Chosen (Partners in Crime Book 1)

Chapter 8

Dominic woke to the sound of a strangled scream. He bolted upright and ran to Chloe's room.

"Chloe!"

She was breathing heavily and sweat beaded her forehead. "Dominic."

He sat down next to where she slept. "Nightmares?"

She nodded.

"Don't worry. You're safe. Do you want me to hold your hand as you sleep?"

Without saying anything, she reached for his hand. He pulled up a stool and sat next to her, holding her hand.

She fell asleep again quickly, and he continued to hold her hand.

                                                                                        ~~~~~

At 8:00 in the morning, Chloe woke up. Dominic sat next to her, watching the sunrise. She still held his hand.

He turned when she sat up, "Morning."

"Good morning."

"Did the rest of the night go well?"

"Yes. Thanks for staying up."

He smiled, "My pleasure."

"If you'll excuse me, I'm going to get dressed."

He stood and walked out.

Fifteen minutes later, she emerged wearing a white shirt, honey yellow cardigan, and skinny jeans. Dominic had also changed his attire. His jaw dropped when she came into the kitchen. "If I'd known you could make yourself look any prettier..."

She blushed and waved it off. They ate bacon and eggs in silence. Dominic broke the silence, "I have to go into the office today. Cole is going to come and be your security for the day. My sister Grace might come by too."

"Okay. How long will you be at work?" She hoped it wasn't all day.

"Long enough that I can take you out for dinner."

Chloe smiled, "I would like that."

"I thought so." The doorbell rang. Then a light knock. "That's Grace. She always does that."

The thought that Dominic knew whose sibling was at the door by how they knocked was impressive. He opened the door and a beautiful woman walked in. She hugged Chloe. "Hi. I'm Grace. The youngest of the Wagner clan. But I'll have you know, I'm the toughest."

Chloe laughed as Dominic tickled Grace's ribs.

"Hey, I gotta go. Cole will be here in a minute. Bye you two. Don't get into too much trouble." He planted a quick kiss on Chloe's forehead.

When he left, Grace turned to her. "Whoa."

Chloe couldn't suppress her grin, "I know."

Grace laughed and Chloe giggled.

The doorbell rang and Grace answered it. "Killjoy." She muttered to Cole as he stepped inside.

He rolled his eyes, "What did I do this time?"

"Nothing." Chloe busied herself putting some papers together for work. "When can I head to my office?"

Cole raised a brow, "Not so fast. Are you sure you want to go?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I have a job you know."

Grace set a hand on her shoulder, "We are just trying to protect you."

"But I need to go to work." Chloe protested.

"We know. But we don't want to risk anything." Cole told her.

Chloe wished Dominic was there. He would side with her. Well, maybe. "Please. Just for an hour, so I can get some small things finished. Or just let me grab my laptop and some paperwork. I can work from home."

Cole thought for a moment, "Fine by me."

Happiness surged through Chloe. Grace's soft voice startled her, "But we have to be extra cautious. I mean it."

Chloe nodded. "I understand."

Twenty minutes later, they arrived at Chloe's office. Cole checked the perimeter, making sure all was okay. When he let her in, she jogged up the stairs to her office. She gathered a few things, shoved them in her backpack, and made her way down the stairs.

Spotting her coworker, Angela Nichols, she stopped to talk with her. "Hey Chloe. There's a handsome guy in the lobby waiting for you." Angela's smirk told all. Dominic.

"Okay, I'll go talk to him. Thanks Angela." Angela waved, then went inside her office.

Chloe knew that if Dominic was in the lobby, Cole and Grace wouldn't mind her talking to him. She made her way into the lobby to see a man with his back to her. Dominic was nowhere in sight.

The man who was supposed to be Dominic turned and smiled, "Hi Chloe."