Ava didn’t need to be told twice. With as much dignity as she could muster, she quickly rose and exited the judge’s chambers. The last thing she’d wanted was for Maia to be pulled into any of this. What was she supposed to tell her daughter? Her body trembled with rage. She jabbed at the first-floor elevator button. He was going to pay for involving her daughter into his family drama.

Finally the elevator dinged and the door opened. Ava stepped inside and pressed the button to close the doors. She leaned back against the wall as the door closed. Just as they were almost shut, an arm stopped them. The doors opened and in stepped Dominic, his intense green-eyed glare firmly locked on her.

Chapter Twenty

The doors closed behind Dominic and Ava’s anger boiled over. “You bastard.”

“Ava, it’s not what you think.” Dominic turned and pressed the emergency button, bringing the elevator to a halt.

“What are you doing?”

“Whatever I need to, to get you to listen to me.”

“I’m never listening to another lying word that comes out of your mouth.”

A smile touched the corners of his mouth. With an unhurried pace he advanced towards her.

“You better stay where you are and get this elevator started again.”

“I’m not going to do that, Ava. Not until you hear me out.” Dominic stood in front of her.

She brought her knee up and tried to strike him in the crotch. He easily sidestepped her attempt. Dominic grabbed her arms and slammed her against the wall of the elevator, pressing his body into hers.

“Let me go,” she ordered.

“No. Ava, I didn’t do this to hurt you.”

“This is about his money. You’re no different from anybody else.”

“You’re wrong. I am different. The only reason I kept going with this suit is because you keep shutting me out.”

Ava’s eyes stretched. “Shutting you out? We had sex and now you’re pursuing me like we had some grand love affair. Leave me alone.”

“I can’t do that. Besides you don’t really want me to.”

“I mean it, Dominic. You’ve involved my daughter. You’ve gone too far.”

“No, Ava. I haven’t gone far enough.”

His lips crashed down on hers. She tried to turn her head but Dominic wasn’t having it. She couldn’t escape his kiss. His lips were hungry. No, Ava. No. You have to fight it. Her conscience was right but she couldn’t listen to it. Not now. Not when he was kissing her so passionately. Not when his body was pressed against hers, the evidence of his rampant arousal undeniable.

“I hate you,” she whispered against his lips.

Dominic chuckled. He shifted so that both of her hands were captured in one of his against the elevator wall. As she kissed him back, his free hand cupped her breast through the silkiness of her dress. Ava moaned against his mouth as he toyed with her nipple, pinching it. A fire was raging in her belly. It was a fire that could only be put out one way and she hated herself for it. She wrenched her lips away from his.

“I hate you. Why are you doing this?”

“Didn’t I tell you that I wanted you? That I mean to have you?”

She swallowed hard. “Yes.”

“You can allow me into your life, Ava, or I will bulldoze my way in. Either way I’m not going away.”

And then his lips were on hers again. Consuming her. Taking everything she had to give. She grew wet and eager for him. Her body rubbed against his. Her passion burned brighter as he lifted the hem of her dress up to her waist. His hand found the silk of her thong and rubbed her mound through the material. She panted against his mouth.

Dominic’s fingers rubbed her through the material, before she grew impatient and bit his lip. He leaned back from her.

“Do it and stop teasing me.”

“Impatient?” His eyes grew dark and with a swift jerk, he tore her panties from her body.

She was bared to his hot gaze. Ava couldn’t help the eagerness that spread through her body as he looked down at her spread thighs. He licked his lips and then he was dropping to his knees. He attacked her with an eager tongue. She cried out as his tongue moved aggressively inside of her, just the way she liked. Why did she fall apart every time he did this to her? Why couldn’t she resist him?

Ava nearly lost her balance as he hoisted one of her legs over his shoulders, pressing her even more firmly against him. His tongue danced along her outer lips licking her sweetly, while she thrashed against him. When his lips closed around her sensitive bud again, she couldn’t take it anymore. Her world exploded and the force of the orgasm nearly sent her to her knees.

As Dominic rose to stand over her, he laughed.

“I hate you. Please leave me alone,” she panted.

“No. Not yet.”

She watched him as he quickly undid the button and zipper on his pants. As soon as they were past his waist, he was lifting her against the wall and sheathing himself inside her. She felt so full.

“No,” she protested. But it was halfheartedly.

Dominic held her, his eyes closed. His jaw was tight, as if he were clinching his teeth together. She could feel him throbbing inside her.

“So good. Just like last time,” he said.

His eyes opened and then he was lifting and lowering her onto him as he pumped into her. There was nothing about this that indicated lovemaking. They were in an elevator that could be accessed at any minute by a concerned technician. Dominic had no time to be gentle. This was all about sex and nothing else. And Ava didn’t mind one bit. Her hands dug into his shoulders, hanging on for dear life as he worked her body harder and faster than he ever had before.

With every stroke of his body inside hers, her passion rose higher and higher. She could feel the crescendo of her passion coming closer and closer. She tightened her legs around him and squeezed her inner muscles and then they both were falling off the edge. His hands dug into her sides as he cried out his own pleasure. She buried her face in his neck as her body shook from the force of her orgasm.

“Ava,” he whispered.

She shook her head. “Don’t say anything.”

“I want this, Ava. I want this all the time.”

She looked at him and pushed his hands away. She slid to her feet and pulled her dress down. Ava tried to ignore the wetness that coated the inside of her thighs. On unsteady feet she walked to the control panel and started the elevator again. When she turned around, Dominic had righted his attire.

“Satisfied? You had sex with me. I guess you’ve covered all of your bases.”

“That wasn’t what this was about.”

“Dominic, stop. Call a spade a spade.”

“I told you. This, the court suit, what we just did was all about getting your attention. I’m not going to let you shut me out.”

“So what are you saying? I invite you into my bed and you drop the suit?”

“No. You give me a chance and I let this go.”

“That’s blackmail. Either I give myself to you or you try to take my daughter’s inheritance. That’s low, Dominic. Real low.”

The elevator doors opened and Ava strode out without turning back. Her heels clicked against the marble floor as she marched through the lobby leading to the front doors of the courthouse.

“Ava, wait,” Dominic called after her.

She ignored him. Tears sprang in her eyes but she blinked them away. What had she been thinking? She was in heat every time she was around him. This had to stop. He was after her daughter’s inheritance and he was using her to do it. Ava threw open the doors and raced down the stone steps that lead to the street.

“Ava, please.”

She whirled around. “Leave me alone. Do you hear me?”

People were looking at them, but she didn’t care. She’d had enough of being used by Dominic. Meaningless sex she could handle, but not when it was crouched in terms of love and happily ever afters. She still had secret longings and he was messing with every one of them. Turning away, she continued marching down the steps. As she reached the bottom stair, a car slowly rolled by. Black. A black sedan.