Raelyn didn't know what to expect Monday morning, but when Dominic waltzed into their apartment, she stared. Her hair was still in a towel. Sam flitted about the apartment, but didn't seem fazed.

Sam saw Raelyn's look. "Not happy to see your bae?"

Raelyn shook her head and swallowed her Cheerios. "How did you get in?"

"With the key you gave me?" Dominic slid behind her and dipped down toward her neck.

"Not now!" Raelyn squeaked. Sam raised an eyebrow.

Dominic planted a soft kiss on her neck, lingering for a few second. "Relax." Raelyn's face turned bright red at the PDA and the fact that she thoroughly enjoyed it.

"Okay, I am leaving," Sam said, waving her hand.

"Wait, Sam!" The door slammed, leaving Dominic and Raelyn alone.

Raelyn turned to Dominic in panic. "Not yet. Let me...I don't know. Do you really have to do it?"

"The feeding?" Dominic cocked his head, smirking. He leaned in closer, mouth hovering as he hummed over her neck.

Raelyn stiffened. "Yeah."

"I already did it."

"With someone else?" A sharp jealousy filled her, although she had no reason why.

"With you. When I came in."

"What?"

"I'm told it only feels like a kiss." He tilted his head again. "I can do it again to demonstrate."

Raelyn held him at arm's length. "No, thanks. You got what you needed?"

He smiled and nodded.

"Thank goodness," she muttered. "Let me finish getting ready."

After she had dried her hair and changed into her work clothes, the two of them—plus Dane—headed out the door. To her surprise, a vehicle waited out front, with Iggy sat in the driver's seat. Dominic helped her in.

She glanced down at her new watch. "I'm going to be early."

Dominic hummed. "A good or bad thing?"

Raelyn glanced at him. "Very good. Less of a chance that I'll get scolded."

Dominic looked at her carefully. "Scolded? Who is scolding you?"

"No one, if I'm early." She saw that his eyes had darkened. "Relax." She set a hand on his, brushing away the slight awkwardness of the gesture. "Jeez. I thought you were supposed to be keeping me calm."

He chuckled at that and interlaced his fingers with hers. She bit her lip before she could protest. The rest of the way, they rode in silence.

When they arrived at the front door, Raelyn reached for the door. Dominic jumped up and blocked her with his body. He pulled the seatbelt back over her and locked it.

"Dominic, this is—"

He jumped out of the car and then hurried around the car, opening her door. He unbuckled her and gestured grandly for her to exit. He guided her out of the vehicle by her elbow.

She saw a few women staring at her from down the street. Dominic, dressed in a casual suit, being an utter gentleman to Raelyn looked completely out of place. She prayed that none of her coworkers saw. She turned her attention back to Dominic. "Thank you."

He nodded. "Of course." Dane jumped out and began heading toward the door.

"Wait, Dane can't come with me!"

Dominic raised an eyebrow. "Why not?"

"He's...a dog."

"Fine. Come, Dane." Dane trudged back glumly.

Raelyn turned and hurried into work. The office was quiet, thankfully, but the scent of coffee suggested it would be a busy day. She stowed away her bag and glanced down at the keyboard.

She was going to have to type one-handed.

"Oh, pooh."

"What was that?" Dr. Pina strode past, carrying a steaming cup of Joe.

"Nothing. I just—"

"Never mind. Not my business. I have a few reports I need run. Get them to me by noon, please."

Raelyn nodded. "Of course, sir." She smiled. He had said, "please." The rest of her life may have been strange and chaotic, but at least he was polite.

Dr. Pina disappeared into his office. The scent of coffee reminded her of something. Memories from the little bumping incident flooded back. She shook them off. No. She needed some normalcy. This was normal. Just work.

Raelyn had promised to herself that her life would continue according to plan. If Dominic wanted to tag along a bit, no worries. She would still graduate, pay her bills, and then move on. Nothing had changed. She would have this little mark behind her ear for a little bit and Dominic would...kiss her...every couple of days.

She shook her head. Too weird.

Raelyn managed to finish and printed the report before noon, despite not having use of her left hand. She stepped into Dr. Pina's office. "Here you go, sir."

Dr. Pina turned and nodded. "Great work." He glanced up. "How is your head?"

"Ah. Good. Yeah. Healed."

He stood, which made Rae rock onto her back foot. "May I see?" Rae's eyes widened. "I need to see if we need to place a workplace injury."

"Oh. Oh, of course."

She held still while Dr. Pina approached. He lightly touched around her forehead and brushed part of her hair with his fingers. Raelyn grew increasingly uncomfortable.

"Are you done?"

Dr. Pina continued without answering for another few seconds. "That's it." He dropped his hands to hold onto her upper arms, as if comforting her. She stiffened. He pulled her into a hug, wrapping his arms around her and securing her against him. "I am so sorry about that, Rae." He pulled back after a few seconds. "Why don't you take off a half an hour early paid today?"

Rae nodded in thanks and quickly spun out of Dr. Pina's office.

Her watch buzzed.

You okay? Heartbeat is up.

"Fine." She took a deep breath and shook her head, trying to get the scent of heavy cologne out of her nose. Work is normal. Work is good.

She blinked and everything in front of her started to spin. The computer screen morphed into a mirror than shattered. She flinched, but her body was locked.

The shards of mirror fell, and she saw into a dark alley from above, like she was crouching on an old fire escape. Down below, three men held Dominic against a brick wall. A half-healed gash ran across his cheek. Someone in front of him spun a dagger in his hand, glinting in the dim light. The dagger began to glow a brilliant white.

The man pulled back, ready to plunge it into Dominic's chest. Then, he froze. The sounds of Rihanna echoed through the space. The man whirled to where Rae stood. His eyes were a brilliant blue and his hair platinum blonde. Dominic shouted at her, and Rae felt like she was falling backward.

She landed heavily in her seat and jolted awake. She glanced down at her watch and saw that her heartbeat was normal. She glanced around, but no one was staring at her or calling for an ambulance. Rae let out a long breath.

Focus on the plan.

Everything was still going according to plan.