Page 127 of Say My Name

“What did he do?” The question is low, freighted with a cold anger that is entirely on my behalf. It gives me the strength to finish.

“He reminded me how much of my career had his name attached to it.”

The anger on Dominic’s face is immediate and tightly controlled.

“He said if I exposed the relationship, he would tell people I used sex to get ahead. That every recommendation, every introduction, every opportunity had been something I earned in his bed instead of through my work. He knew the senior partners, the recruiters, the clients.” I swallow against the old humiliation. “He told me he could make certain no respectable firm trusted me again.”

Dominic leans forward, his forearms braced on his thighs. “And you believed him.”

“I was twenty-five, heartbroken, and looking at a résumé he had helped shape. Of course I believed him.”

“I’m sorry.”

The simplicity of it nearly breaks through my defenses.

“He taught me that you can’t show someone what really matters to you, because they’ll use it against you when they leave.”

“I’m your boss.”

My gaze snaps to his.

“I know why that matters—why it matters that I’m older, that I’m Cliff’s best friend, and that I have more power inside the company. You should consider every one of those things.”

“Dominic—”

“I won’t tell you to trust me because I’m different. He probably told you he was different too.”

“Your career belongs to you. Your position belongs to you. Every protection in our agreement remains in place whether you choose me or reject me.”

I wrap my arms around myself, a useless shield. “You can’t promise this won’t end.”

“No.” His eyes hold mine. “I can promise I won’t punish you if it does. I won’t use what you give me to make you smaller. And I won’t demand that you stop being afraid before I prove you’re safe with me.”

My heart slams against my ribs.

He shifts closer, leaving enough space between us that closing it would have to be my decision.

“I’m asking whether you’re willing to be afraid and choose me anyway.”

The answer is yes.

I know it immediately, and the certainty terrifies me. I want the dinners and the laughter and his hand around my ankle. I want him in my bed and my kitchen. I want every appointment and the child we are trying to create. I want the future I keep insisting we are not building.

Dominic waits for me to say it.

The word yes is right there, a single syllable that could change everything. Fear closes my throat around it. “I don’t know.”

Pain flickers across his face before he contains it.

He doesn’t withdraw his promises or make me pay for offering less. He only nods. “Okay.”

He reaches for the remote as though he intends to unmute the television and let me escape into someone else’s life. He is giving me what I asked for, even when I want him to refuse.

I move before he can pull away.

I slide across the couch and lean into him, resting my forehead against his shoulder. He holds himself rigid for half a breath before his arms close around me.

He doesn’t ask me to explain. He simply holds me.