Past Unbound (House of Doms Series) Read Free Page A

remembered that Darius had always been huskily tall, but now he’d developed into pure brawn.  He still towered over her at six-three, yet was now a good two hundred fifty pounds of solid muscle.  He took her breath away.  God he was gorgeous.  His sun-kissed flesh matched his gray eyes and dark hair.  Hair that looked like living silk that he’d let grow to his shoulders.  The button up shirt and slacks he wore fit him perfectly, like they were made for him.  He looked like walking sex.  The years had been nothing but good to him.  She could see that Kim had already fallen under his spell from her spot behind the counter.
    Turning away from the imposing sight of him and the memories he brought to the forefront of her mind, she went back to kneading the dough for her pies.  Six years ago, he’d left her.  She’d given him her heart and he’d broken it into pieces.  In all th at time, she still hadn’t put the pieces of herself back together.  He’d told her he’d loved her.  That he’d never hurt her.  He’d lied on both accounts.
    “I think your dough is ruined.”
    Startled by his deep baritone voice, she jerked her hands and the dough between them.  “Shit!”  So lost in her thoughts, she hadn’t heard him come into the kitchen.  The ball was ruined for what she needed to do.  Tossing it to the side, she wiped her hands on her apron before turning to him.  “Darius.  I heard you were in town,” she said with a lazy shrug as if she didn’t care.  But she did.  Just his nearness was making her heart beat erratically. 
    She watched as he stood with his hands fisted tightly at his sides as if willing himself to keep them there.  “I got in a few days ago.” 
    Her body came to life at just the sound of his voice and damn she didn’t need that.  She nodded her head.  “I heard about your dad.  How is he doing?”  She had heard through the grapevine that Davis McKade had suffered a heart attack, was resting at home.
    “Lia, I didn’t come here to talk about my father.”
    “Then what did you come to talk about?”  Her mind started racing, it felt as though she couldn’t breathe as they stood alone.  His presence after all this time was a shock to her system.  She didn’t know how or what she should be feeling with him standing right in front of her.
    “Precious…”
    Her anger rose as he dared to call her that.  “Don’t call me that!  You don’t have that right any longer!”  She all but spat the words at him.  Sometimes she could still hear him whispering it in her ear as he made love to her.  His deep sigh brought her head back up to meet those beautiful gray eyes.
    “Lia, I came to see you.  Talk to you.”
    “About what, Darius?  I’ve got pies to make, so please get to it.”  Her tone was beyond bitchy , and she really didn’t care.  The kitchen of her bakery was just as small as the lounge and with him standing so close plus the two ovens on, the room started to feel even smaller…all the more hotter.  Even with the late summer breeze blowing through the open windows of the kitchen , she began to sweat.  The t-shirt she wore under her apron began to stick to her body.
    She looked like a hot mess, and he looked so calm it made her anger rise even further.  How dare he be calm and collected when she was dying inside.  The remembered pain and loss of the way he left almost brought her to her knees.  She didn’t want to face those memories.  Lia thought she had put it all behind her.  Well you haven’t , she told herself .   Turning away from him and grabbing another ball of dough, she began kneading as she waited for him to speak.
    **** *
    She was more beautiful than he remembered; a vision that had never left him.  He wanted to reach out and touch her, wrap her in his arms and hold tight.  Those dark brown eyes that always took his breath away were filled with pain and anger.  How could he tell her all the things he needed to say?