“So, is laser tag a normal date for you?” Domi asked as they walked out of the building. Mitch steered her down the sidewalk. The restaurant he’d chosen was on the other side of the shopping complex.
“Wouldn’t know.” Mitch shrugged. “I haven’t been on a date since high school. I did laser tag and paintball fairly regularly then, but it was always with a group of friends, so I don’t know that you could call it a date, even if my girlfriend was there.”
When Domi came to a halt, Mitch had to as well or risk knocking her over. She stared up at him in surprise. “You haven’t been on a date since high school?”
“Nope.” A bit of anxiety welled up at the reminder. Hmmm, he hadn’t felt anxious while they were running around the laser tag arena. Shaking her head, Domi started walking again, and Mitch’s stomach twisted in anxious worry. What must she think of him right now? Shit. He needed to give her some kind of explanation. “My parents had a really nasty divorce my freshman year of high school.”
She turned her head to look at him, her expression a little softer.
“That convinced you that you should never have a relationship?” There was a dubious quality to the question as though she didn’t understand why that would be enough.
“Sort of. It wasn’t the divorce so much. Hell, by the time they separated, I was relieved. I think they stayed together for too long, thinking they were doing it for my sake, but it was awful living with them while they were fighting all the time. Then they divorced, and I thought it would be better… but it wasn’t.” He shook his head, trying to shake off some of the dark emotions creeping in at the memories. “They couldn’t stay away from each other, even after the divorce was final, and not because of me.”
“What do you mean?” she asked when he paused, bewildered. Yeah, it didn’t make sense to him either.
“Mom always says just because they can’t be together doesn’t mean they don’t love each other. I came home freshman year of college to find them going at it on the kitchen counter.” Mitch winced exaggeratedly, and Domi laughed. “They were always doing that. I could always tell when they were seeing each other on the sly and when they fell apart again.”
Domi’s arm wrapped around his middle, squeezing him in a half hug. She pressed the side of her head against his chest, warming him against some of the cold beginning to creep in.
“I’m sorry,” she said softly. “I can’t imagine how hard that must have been.”
“It sucked. Gave me a pretty skewed view of love. Went to college, and… well, I didn’t want to try. Didn’t meet anyone who made me want to try.” Winking down at her, he tightened his arm to give her a little squeeze back. “Now, I look at everyone at Stronghold now and start thinking… maybe BDSM helps make a difference.”
“There do seem to be an awful lot of happy couples, doesn’t there?” Domi mused. She grinned when Mitch turned to the left, putting Pasta Plus directly in front of them. Despite its cheesy name, it was damn good Italian and one of his favorite restaurants. “Please tell me we’re going to Pasta Plus.”
“Well, now that you’ve expressed your wish, how can I possibly say no?” Mitch teased. “But yes. It’s my favorite restaurant.”
“One of mine, too. Ana chose to come here for her birthday the past two years. We both love their rose sauce.”
“Then that’s another thing we have in common.” Mitch grinned, his heart lifting. See, nothing to worry about. This was working out really well already. Dating wasn’t so hard.
Domi
As first dates went, Domi couldn’t remember when she’d had a better one. Granted, she hadn’t had any in recent memory, but she hadn’t been as closed off as Mitch before she had Ana. She’d had some first dates.
There weren’t any awkward silences through dinner—only delicious ones after their food came. She stole some of the ravioli in rose sauce from his plate, and he returned the favor, going after her baked ziti in rose sauce. They were both starving from all the running around. It was light, easy conversation, a little banter about who had chosen the better meal, some teasing about the laser tag. Domi didn’t bring up his parents, though she did tell him a little about hers and more about how she co-parented with Marcus and Julia. In return, Mitch told her some of his funnier ER stories.
Kind of funny how they’d ended up together. Domi wouldn’t call herself commitment-phobic, just apprehensive about dating, and Mitch clearly felt the same way. From what he said about his parents, she got that. It sounded as if he’d been given a pretty skewed view of what marriage looked like, whereas she’d always had her parents’ loving example.
The fact he’d decided to take a chance on her…
No pressure, right?
When they pulled up to her house, Domi had no doubt Rae was peeking out the front window, waiting inside for an update. She pressed her lips together, amused. Rae was going to have to wait a bit longer.
Mitch walked her to the door, his hand wrapped around hers. His blue eyes twinkled before he leaned down to kiss her. Lips pressed against each other, parted, opened. She leaned into the kiss, her body rousing in anticipation. Playing laser tag hadn’t been particularly erotic, neither had dinner, but knowing how much fun they could have together? Yeah.
Her lips curved as he began to straighten. Hands pressed against his chest, she curved her fingers slightly, hooking them into his shirt.
“Do you want to come in?” she asked sultrily, teasingly, knowing he would say yes.
“Not tonight.” He pressed his lips against hers, a quick kiss as she stared up at him with shock.
“Not tonight?”
“Now, Domi, you can’t expect me to put out on the first date. I’m not that
