned on going to the zoo and having a very hands-on session of feeding penguins. She had sent his blood pressure through the roof earlier by flashing him a view of her braless breasts in a tight tank top and adding the tidbit that she wasn’t wearing panties. His cock had gone into overdrive and he’d been ready to find a secluded corner and have his way with her.
She had thought his reaction was hysterical, but as they say, paybacks were a bitch, and she got hers fairly soon after that. She had looked a bit uncomfortable when she had discovered that there were two twenty-something-year-old men who would be showing them around the penguin habitat. Dominic had grinned when she’d pulled her jacket closer around her body in an attempt to cover her breasts. Soon after that, Mark told them that it could get messy during feeding time so they should remove their jackets and pull on one of the smocks located nearby.
Dominic had made a big production of taking off his coat and then all eyes turned to Gwen as she stood there, shifting nervously. “Hurry up, babe, so we can get started,” he’d called to her. Her eyes had shot daggers at him before she stiffened her spine and took her jacket off. His jaw had dropped because truthfully, he hadn’t expected that. He figured she’d make up some excuse about being cold. That laugh was on him because Max and Sam couldn’t stop staring at her chest. Damn, why had he thought it was a good idea to buy a shirt that he knew was too small?
She had taken her time putting the smock on and by the time she was finished, all three of the men in the room were sweating profusely. After that little show of defiance, though, she’d folded. Max and Sam had fawned all over her, and she’d been uncomfortable with their attention. Hell, it had started to get under his skin as well after a while. He just knew the little horny bastards were plotting ways to stage an impromptu wet T-shirt contest with Gwen as the sole contestant. Maybe there hadn’t been too much payback, after all, because he’d ended up suffering as much or more than she had. Luckily, feeding the penguins had almost been enough to make up for it.
When she reached him, he took her hand and led her toward the park. “Please tell me that you didn’t give them your autograph or phone number.”
She blushed adorably, before pulling her jacket close. “Ugh . . . no. I think Sam was working up the nerve to ask, though. They’re not exactly kids; haven’t they seen a woman’s breasts before?”
“Not like yours,” Dominic teased. “I get a little crazy myself when I look at them.” Gwen laughed softly beside him as they walked toward a crowded deli. He had already arranged earlier for a picnic lunch so they were able to bypass the bulk of the line. He carried their food toward a quiet, grassy spot under a big tree, and they settled there.
When they were finished with their sandwiches, he leaned back against the tree trunk and motioned for her to sit between his legs. He exhaled in contentment when her back met his chest and he curved his arms loosely around her. “This is nice,” she sighed, seeming to melt against him.
“It is,” he agreed, thinking that this had been one of the best days he’d spent in a while. Having sex with Gwen was amazing, but just spending leisure time with her also felt so damned right. “So,” he added, “I know you went to college in South Carolina and that you have a sister who bought you a zoo membership but tell me more. Does your family live near here?”
Gwen stretched lazily against him and he tried to block out the fact that she wasn’t wearing panties beneath her jeans. He wanted to enjoy this time with her without having his cock digging into her ass. There would be plenty of time for that later.
“My family lives in Columbia, which I’m sure you know is a couple of hours from here. My dad has his own landscaping business, and my mom handles his bookwork. My sister, Wendy, is married but has no children yet. She teaches the fifth grade and her husband, Peter, also works at the same school.”
“Hmmm, I’m sensing a pattern here,” Dominic mused. “If you follow in your family’s footsteps, you’ll be marrying someone that you work with.”