Dominated

Chapter 33

The house was still with no one in sight when Wes awoke in the early hours of the morning. The only sounds he could hear were the ocean waves and the whistling of the wind. He walked into the kitchen and shivered. It was cold, and he assumed the open patio door was responsible for letting the morning breeze through.

When he went to close it, he noticed Amelia sitting outside in a lawn chair with her nose buried in a book. She was wearing a floral print sundress and a pair of sandals. She didn't seem at all fazed by the cold, but Wes retreated into the living room anyway to grab the throw blanket off the couch and brought it back to the patio.

He opened the screen door and stepped outside. Without saying anything, he draped the blanket over Amelia's legs and sat in the chair adjacent to her. She gazed up at him with a gracious smile and set her book down on the end table beside her.

"You're up early," she commented.

"I couldn't sleep," he told her. "How long have you been up?"

"An hour maybe," she replied. She pulled the blanket over her arms, covering herself with it. "Is there a reason why you couldn't sleep?"

He shrugged. "There are a lot of reasons."

"How about sharing the most pressing reason?"

"I'm not sure you'll want to hear it."

He leaned back in his chair and shamelessly moved his eyes over her. Although she was covered by the blanket, he still had the image of her in her sundress stored in the back of his mind.

Amelia cleared her throat, forcing him to meet her gaze. "Tell me, Wes."

Her soft and alluring voice compelled him to answer.

"Brooke accused me of seeing someone else," he said. "I'd never cheat, but I feel like I have."

She raised a brow. "How so?"

"There is someone I've loved for a long time — I might even say all my life," he confessed. He dragged his hand over his mouth and sighed in relief. Saying those words out loud had lifted a heavy burden. "If she tells me that I still have a chance, I'd call this wedding off to be with her."

She didn't appear amused. Instead, she stared back at him with a blank expression. When she opened her mouth to respond, Calvin's voice cut through the air, interrupting her.

"You should have called when you landed," he said from the kitchen. "I would have come to get you from the airport."

"It was way too early in the morning. I wouldn't feel right about waking anyone up at that time."

Amelia's eyes moved to the door upon recognizing the other voice. Without excusing herself, she abandoned the blanket on her chair and entered the house.

Calvin was standing behind the kitchen island pouring coffee into the mug while Freddie stood on the opposite side. Upon noticing Amelia in the doorway, Freddie locked eyes with her and smiled.

"Hey, Lia," he said, opening his arms to her.

She accepted the gesture as an invitation to charge toward him. His feet remained firmly planted on the floor even when she threw her arms around his middle and practically shoved him against the island in her attempt to embrace him. He secured his arms around her and lightly chuckled, impressed by her strength.

"I've missed you like crazy," he told her.

"I bet you did," Damien said from the archway between the hallway and the kitchen.

Amelia searched for him over Freddie's shoulder. When she saw him leaning against the trim with a scowl on his face, she forcibly parted from Freddie and shuffled toward Damien. When she reached him, he immediately pulled her in and planted a kiss on the top of her head.