Turning off the light, he waited until her breathing slowed once more, then backed out of the room. He closed the door behind him and rested his forehead against the doorframe. He had to find her somewhere else to stay. Having her this close...

  He took several steadying breaths. Last night he’d only imagined what she looked like lying in her bed. Tonight, he wouldn’t have to imagine.

  Granted, she’d been clothed, but it wouldn’t matter. Daniel had a very vivid imagination where she was concerned. He could still feel the weight of her body against him and the sweet scent of her lingering on his shirt.

  He blew out a deep breath and headed back to the living room. Another episode of the show she’d been watching played on the television. Picking up the remote, he turned it off, then made his rounds.

  Daniel turned on his bedside lamp before ambling into his en suite bathroom. He removed his clothes, throwing them in the hamper, and took care of business. As he was washing his hands, he looked at his reflection in the mirror. He was getting grayer with every passing day. His dark hair was speckled with gray hairs and the stubble on his chin had more gray than brown these days.

  His body was in decent shape. He tried to swim at least three days a week and could out swim most of the men half his age at the gym.

  As he stood there, looking in the mirror, his mind went to Ali as it often did these days. What would she think if she knew the thoughts, he had about her? He’d volunteered to help Kim move because he’d known Ali would be there. And because he knew she’d be there, he’d spent most of the night before dreaming about her.

  The way she looked at him sometimes made him forget all the reasons a relationship between them couldn’t work. But that didn’t change the real fact that it wouldn’t. Even if she was willing to try, what would his kids think? They were all adults now, but that didn’t mean they wanted to see their father with a woman not much older than they were.

  He groaned, flipped off the light, and marched out of his bathroom. Moonlight illuminated the bedroom through the large French doors that led to a private patio. He was tempted to take a dip in the hot tub, but he knew it wouldn’t help.

  Climbing into bed, he let the sheets cool his heated body. He closed his eyes and tried to relax. But, of course, the only thing on his mind was Ali.

  Knowing it was useless to resist, he let his mind go where it wanted to. Normally, when he thought about her, they were at the club, but tonight they were in his living room. He was sitting in his chair as he had been less than an hour before, reading, and she was on the couch. She turned to look at him, her eyes bright and mischievous. He quirked a finger at her, indicating he wanted her to come to him.

  Ali arose from the couch, her lithe body calling to him with every step she took toward him. She came to a stop in front of him and he wasted no time tugging her onto his lap. Her legs straddled him, and he could feel the heat of her sex as it pressed against his straining erection.

  His cock ached and he slid his hand beneath the covers, taking himself in hand.

  In his mind, she’d been wearing a skirt instead of leggings, and he pushed the fabric away so he could touch her. She was already wet, her pussy ready for him. “Please,” she begged. “Please, take me, Sir. Please, make me yours.”

  His hand moved faster up and down his length as he imagined what it would feel like to drive her down onto his cock, to feel her pussy pulsing around him. Her hot, wet...

  A strangled moan tore from his chest as he came, cum covering his hand. He rubbed his other hand over his face. This had to stop. He knew it did. Especially with her living in his house. But he had no idea how.

  Daniel went to clean up, and then got back into bed. His cock, at least, was satisfied. The rest of him was a different story. He still had no idea what to do about, or with, Ali.

  It was well after midnight before he fell asleep. He was out cold when a noise woke him. It sounded like something hitting the floor. Not quite a crash, but a...thump?

  He shot out of bed, not bothering to grab his robe or put on any clothes. His alarm hadn’t sounded, which meant the noise had most likely come from inside the house. Ali. Thoughts of her falling and getting hurt had his heart pounding. She wasn’t used to his house. Had she gotten up in the middle of the night, half asleep, and fallen?

  He rushed down the short hall to the main living area. What he saw stopped him in his tracks. Ali was on her knees in his kitchen, paper towels in one hand and his kitchen towel in the other.

  She looked up and her eyes grew wider than he’d ever seen them. Daniel took a step forward, then stopped when he realized where exactly she was looking. He slept naked, which meant he was standing in the kitchen wearing his birthday suit.

  Ali’s lips parted and he thought he heard her whimper. The sound had his cock sitting up and paying attention, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it.

  “What are you doing?” The question didn’t come out as confident as he would have liked, but he chalked it up to being roused from sleep. When she didn’t answer, he tried again. “Ali? What’s going on? What happened?”

  That seemed to snap her out of it. She tore her gaze away and lowered it back to the floor. “I dropped the milk.”

  Only then did he notice the jug of milk sitting on the counter.

  CHAPTER 4

  Ali’s heart was pounding, and it had nothing to do with the half gallon of milk she’d just spilled all over the floor. Daniel was standing buck naked not ten feet away from her.

  He strolled over to the milk container, picked it up, examined it, then set it down again. She kept her gaze on the floor even though she desperately wanted to look. Even though he played with subs at the club, she’d never seen him without his clothes. Unlike most of the other Doms, she’d never seen him have sex with a submissive.

  “Are you all right?” he asked.

  She nodded, trying not to look at his impressive erection but failing. “I’m fine. I’m sorry I woke you up. It slipped out of my hand.” The milk had migrated down the length of the cabinets, and she crawled to wipe it up.

  “I’m not worried about the milk.”

  The dishtowel was soaked through with milk and so were the paper towels in her hand, and yet there was still more on the floor. She reached for another dishtowel, not wanting to use all his paper towels, too, but he placed a hand over hers.

  “Ali, stop.”

  He was standing so close to her she could feel heat radiating from his body. She closed her eyes and swallowed. It wasn’t fair. All she had to do was turn her head and his cock would be right there, begging her to take it into her mouth and...

  But he didn’t want her. He’d made that very clear over the last two years. She’d done everything she could think of outside of coming out and asking him to be her Dom.

  Daniel lifted her chin, forcing her to look up at him. Her gaze lingered on his length before rising to look into his eyes. It was dark in the kitchen, the only light coming from the hallway and the windows along the back wall. She wished she could see his face better. Maybe then she could tell what he was thinking. “What happened?”

  “I was getting a bowl of cereal.”

  He rubbed his thumb along the side of her cheek, and she closed her eyes, relishing his touch.

  Then it was gone. She opened her eyes as he took a step back. He picked up the milk, poured it into the bowl she had sitting next to the counter full of cereal, and then placed the gallon jug back into the refrigerator.

  “Eat your cereal. I’ll clean up the milk.”

  “I can—”

  Even in the dim light, she didn’t miss that look. She stood, walked over to a stool, and sat down. Picking up her spoon, she took a bite of her cereal.

  Daniel opened the drawer containing the dishtowels and removed several of them. He tossed them on the floor, then kneeled to clean up the mess.

  She tried not to look. Really, she did. But her gaze was drawn to his butt as it flexed and moved. She’d seen a lot of naked men at the club, men who were a lot younger, who didn’t look as good naked as Daniel did.

  When he stood, wet towels clutched between both his hands, he noticed her staring. Without saying a word, he threw the towels into the sink, stepped over the still damp floor, and disappeared through a doorway off the kitchen.

  Ali sucked in a breath and blew it out. What a way to start the day.

  She smiled and lifted the spoon to her mouth as she took another bite of her cereal. It was already beginning to get soggy, but she didn’t care. She’d trade mushy cereal for seeing Daniel in all his glory any day.

  When he reemerged several minutes later, he was wearing a pair of loose-fitting pants and a T-shirt. He grabbed a mop and bucket out of a tall closet, then finished cleaning up her mess.

  “Thank you for cleaning up the rest of the milk,” she said after swallowing the last of her cereal.

  He rinsed the mop head, then returned it and the bucket to the closet. “You’re welcome.” His gaze lowered to the bowel in front of her. “Finished?”

  She nodded and got up to take her bowl to the sink. “Again, I’m sorry I woke you.”

  He shrugged. “My alarm would have woken me up in another half hour anyway.”

  An awkward silence filled the room and she shifted on her feet. “Um. I’m gonna take a shower and get ready.”

  “If I’m not in the kitchen when you’ve finished getting ready, I’ll be in my study.” He tipped his head toward the other side of the living room to the hall she’d been down twice before—once the night he’d brought her home with him, and the next morning when he’d driven her back to her apartment to get her car. She had to admit she hadn’t paid much attention either time. “Come find me when you’re done.”

  Ali took her time in the shower, trying not to remember what Daniel had looked like standing so close to her, his hard cock tempting her. She was tempted to get herself off but hesitated for some reason. It wasn’t as if she hadn’t masturbated before. She had. Lots of times. But it felt wrong somehow. Like he’d know and be upset with her.

  It was stupid. He wasn’t her Dom. They had no agreement. Her body was her own and she could do with it whatever she wished.

  Unfortunately, that rationalization didn’t change anything. She hadn’t had sex in almost two years. She’d played with some of the Doms at the club and some of them had even brought her to orgasm, but it had always been with toys or their fingers.

  Turning the shower off, she yanked the towel off its holder so hard the end of it snapped against her leg. “Ouch.”

  She bent to rub the spot on her leg where the towel hit. “That’s what I get for letting my stupid emotions get the better of me.”

  As she wiped the water from her body and began drying her hair, she relived the way he’d touched her cheek. It was a simple touch. Nothing special. But she’d felt cherished. Something she didn’t experience often. In fact, the only other person who’d made her feel that way was her grandmother and she’d been gone for almost ten years.

  Ali reached for her makeup bag and began applying a thin layer of concealer. She missed her grandmother. Gretchen Foster was everything her daughter was not. It wasn’t that Ali’s mother, Zelda, didn’t love her. She did. In her own way. But Ali would never describe her mom as nurturing.

  She finished putting on everything but her lipstick and tucked the rest of her makeup in her bag. As she selected her clothes from those she’d brought with her, she tried to pick something comfortable. She had a feeling today would be a repeat of the day before, which meant heels were out. Even thinking about yesterday caused her feet to ache.

  It also made her remember Daniel’s reaction to finding out she hadn’t eaten lunch. Ali knew she had to do better. Even if he wasn’t her Dom, he was still her friend and he cared about her. Even her best friend, Kim, got on her case when she skipped lunch.

  It was so much easier for Kim, though. Her best friend had no problem saying no or sticking up for herself. It wasn’t that Ali couldn’t. It was more she hated confrontation. Most of the time, it was easier to agree than to argue. A copout, maybe, but she’d learned it was easier not to rock the proverbial boat.

  Satisfied with her clothing selection, Ali headed into the kitchen looking for coffee. What she found was Daniel, fully showered and dressed in a suit and tie. He was holding two plates of food.

  “There you are.” He smiled and her belly did a little flip.

  “What’s this?” she asked, eyeing the plates.

  “Breakfast.”

  She hiked her purse higher onto her shoulder. “I already ate breakfast.”

  He carried the plates to the table. Pulling a chair out, he sat down and picked up his fork. His gaze met hers. “A bowl of cereal is not breakfast.”

  “Millions of kids across the country would disagree with you.” It was a lame response. She knew that, but it was the best she could come up with.

  Daniel took a bite, chewed, then swallowed. “What other people do is not my concern.” But you are, was implied by the look he gave her as he scooped more food into his mouth.

  Ali glanced at the clock, then back at the plate of food he’d prepared for her. It would be rude if she left it, right?

  Setting her purse down on the counter, she walked over to the coffee pot and poured herself some caffeine. After doctoring it up with the cream and sugar he already had on the counter for her, she took a sip, then carried it over to the table.

  The food wasn’t much to look at, but it tasted like heaven. She rarely ate more than a bagel or cereal for breakfast, especially on a workday.

  Before she knew it, she’d eaten the entire plate. She must have been hungrier than she’d thought.

  She was about to take her plate to the sink when a scraping sound beside her drew her attention. Looking down, she saw a key. Ali looked up to meet Daniel’s gaze.

  “If you’re going to be staying here for a while, then you’ll need a key. If there’s a power outage or something, the code won’t work.”

  Ali swallowed as she tried to take in everything he’d said. “You’re giving me a key to your house?”

  One side of his mouth quirked up. “Yes. I’m trusting you not to throw any wild parties while I’m away.”

  She laughed and so did he. “I’ll try to control myself.”

  “Good.” He stood, took a step toward her, and lowered his lips to her forehead.

  Closing her eyes, she felt her heart flutter and her belly clench. Then, it was gone. He was gone. Leaving her sitting at the table alone.

  What the hell was wrong with him?

  The sound of the door closing, signaling Ali leaving the house, had him both breathing a sigh of relief and wanting to hit something. If he didn’t have a meeting to get to in less than an hour, he would have had a nice, long run on the treadmill. Or maybe he’d spend some time pounding out his frustrations on the punching bag his youngest had insisted he install.

  What had possessed him to touch her? That was the million-dollar question. The one that would be eating at him for the rest of the day.

  He’d done it on impulse. She’d been upset about spilling half the milk and he’d wanted to vanquish the worry from her eyes. The urge to touch her again had been overwhelming. And then the way she’d smiled at him...he couldn’t resist.

  Groaning, he stalked to his study, logged onto his computer, and tried to lose himself in facts and figures. It wasn’t as if he didn’t know the specs on the building he was seeing today. He did. Like the back of his hand. Going over them was merely a way to kill time.

  Fifteen minutes later, he realized it wasn’t working. Logging off, he set the alarm and headed to his meeting. If all went well today, he’d be the proud owner of a three-story commercial building. It already had long-term tenants, which was appealing, and the price was fair given its location.

  His property manager and the current owner were already waiting for him in the lobby. Rebecca saw him first. “Good morning, Mr. Ross.” Normally, he and his property manager weren’t so formal, but Mr. Birch was an older gentleman in his seventies, who liked such things.

  “Good morning, Ms. Clawson. Mr. Birch, it’s nice to see you again.” He extended a hand to the man.

  Mr. Birch took Daniel’s hand, giving it a firm shake. “Are we ready to get started with the tour?”

  “Lead the way,” Daniel said, motioning for Mr. Birch and Rebecca to go first.

  The walk through took a little over an hour. Whenever he purchased a new property, he wanted to see everything. It was often the less viewed areas of buildings where issues were hiding, unaddressed, but overall, the property was sound.

  They ended their walk around in the basement. The furnace looked to have been replaced within the last few years. That was a major expense he shouldn’t have to worry about for a while. “How long since the roof was replaced?”

  Mr. Birch didn’t have to think about it. “Eleven years ago.”

  Daniel nodded, impressed by the man’s quick recall. As they’d walked around, he’d asked about windows, carpets, elevators, and even electrical and plumbing. There was a small leak in one of the bathrooms, but he thought that would be an easy fix. The only major expense he foresaw were the elevators. They were at least fifty years old. While they functioned fine for now, they were a potential expense he had to prepare for.

  Offering his hand again, Daniel thanked Mr. Birch and told him they would be in touch.

  “Always a pleasure,” Mr. Birch said. “Call me with any questions.”

  Rebecca followed Daniel out to the parking lot. They didn’t speak as they got into their cars and drove to his office downtown. This was a routine they’d practiced many times before.

  His assistant looked up from what he was working on when Daniel and Rebecca walked through the door. “How’d the walk-through go?” Kevin asked.

  “Good.” Daniel took the stack of papers Kevin handed him, not bothering to flip through them. There would be time for that later. Plus, it would give him something to do to keep his mind off what happened this morning with Ali. “Anything promising?”