Free Secrets After Dark by Sadie Matthews

it seems like it’s been a long time, but I’ve been very busy. Dubrovski has a lot going on and I’m deeply involved in it. I’ve been travelling non-stop. Time has moved very fast, probably faster than it has for you. And besides, I wanted to be sure that I was ready to come back to you. I’ve had a lot to think about, you know.’
    I nuzzle into him, finding comfort in the heat of his body and the touch of his skin on mine. I want to believe that he’s just been too busy to be in touch with me, even if, somewhere deep inside me, a voice is telling me that he could have reached me if he’d wanted to. So why didn’t he? I ignore it. I don’t want to hear it. ‘And are you ready now?’ I ask in a soft voice.
    ‘I don’t have a choice,’ he replies huskily, his arms around me. ‘The reality of you is so overwhelming, I can never walk away again.’
    I breathe out long and slowly, holding on to him tightly. ‘So what happens now? Are you coming back to London?’
    There is a long pause and I listen to Dominic’s soft breathing. At last he says, ‘I don’t know. Not quite yet. Perhaps soon.’
    ‘What is it you’re doing for Dubrovski?’
    ‘Deals. In commodities. There’s a very big one on the horizon that’s going to make a large amount of money – we’re talking billions. Everything is focused on it.’
    I frown into the darkness. ‘So why he is so interested in a painting, with all of this going on?’
    ‘I have no idea,’ Dominic says slowly. ‘Listen, Beth, I will be returning to London eventually. Can you wait a little longer?’
    ‘Of course. It’s the not knowing that was killing me. I can wait as long as it takes. And now we’re in touch, we can work out ways to meet again.’
    ‘Of course we can.’ He places a gentle kiss on my cheek, then yawns. ‘God, I’m tired.’
    ‘Go to sleep.’ I hug him. ‘We have to be up in a couple of hours.’
    ‘Brother Giovanni will be here any minute,’ he says, his voice drowsy. ‘I’ll stay awake till then.’ But within a few moments, I can tell from his breathing that he has fallen asleep. I’m filled with a rush of tenderness for him: my beautiful Dominic, sleeping in my arms. This is real joy, lying with him, our bodies pressed close, our arms intertwined, breathing together, both satisfied.
    I run my hand over his arm. He shifts in his sleep, turning on to his side. I smooth my hand over his back. Then I feel it again, for certain this time. On his back are raised marks, like the welts I remember there after he made me whip him in punishment for his loss of control. I move my fingertips over them. Yes, there’s no mistake. A pattern of weals, almost healed, criss crosses his back.
    I am holding my breath, my eyes are wide in the darkness.
    How can Dominic have flogging marks on his back? Only if someone has whipped him recently. Oh my God. But who? And... why? His instincts are dominant, not submissive... or at least, they used to be.
    A cold chill is prickling over me. What can it mean?
    There is a knock on the cell door and a low voice murmurs, ‘Are you awake? You must come with me now.’
    I’m frozen, thoughts and suggestions whirling through my mind. The knock comes again. ‘I’m coming,’ I say out loud, and begin to slide away from Dominic. He stays deeply asleep, breathing softly in the darkness
    It’s no use. I have to go. I have no choice.
    I begin to pull on my nightdress so that I can return to my room alone.

Chapter Six
     
    Mark flings the newspaper onto his desk with an expression of annoyance. ‘Precisely what I didn’t want!’ he growls.
    I lean forward to look. There is a picture of the newly discovered Fra Angelico under the headline ‘Lost Masterpiece Found in Croatian Monastery’. I scan the article quickly and see Mark’s name. He is cited as the expert who verified the authenticity of the work while another expert from Christie’s expresses delight at a possible find but also reservations until