Dominance Never Dies (Masters and Mercenaries Book 11) by Lexi Blake Page B

darlin’. I really am.”
    She gave him a wan smile. “You know what it means to miss someone. I’m sorry about everything, Case. I thought I was doing the right thing. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
    He moved in, taking the opportunity she was giving him. They should have done this a long time ago. “And I’m sorry I made you think I didn’t want you. I did. Walking away from you every night was hard as hell. I still want you, Mia.”
    She looked up at him. “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
    “Tell me why you looked for Theo.” He should be asking her how she’d found Theo. He knew that, but he couldn’t do it. They would be together for days. He could find that out later. Right now, he needed to find out if she wanted him, too.
    “You know why.”
    He did. It was the same reason he hadn’t played with a single sub since the day he’d met her. No play. No sex. No anything because no one was Mia and it seemed like she was the only woman in the damn world who could do it for him. “Because we have chemistry. Because nothing ever felt like kissing me. No sex. No intimacy. None of it ever worked the way it did with me.”
    “God, you’re an arrogant man.”
    He wasn’t. It was all a front. “I’m not being arrogant. I know how you feel because I felt it, too. Why the hell do you think I lied about having a girlfriend? I haven’t touched anyone since the day I met you.”
    Her eyes flared, her mouth dropping a bit. It was good to know he could shock her. “What are you trying to say, Case?”
    He finally did what came naturally. He touched her, sliding his palm up her neck to cup her cheek. That was what he’d been missing. Connection. Warmth. “I think we’re going to be together for a few days. I’m tired of not knowing.”
    He wanted to know what it felt like to cover her body with his, to have her spread and waiting and offering herself to him. To know how it felt to slide inside all that warmth. To be surrounded with her.
    It wouldn’t last. It would only be for a few days, but for those days he would know what it meant to take care of her.
    She frowned, but he felt her lean into his hand as though she needed the contact, too. “I don’t know.”
    “You don’t want to know what a real D/s connection is like?” He was going to hit her where he suspected she was weakest. She hadn’t gotten to play. She’d taken the class, gotten a tiny taste, and she would need a full meal.
    God knew he did. He could make a fucking buffet of her.
    “It would only be for play, Case.”
    His dick jumped in his jeans. “Only for play and out in the field.” That gorgeous mouth started to open and he was sure she was about to spew some serious bile his way. He put a finger over her lips. “No. This is where we went wrong in the first place. We should have sat down and banged out a contract. We should have taken this seriously.”
    Now that he thought about it, did it only have to be a few days? Why? If they were upfront about what they needed, there was no reason the contract couldn’t be open ended. Why put an end date on it? She would be back in Austin. He would be working in Dallas. They could get together for sex and play. He would know the boundaries. She would know what he was willing to give her.
    It might actually work.
    His blood started to thrum through his system. He could have her. He could play with her.
    “I’m not incompetent, Case.” Her face tilted up, her body moving closer to his. Her words might be defiant, but her body wasn’t. She was softening, her lips opening slightly. “I can handle myself. I know how to use a gun.”
    An armed Mia was kind of one of his worst nightmares. He let his free hand stray down to her waist, enjoying the feel of her curves. “You’re a reporter, not a soldier. I’ve agreed to stand back and let you work. I’ve agreed to let you bring along Fain. Give me something here. I’m in charge of this operation.”
    She sighed, a sexy sound. “I