Page 166 of Monster

I stood. “All right. Let’s go.”

I turned to Lucy, about to ask if she needed anything, but she made a shooing motion with her hand.

“Have fun, Emmy. I hope this will take your mind off things.”

I shot her a grateful smile and hooked my arm with Ryleigh, walking to the door.

She looked sideways at me. “You have a lot going on?”

“I just miss Dominic,” I admitted.

Things would be better once he got home, and I could see for myself that he was okay.

She nodded in understanding. “Yeah. I would miss Roman, too, even if it had only been a day.”

The man in question was standing by his truck, his arms crossed over his enormous chest and his eyes on his surroundings. I wondered if there was ever a time when he wasn’t on guard. Probably around Ryleigh when it was just the two of them.

And sure enough, he turned to us as soon as we approached, and I could see the way he softened.

Whoa.

If I didn’t have Dominic, I would have been jealous of the way he was looking at her.

He smiled at us. “Ladies. Your chauffeur awaits.”

Ryleigh giggled like a woman in love, and I rolled my eyes at them, grinning.

God, she had it bad.

Roman opened the back door for us and helped me in, then Ryleigh, before reaching in and buckling her up.

She slapped at his hands. “I can do this, you know. I’m not an invalid.”

He ignored her and did up the belt before turning to me. “Do you need help, too?”

I shook my head with a smile and pulled on my belt, and Ryleigh laughed.

“God save us from overprotective men,” she muttered, and I nodded, missing Dominic so much at this moment, my heart ached.

* * *

Ryleigh waved excitedlyat Kai when we walked to the bar and found the man in his usual spot in the back, a laptop in front of him.

He closed it quickly as soon as we reached him, and I couldn’t help but feel he did it because I was here.

I didn’t know why, though, and it was probably just my mind messing with me.

I had been feeling a little emotional lately, and I wasn’t sure if it was due to the lack of sleep or something else.

I blinked.

No, I wasn’t pregnant. I couldn’t be.

My period had never been regular, so I doubted I was fertile at the moment.

No.

I shook away the thought.

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