The Panther's Second Chance (Book 10 of the Regal Eclipse Pack Series)

Chapter 15

The water was soothing and Dominic stood there for several long moments, letting it pound against his aching shoulders. The pain would be gone shortly, but he'd gone pretty hard and hadn't really realized it. He'd been so focused on Natalia that he hadn't really paid attention to what he was doing.

He also realized he hadn't given any thought to her rejecting him over the last few hours either. He was settling into this and becoming comfortable. Well sort of.

He stepped out of the shower and dried off, then slipped on a pair of shorts and a T-shirt. He walked back out into the bedroom, and wasn't too surprised that Natalia was asleep.

She'd definitely made herself at home. She was laying on one side of his bed, but her face was buried in his pillow. He grabbed his book he'd been reading then walked around the bed and flipped off the lights. Then he settled down, flipping on the small bedside lamp. It didn't offer much light, but it was all he really needed.

He could feel her warmth and he turned his head to study her. She was beautiful and the woman he would wake up next to for the rest of his life. The thought didn't scare him the way it once had though. He was excited to get to know her, really get to know her.

Her eyes opened and she looked at him. "I can feel you looking at me."

He smiled. "I like looking at you."

She scooted closer and snuggled against him. "I like sleeping with you."

"It does make for better sleep," he agreed. He had slept well last night, despite his apprehension. Better than he had in recent memory.

She was asleep again, that quickly. Dom watched her for another few minutes, then realized he wasn't going to read. He rolled on his side, facing her and got comfortable, then he pulled her into his arms.

She snuggled up into his chest, and sighed softly. He smiled. He might just be able to get used to this.

***

Natalia woke a bit later and slowly opened her eyes. Dominic's scent was surrounding her, just like his arms, and she breathed him in deeply.

She assessed her own body. She was fully healed now, but her wolf, Nala, was still asleep. She was still tired. She hadn't been honest with Dominic earlier about how badly she'd been hurting. She'd felt the pain deep in her chest, and the bruises had ached. The hot shower had helped some, but she realized she'd been in worse shape than anyone else had realized.

'Probably would have killed us,' Nala had told her earlier.

That was a scary thought, and one she didn't want to share right now. She wasn't sure if Dom had realized that or not. She knew he was concerned, but he seemed to still be getting used to all of this.

He'd been more relaxed though. She'd noticed that the tension he'd had earlier was mostly gone. Right now, he was fully relaxed, and she knew he was asleep. She could hear his even breathing. They were still laying in the same position, him on his side facing her, his arms around her, holding her against him. She had her face buried in his neck, and her legs intertwined with his. She breathed him in deeply, taking in the scent she absolutely loved.

She yawned and knew she needed to sleep more. Nala sleeping made her tired. Hopefully all the bruising was gone. She supposed she'd find out when Dom wasn't holding her so tightly against him.
She snuggled into him again and closed her eyes, drifting back off to sleep.

***

She woke again a bit later. He was awake now, though he hadn't moved still. His arms were still wrapped around her, holding her against him.