His Games, Her Rules

I hate flying. Always have and always will.

I stare out the window at the cloud just to avoid Dominique’s burning gaze that’s fixed on me. We’re in Dominique’s private jet which is called “The Gray Bird” for some reason and we’ve been flying for ten minutes and yet it feels like it’s been ten hours.

The jet is a luxurious aircraft and even the interior screams class. The inside is a nude color and it compliments the exterior. I was awed the minute I climbed up the stairs and entered the jet. Then when I sat down, reality dawned on me. I was really on an aircraft traveling to Santa Monica with Dominique and I’m going to be his pretend girlfriend.

Fuck my life.

“Are you gonna be done any minute?” I ask as I turn away from the window to glare at Dominique who seems to be enjoying himself from the discomfort he’s causing me by continuously staring at me.

“With what?”

I scoff. “Don’t play smart. You know what I mean.”

Dominique smirks as he licks his bottom lip. “Care to tell me why you chose this dress?”

“Do you have a problem with it?”

“As a matter of fact, yes, I do. It’s a little distracting.” He says, softly.

I scoff and shake my head as I hold his gaze. Dominique shifts his gaze from my eyes and lets his eyes run over my body, a familiar glint clouding his vibrant blue eyes. He’s shameless.

I’m wearing a black strapless mid-thigh dress, with my hair cascading down my shoulders, paired with white heels with straps wrapped around my legs. It was a simple look and I decided to go for it.

“You were the one who said I shouldn’t pack a bag.”

“Yeah. I didn’t want to inconvenience you.”

I nod. “Right. So don’t complain about my dress.” I flash him a wicked smile as I cross my leg over the other leg. Dominique’s eyes follow my movement.

“How do you expect me to look away when you look this fucking good?” He asks, his voice low and sexy and deep.

Why does he have to speak to me like that? In a voice as sexy and seductive as his?

I’m already way above my head about my feelings toward him and then he goes ahead and talks to me in that voice, making me question my feelings and morals.

Fuck me.

I clear my throat, absentmindedly pulling down the hem of my dress as I glare at him. He smirks in return, staring into my brown eyes like they are the most fascinating pair he’s laid his eyes on.

“What’s our sleeping arrangements?” I change the subject.

Dominique smirks as he stares at me for a long minute before speaking. “Are you afraid something will transpire between us?”

“Don’t kid yourself. Isn’t that the whole point of this?” I point a finger at myself and then at him. “To get me in bed again?”

Dominique is quiet as he tilts his head to the side, his eyebrows elevated and his face void of any emotion. “Care to enlighten me?”

“You don’t need a pretend girlfriend to go to your sister’s wedding. You could actually go alone. And if you’re desperate enough for a date, you could always get anyone. You are Dominique Gray. A lot of women would kill to go on this trip with you. And if you ever run out of choices, you could get an escort. All of this is part of your little game to get inside my pants again.”

“The last time I checked you picked out the game and you failed. Did you do that on purpose? Because a part of you is enjoying this little game of ours and you wouldn’t like for it to come to an end.”

Oh, he’s an asshole.

“You’re a dick.”

He laughs, the deep sound vibrating through the walls of the aircraft. I should hate this man, instead, I find myself falling for his charms, getting pulled in. And that just sucks, doesn’t it? Wanting the one man I shouldn’t want. The one man who’s slowly pulling down my perfectly crafted walls and I’m letting him because even though I will always be in denial, I want him. Every part of him, and the idea of watching him walk away is terrifying and I don’t want that.

“Seriously, what’s the sleeping arrangements?”

“We’re sharing a bed.”

“No, we are not.”

“I think you’re forgetting we’ve fucked, Robyn. And if it helps, I’m not gonna touch you, not unless you beg me to.”

I smile. Slowly, I let out a quiet laugh as we locked eyes. “You are fucking kidding me.”

“I’m not.”

“Then keep dreaming. Because I’m sure as shit won’t be begging you to touch me. You’ll do that eventually if I give you a chance.” I flash him a smug smile and in return, he gives me a sly smirk.

He shrugs casually. “Sure.”

“And we’re not sharing a bed. You’re sleeping on the couch. You’re the one who brought me out here even though I hated flying.”

Dominique smiles and licks his bottom lip. “Whatever you want, Robyn.”

For the second time since we climbed on board, I let my eyes run over his body, taking details of everything. He looks handsome, sexy, even. He’s dressed in a black T-shirt that shows every outline of his defined body, paired with black jeans, black boots, and a dark gray jacket. The jacket is splayed across the seat next to his. His hair is a little messy from running his fingers through and over the strands repeatedly and his defined jawline is adorned by a few days’ stubble which only makes him more sexy, if that’s possible.

Even in a casual outfit, Dominique looks like a God. Made perfectly without any flaws, that’s if you don’t count his shitty attitude.

A hostess stops by my seat as she sets a glass of cocktail with ice and lemon on the side on top of the little table in front of me. I had asked her for a drink a few minutes ago. With a curt nod at her, she gives me a polite smile and leaves.

“Are you and Camilla close?” I ask, grabbing the glass of cocktail and bringing the slice of lemon to my lips.

“We are. Do you have any siblings?” Dominique asks, shifting his gaze to my lips.

As I suck the juice from the lemon, I consider lying, but Dominique will only find out later. This man can see through me. Or he’s probably googling things about me, not that he’s going to find anything. I erased everything from my past that would pose a threat to my new life.

“I do. A twin sister. And before you ask, we don’t look alike.”

Dominique smiles and nods. Have I mentioned he’s really sexy when he smiles? That kind of smile that will leave your heart pounding and without you knowing you’re willing to do anything, anything at all to please this man.

“I assume you hate flying.”

“Wow, of course you’d noticed,” I say sarcastically. “Yes, I do.”

“Then, let’s play a game to ease you up a little.”

“What game?”

“Twenty questions.”

I smile. “Let me guess. This was part of your skills when you were trying to hit on a new girl back in college?”

“You’ll be surprised I wasn’t very social in college.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“It is true. I was a star basketball player and that brought in the women. All of them wanted a piece of me.”

“And you had a piece of them?”

“You could say that. I didn’t like parties that much or getting drunk. My teammates always called me old fashioned even though I was always with a new chick every Friday.”

“Huh. Always has been a bad boy.”

Dominique shrugs casually.

“You know you don’t look like a guy who doesn’t like parties, right? You look like a guy who’s always storming every party every weekend with a new girl in his arms. He’s friends with everybody and everyone likes him.”

“I don’t think people liked me in college. The thing with being popular is that it brings enemies and problems. Especially when you didn’t care about fucking their girlfriends or sisters. I didn’t have friends, just people I hung out with and I shut them out of my personal life. Oliver was the only friend I had and that was because we’ve been friends since we were kids and we were in the same basketball team.”Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

“Damn. If we’d gone to the same university and I had known you, I wouldn’t have looked at you twice.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. You are the type of guy I wouldn’t have fucked or dated.”

Dominique laughs as he rubs his knuckles on his five O’clock shadow. Damn, he always looks sexy with a stubble.

“I may have chased you like I’m chasing you now. And you may have fallen for my charms.”

“Always so cocky, huh?”

“Like I will always say, it’s called confidence,” Dominique smirks as he says.

“Alright. Twenty Questions. Who asks and who answers?”

“We’ll take rounds. You’ll ask, I’ll answer. And then I’ll ask, you’ll answer. Honest answers only.”

“Great. You go first.” I say, dropping the sucked lemon slice on the coaster as I take small sips from my drink through the little straw.

“Give me a short bio about you.”

Boy, isn’t this man a mystery? Dominique Gray looks like a man who wouldn’t care about a woman’s biography. He looks like a guy who would fuck you, not really caring about knowing your name because he’s never going to see you again.

So why does he want to know me? And I feel like he’s not asking me questions about the other side of me that I show the world. He wants to know the real Robyn and that’s the one truth I’m not willing to tell anybody.

“Okay,” I set my drink down on the table in front of me. “I went to high school in the UK and then I went to Stanford University where I graduated with a business degree. I went to nursing school, graduated with a nursing degree because I wanted to do something that I really loved. I am a romantic, just not looking for a relationship right now. I hate romance movies, I prefer horror and comedy. Sometimes I watch bad movies with Monique just so we could shit talk the producer, director, and even the actors.” I exhale. “You said short. That’s it.”

Dominique is quiet for a second as he nods, flashing me a small smile. “Okay. My turn then. Ask away.”

“Do you believe in love? If yes, have you ever pictured yourself in a romantic relationship?”

“That’s a tough question.”

“Well, I need an honest answer.”

Dominique lets out a quiet laugh as he licks his bottom lip. He’s stalling. “I don’t believe in love. Growing up, my parents’ marriage was shit. And then I see people who claimed to be in love get married and then they divorced and start hating each other for no fucking reason. I always wonder, what’s the point? I mean if they claim to be in love, why did they fall out of love? I don’t trust people easily, I can be emotionally guarded and skeptical when it comes to love. And about picturing myself in a romantic relationship, no, I haven’t. But if it helps, I’d be willing to give a romantic relationship a shot with the right person and even commit. I’d worship her body, I’d tell her how beautiful she is every fucking morning, and then I’d show her I’d be willing to give her whatever she wants and treat her like the queen she is.”

“Wow. That’s a lot.” I say, letting this new information sink in. I wanted to ask about his parents’ marriage, but that would be crossing a line. I’m not willing to talk about my past or my family, so why should I inquire about his? I should be lucky he opened up a little about himself.

“You asked.”

I chuckle. “I did.”

There’s a shift in the atmosphere as we both stare at each other. There’s an unfamiliar pull at the pit of my stomach as I stare into Dominique’s eyes. His eyes hold an unfamiliar glint I don’t recognize as it quickly disappears.

I clear my throat, “My turn then.”

“Yeah. How many countries have you visited? And tell me the names of these countries.”

His question sounds like a normal question. If I were normal, if I wasn’t living a lie, then I wouldn’t find this question threatening. I know what he’s doing. He’s interrogating me, trying to push past my resolve to know who I truly am, and the look in his eyes confirms it.

“Three.” I lie. I’ve visited at least thirty countries but he doesn’t have to know that.

Dominique is quiet as he stares at me. His gaze scrutinized me.

“Okay.” he doesn’t believe me.

“Italy, Spain, and China.”

“How were you able to afford all these trips with a nursing salary?”

“The last time I checked, this isn’t how this game was played. Stop interrogating me, Dominique.”

“I’m not interrogating you, I just want to know you better.”

“Why?”

“Why? You don’t think we should know each other?”

“Why do you care?”

“You already know how I feel about you, Robyn. I think it’s fair if I know you. Especially since we’re gonna be sharing a room.”

“I don’t think that’s how people know each other. Stop interrogating me or I’m taking the next flight back to New York City.” I glare at him, pick up my half-drunk drink, stand up, and walk away, not really knowing where I’m going because I’m too frustrated and annoyed to care.