Page 88 of Full Throttle

Juliette looked at Dominic as if he’d asked if bananas were yellow. “Of course I am.”

She seemed baffled by the idea that Baz would be anything but family. A lump rose in Dominic’s throat. How rare, to love so easily. Juliette tied the bandage off, running her thumb over his knuckles.

Her touch was surprisingly soft. “You’re still not going to tell me why you punched a wall?”

Dominic grimaced. “You really saw that?”

“In agonizing detail.”

Dominic exhaled. “I’m not proud of my behavior. I don’t normally lose it like that.”

“Did Sinclair say something?” Her voice was careful. “About being dropped from your father’s team?”

“Yes.” Dominic’s jaw tightened. “But it was also about my mother. And also about…”

Also about you, he’d been about to say, which was a terrible idea. Juliette’s strawberry shampoo tickled his nose.

“About what?”

Dominic met her gaze. “I’m sure you can guess.”

Surprise flitted across Juliette’s face, followed by something like wariness. “You don’t need to defend me. I can fight my own battles.”

“I know that, but I also…” He could hear the helplessness in his own voice. “I can’t help it. Not when it comes to you.”

Juliette’s lips parted. She searched his expression, and Dominic’s heartbeat tripled. He’d said too much, hadn’t he? He opened his mouth, but then Juliette raised his hand and pressed a gentle kiss to the delicate skin of his wrist.

Shivers exploded down his spine. Her mouth ghosted up his arm, marking a trail to his shoulder, and Dominic half closed his eyes. His pulse was racing so fast that he was certain that she could hear it.

“What are you doing?”

“Checking for injuries,” Juliette murmured.

She pushed the collar of his shirt aside, her teeth grazing his collarbone, and Dominic clenched his jaw. “Marchmont…”

Her mouth found the shell of his ear. “It’s important to be thorough.”

Dominic gripped the counter. “We said we wouldn’t do this again.” He clung to that certainty, throwing it up like a shield. “Don’t test my self-control. Not tonight. Not when you’re dressed like this.”

He pulled on the hem of her shirt to demonstrate, which had the unfortunate effect of bringing her closer. Juliette looked at where his hand fisted the material, and something in her expression shifted.

“What if I want to?” Juliette murmured.

Her voice was low and sultry. He’d heard that voice before, Dominic thought darkly, when he was wringing little noises from her, and the thought sent a pulse of blood straight to his core. He bit back a groan.

“You don’t mean that.”

Juliette searched his gaze. “Don’t I?”

Chapter 28

Then…

Their visits became more frequent. Dominic sought her out between classes, and they stumbled into supply closets or abandoned classrooms, their hands roaming and greedy. In the evenings, Juliette snuck into his lodgings in the north tower; they ordered Chinese food and played endless rounds of Trivial Pursuit, although they rarely made it past the spring rolls before she was on his lap.

They never slept together. Oh, she was tempted—good lord, was she ever—but it was the one thing she was firm on. “Not while I’m a student at the academy,” she told him. “I’ve worked too hard for people to think I’ve slept my way to the top.”

Dominic nodded. “If I have to wait another week, or a month, or a year—”