Page 26 of Dominate
“Nice to meet you, Rocky.” I shake her tiny hand. My heart squeezes when she drags her tiny sunglasses off her face and hits me straight on with the most stunning blue eyes I’ve ever seen on a child. “Good God, she’s beautiful!”
“Thank you,” Vi replies with a pleased smile. “I can’t take all the credit, though. This is my fiancé, Hayden.”
Hayden shakes my hand. “Nice to meet you.”
Vaughn’s voice breaks up our introductions. “We’ve had a brilliant day at the beach, haven’t we, Rocky Doll?” He pokes his finger into her side and she squeals with delight. “Your grandma would have loved it.”
I see Gareth stiffen beside me, but Rocky’s voice suddenly chimes, “Garee, swim.” She wraps her little arms around her uncle’s neck and basically makes me want more babies with one adorable grin. “Papa, swim!’
Gareth looks surprised. “Is she calling youPapanow?”
Vaughn smiles smugly. “That she is. You’re not the only one she fancies, Gareth.”
Vaughn laughs good-heartedly, but Gareth doesn’t seem amused. “How long has that been going on?”
“A couple of weeks,” Vi replies, her face appearing a little tense. “She went from repeating words to calling everyone by their names in the blink of an eye. You’d have heard it yourself if you were able to come to Sunday dinners. No worries, though! We’re just glad you’re feeling better and we’re all together now. The boys are off on a boat excursion with the girls, but they should be back soon. We have a packed three days ahead of us.”
Vaughn speaks up next, staring at both me and Gareth with a meaningful expression on his face. “I hope you’re both ready for all of this. It’s going to be a lot of family time. Some that I hope will allow us all to really reconnect.”
His eyes settle on Gareth for a moment, and I swear Gareth looks like he’s going to burst out laughing. Instead, he replies, “We’ll be fine, Dad.”
Vaughn nods. “It’s a shame you missed out on the beach day today. It was good fun.”
Gareth shakes his head like he can’t wrap his mind around the image in front of him. When he’s about to say something, Vi quickly steps between them, her voice shrill when she says, “Would you look at the time? We all need to get back to our rooms so I can finish prepping the dinner I’m making for all of us at our bungalow.” She smiles at Gareth with wide, over-eager eyes, clearly in planning mode already. “You’ll see it all on the itinerary when you check in. You and the boys are staying here at the resort. Dad, Hayden, Rocky, and I are at an adorable stone cottage just down the beach. There’s a map in your gift bag. Tonight we’re having a traditional family dinner. Then tomorrow morning is the wake. After that, it’s wedding day!”
Vi smiles a bit too brightly. Then I see Hayden rub a calming hand over her tight shoulders as she grabs Rocky out of Gareth’s arms. “Go check in and get changed. Dinner is in two hours, and I really don’t want you to be late.”
The three of them and Rocky turn and make their way back outside. It’s then that I notice Gareth is ten times more anxious than when we first arrived.
“Are you all right?” I ask quietly and reach out to touch his arm.
He nods, his jaw muscle ticking once before he turns to look at me. “I’m fine. I just have no idea who that man is because he certainly isn’t my father.”
AS AN ATHLETE,I’VE TRAVELLEDthe world twenty times over. I’ve stayed in the best hotels, ate at fine restaurants, been given VIP status at the most lavish clubs. But I’ve never been on a proper family holiday. And seeing my dad wearing bloody shorts and sandals for the first time in my entire life while he carried Rocky like a doting granddad shouldn’t have put me on edge, but it did. Then he referred to our mum as grandma and hugged Sloan. Hugged her! My dad isn’t a hugger. He’s stiff and emotionless. British. And what the fuck did he say out there?Family time?What in the bloody hell does that even mean?
I was quiet when Sloan and I checked into our room. My dad fucked with my head properly, so I went for a quick run on the beach when Sloan hopped into the shower to get ready for dinner. I hoped it might clear my mind and help me not be a moody sod all evening.
When I return to the room, Sloan is out on the balcony, curled up in a bathrobe with her mobile in hand. She’s laughing happily and I see her daughter’s face illuminating the screen. It’s a private moment, so I pop into the loo and set about getting myself ready for dinner.
Twenty minutes later, I’m dressed in a pair of soft navy shorts and a white T-shirt. I see that Sloan is off the phone now and is leaning over the railing of the balcony, watching the sun set.
I inhale slowly as I get a full view of her body. Her creamy back is almost entirely exposed in a long, black and white striped beach dress. There’s a single horizontal strand of ribbon tied in a bow across her shoulder blades, holding the dress closed. Other than that, I can see every beauty mark on her flesh.
The outline of her legs shows through the fabric of her dress as it blows in the wind. Her chestnut hair is wavy over her shoulders. She’s any man’s fantasy come to life. If I wasn’t so desperate to touch her, I’d stay where I am and continue watching her like a creepy voyeur because the sight is spectacular.
I stride out onto the balcony and move past the small plunge pool to stand behind her. She turns her head when she feels my presence, but freezes when my fingertips trace along the line of her dress that rests above the swells of her arse.
“If your back looks this good, I can only imagine how the front looks,” I murmur into her ear, splaying my hand flat along the flesh of her lower back and snaking my fingers inside the dress. I squeeze her hip and pull her back against me. Her entire body shudders beneath my touch. “I have so many plans for you, Treacle.”
She peeks over her shoulder, her eyes gazing up at my face. “When are you going to be putting those plans into action?” Her lips remain parted, her breaths coming out quicker than normal. “That six-hour plane ride was freaking torture.”
I smile a wicked smile and pull my hand out from inside her dress. “Later. Vi will kill me if we’re late.”
I drop a kiss to her temple, then watch her deflate and shake her head with a cheeky smile. She turns to eye me up and down. “Well, I have to say, the casual vacation look really suits you.”
I quirk a brow. “I have a really great stylist I can put you in touch with.”
She giggles. “How was your run?”
