It took five rings for his son to answer. “Hey, Dad.”

  “Are you busy?” Daniel asked.

  Bradley snorted. “I’m always busy, but what’s up?”

  “I just haven’t heard from you in a while. Have you talked to your mom?” While Daniel had been divorced for fifteen years, he was still on good terms with his ex-wife. And even if he wasn’t, he wouldn’t say anything bad about her to his children.

  His son didn’t answer right away. “Um. I think I talked to her a couple of weeks ago.” He paused. “I should call her.”

  “Yes, you should.”

  Bradley chuckled. “Did you call to yell at me for not calling Mom?”

  Daniel chuckled. “No. I called because I haven’t heard from you either. I wanted to make sure you were still alive.”

  “Sorry. I’m always knee deep in work and—”

  “I know,” Daniel said. “But you can’t let life or relationships pass you buy. Before you know it, you’ll be my age.”

  “I think I’ve got a little time.”

  His son was twenty-five and still thought he had all the time in the world. Daniel remembered being that way at his age. Little did he know that three years later he’d have a newborn daughter. “Just don’t work too hard. That’s all I’m saying. You need to live your life, too.”

  “Says the man who does nothing but work.”

  The words were mumbled, but Daniel heard them. “I do have a life, you know.” Daniel sighed. “Besides, we’re not talking about me. I don’t want you to wake up one day and realize you’re forty and have nothing to show for it.” He paused. “Your mother and I worry. That’s all.”

  “I know. And I do go out with some of the guys here sometimes.”

  “Good.” A car pulling in the parking lot drew his attention. Ali was here. His heart skipped a beat as she got out of her car and walked to her apartment, her hips swaying in her heels. “And give me a call every now and then, so I know you’re okay.” His words came out soft and distant.

  “You okay, Dad?” Bradley asked.

  Ali unlocked her door and a moment later she was gone from his sight. “Yeah, I’m good. I should probably let you get back to work so you can get home at a decent hour.”

  Bradley chuckled. “I’ll try to call you more often.”

  “And call your mom.”

  “I will,” his son promised.

  “I love you.”

  “Love you, too, Dad.”

  They disconnected the call and Daniel’s gaze went toward the door Ali had disappeared behind. Warmth spread through his chest and anxiety filled his belly. But before he could overthink it, he grabbed the bag of food from the passenger seat and climbed out of the vehicle.

  CHAPTER 8

  A knock had Ali stopping in her tracks. She’d barely removed her coat. Turning on her heel, she went to answer the door, hoping it was Daniel.

  She looked through the peephole, then unfastened the chain. Pulling the door open, she stepped back to let him inside. “I wasn’t expecting you yet. I just got home.”

  He moved past her, walking into her humble apartment. It was nothing like his house. The complete opposite, in fact. Daniel’s home was all big open spaces, while her two-bedroom apartment felt tiny in comparison. It wasn’t that she disliked her apartment. It was fine. She’d lived there for two years now. But it was still a small space with very basic furniture, and she couldn’t help but wonder what he thought of it.

  Daniel placed two bags on her kitchen counter, then removed his coat.

  “Here, let me take that,” she said.

  He let her take his coat and she hung it beside hers on a wood coat rack near the door.

  By the time she returned to her kitchen area, he’d removed all the food from the bags and had it lying on the counter. “I hope you like Greek food.”

  She eased around him to get to the plates. Her hip grazed his in the tight space and she sucked in a breath. Blowing it out, she tried to sound casual. “Did you get any baklava?”

  He chuckled, not seeming affected in any way by their bodies brushing against each other. “You can’t eat Greek food without baklava.”

  Ali smiled and handed him a plate. “No, you can’t.”

  They loaded up their plates with food and carried them over to her table. It was then she realized they had a problem. She'd forgotten about the project she’d been working on at her dining room table. Her canvas and paints were covering every inch of the wood surface. “Um.”

  She was still contemplating what to do when he walked over and began looking at what she’d painted.

  “You did this?” he asked.

  “Yes. Sorry. I forgot I’d left my paints out.” She set her plate on one of the chairs and began loading her paints into a shoebox.

  Daniel held his plate in one hand and picked up the canvas to examine it. “I didn’t know you liked to paint.”

  “It helps me relax.”

  He nodded. “We all need something that helps us deal with stress. For me, it’s swimming.”

  She hadn’t known he liked to swim, but looking at him now, she could see it. He was trim and fit, but not in a way that said he spent hours every day in a gym. Ali could imagine him in a pair of Speedos, his naked chest heaving as water droplets danced along his chest after doing laps in the pool.

  Her sex pulsed and she pressed her thighs together. She turned her back to him as she felt her cheeks heat. “I’m gonna put these in the other room. Be right back.”

  Rushing down the hall to the spare bedroom, she placed the box of paints on the shelf in her closet and took a moment to try and catch her breath. She used to think being around him at the club was difficult. Not that it was easy. Especially when she saw him go upstairs with another submissive. But the more she was around him, the more she wanted him.

  “Ali? Are you all right, sweetheart?”

  She closed her eyes at his endearment. He’d called her that twice before and every time it nearly broke her heart. She knew he didn’t mean it the way it sounded—like she was his. “Yeah. Just putting the paints away.”

  Ali felt him as he approached, then he was turning her to face him. She opened her eyes and got sucked into the depths of his gaze.

  Daniel cupped the side of her face and she leaned into his touch. It was sad how much she cherished these moments. They didn’t mean the same to him as they did to her, but it didn’t matter. She’d take what she could get even if that made her pathetic.

  He took a step closer, her chest touching his. She could feel his breath against her face as he exhaled.

  Time seemed to stop as they stood there. He didn’t remove his hand and she feared with every breath she took he’d stop touching her.

  He rubbed the pad of his thumb along her cheek several times, then slid his hand to the back of her neck, tilting her head up. She saw something flash in his eyes a moment before his lips caressed hers.

  Ali’s heart stopped for a moment before restarting in double time. A desperate whimper left her throat as the feel of his lips spread white hot lightning through her veins. She wanted more and she wasn’t beneath begging for it. Not when it felt like this.

  A groan tore from his chest a split second before his other hand wrapped around her waist, pulling her flush against him and his mouth crashed over hers. Ali’s hands gripped his waist, holding on tight. His lips glided against hers with the right mix of heat and tenderness, his tongue teasing the seam on her lips, enticing her tongue to come out and play.

  She could feel his hard length pressing against her stomach. The urge to press against it, to get closer to him, was too much to bear, but before she could do anything about it, he ripped his mouth away. “No. I can’t.”

  Then he was across the room, and she was left standing there with swollen lips and an ache between her legs she wasn’t sure would ever go away. Her heart was beating a mile a minute and she was struggling to catch her breath, but she knew she had to say something. Anything.

  “Why?” It was the best she could do under the circumstances. She’d never been kissed like that before and he hadn’t even put his tongue inside her mouth.

  Daniel looked at her. Pain, and what appeared to be regret, crossed his face. “I can’t,” he said again, then he darted out of the room.

  Ali leaned back against the wall, attempting to settle her breathing and bring her heart rate back to normal. He’d kissed her. Kissed her, kissed her. Not a sweet peck on the lips like you’d give a friend, but a toe-curling kiss that had her wanting to sink to her knees in front of him.

  Had Kim been right? Did he want her the way she wanted him?

  The memory of his erection pressed against her suggested he did. But the look on his face and his declaration that he couldn’t, had her confused.

  She sifted through everything she knew about him, but nothing stuck out. He wasn’t married anymore, but did he have a girlfriend she didn’t know about? If he did, Ali hadn’t seen any sign of her. Not at the club and not at his house.

  Of course, she hadn’t been in his bedroom, but certainly there’d be a picture or some other evidence a woman had been in his home. Right?

  Her head was beginning to hurt, and her stomach let out a growl, reminding her she hadn’t eaten dinner. She pushed off the wall and made her way down the hall.

  Looking around, she didn’t see him at first. Then, she saw him sitting on her couch, his head in his hands. His shoulders were slumped, and he was mumbling to himself.

  Ali sat down beside him, keeping a few inches between them. He stopped talking to himself and glanced in her direction. Her chest clenched at the look of pain in his eyes.

  She wanted to reach out to him, comfort him, but she wasn’t sure her touch would be welcomed. “What’s wrong?” Her voice was barely audible, but she knew he heard her.

  He released a tortured sound before looking at the wall opposite where they were sitting. His chest rose, then fell again in an exaggerated breath. “I’m sorry. I...I don’t know what came over me.” He stood, taking her off guard. Straightening his shoulders, he looked down at her, all the previous emotion gone from his face. “It won’t happen again.”

  She blinked several times. “I don’t understand.”

  Daniel shook his head, then walked into the dining room.

  Ali followed, confused and still incredibly turned on. “Did I do something wrong?”

  “No.” He rubbed a hand over his chest. “No. You did nothing wrong, Allison. It’s me. I...”

  Nothing was making sense. He’d kissed her. She’d kissed him back. “Do you have a girlfriend?”

  “What?” He looked stunned by her question. “No.”

  “Then why did you stop kissing me?” she asked.

  The muscle in his throat contracted as he swallowed and the vein in the side of his neck pulsed. “It was wrong. I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me.”

  The confusion was back. “Why was it wrong?”

  He shook his head. “Our dinner’s getting cold. We should eat.”

  She was hungry, but not for food. At least, not only for food.

  Taking a chance, Ali went to stand in front of him. He didn’t back away, although she got the impression he wanted to. There was a question she’d been wanting to ask him for a while now, but she hadn’t had the courage. She tilted her head up, meeting his gaze. “Why won’t you play with me at the club?”

  “Allison, I think—”

  “I think I deserve an answer.” This wasn’t like her, but she was taking a page out of Kim’s book. Her friend always told her that if you wanted something, you had to go after it. She wanted Daniel and the only thing that had kept her from going after him was because she’d thought he wasn’t interested in her that way.

  He closed his eyes, took a breath, and released it. “It’s easier that way.”

  Instead of clearing up her confusion, his responses were making it worse. “You’re attracted to me.”

  Again, he swallowed. “Yes.”

  It would be difficult for him to deny it. He was still hard. His erection called to her as it tented his slacks.

  Going on instinct, she lowered herself to the floor, kneeling in front of him. He must have sensed the movement because he gazed down at her, his eyes wide with what looked like fear.

  Ali brought her mouth level with the bulge in his pants and looked up at him, letting her desire show in her eyes. “May I please suck your cock, Sir?”

  He didn’t answer.

  She pressed her face against his crotch, rubbing her cheek against him. It was a dangerous game, but she had to take the chance.

  Nothing happened for several very long moments. Ali was beginning to doubt herself, then he threaded his fingers through her hair. The feel of his hand cupping the back of her head had every submissive instinct in her body purring.

  Her lips brushed against his length, and he moaned out a strangled, “Yes.”

  Ali didn’t know what he was saying yes to, but she took it as an answer to her question. She reached for his belt, releasing the buckle and then going for the button on his slacks. His cock peeked its head above his boxer briefs as she lowered the zipper. She closed her mouth around the tip, sucking gently, and she felt his fingers grip the back of her head.

  Heat surged in her belly as she pushed his underwear down his legs, letting his cock spring free. She closed her eyes and focused on the feel of him on her tongue as she took more of him into her mouth. With excruciating slowness, she explored every inch of him.

  He held himself rigid, not moving except for his fingers as they flexed against her scalp. But after a while, she began to see patterns in his reactions. Figuring out what he liked sent a rush of excitement and arousal through her. She wanted to please him, to make him tremble the way she did when she fantasized about him being inside her.

  Circling her hand around the base of his cock, she moved it up and down with the motion of her mouth as she licked and sucked and hummed along his length.

  Daniel fisted her hair, sending delicious shots of pain down her scalp as his breathing grew more labored. She knew he was close—could almost feel the vibrations of his impending orgasm under her tongue.

  Sucking him down as far as she could, letting the head of his cock hit the back of her throat, caused him to increase his hold. She was so wet. She wanted so desperately to touch herself, but she wouldn’t. This was about showing him what she wanted. What she needed.

  As if a dam broke inside him, Daniel took hold of her head with both hands and began pumping his hips. She released her throat and let him take control, using her mouth however he wanted.

  It didn’t take long. He’d already been on the edge. Cum shot out of his cock, the tang of it hitting the back of her tongue and throat as she swallowed it down.

  Ali was basking in the glow of serving him when he stumbled backward, his back hitting the wall. Daniel looked down on her with what looked like horror for several moments before he closed his eyes and let out a mumbled curse.

  Tucking himself back into his pants, he refastened his belt, then pushed off the wall.

  He held out a hand and helped her stand. All the emotion was gone from his face.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked, getting to her feet.

  He made sure she was steady, then took a step back, putting distance between them once more. “What happened tonight. What I let happen.” Daniel paused and blew out a breath. “It was my fault, and I’m sorry.”

  CHAPTER 9

  Ali looked at him for a long time, her eyes full of questions, and Daniel couldn’t blame her. He’d fucked up. “Why are you sorry?”

  A part of him wanted to turn the clock back an hour before their relationship got turned on its head, but then he wouldn’t know what it felt like to kiss her or have her lips wrapped around his cock. He was going to hell, but there was no helping it. “Because I’m old enough to be your father.”

  Her brow creased as she considered what he’d said. “You’re not my father.”

  “That doesn’t matter.”

  The wrinkles in her brow got more pronounced. He could see the confusion written all over her face. “I’ve seen you play with women younger than I am at the club, but you won’t play with me. I don’t understand.”

  He didn’t miss the slight hiccup in her voice at the end and he had to force himself not to pull her into his arms. “It’s not the same. That’s just...”

  “Just what?”

  As difficult as this was, she deserved the answer. “I don’t have feelings for them.”

  An energy filled the room as he awaited her response to his admission, but when it finally came, it wasn’t what he’d expected. “I want you to be my Dom.”

  His heart skipped a beat as fear and excitement took hold of him at the same time. “That’s not a good idea.”

  Ali closed the short distance between them. She stood close enough to touch and his fingers tingled with the desire to get his hands on her again. Her blue eyes sparkling in the light as she gazed up at him. “Why not?”

  He didn’t answer.

  “Did I not serve you well?” she asked. Her lips and her question bringing back the vision of her lips around his erection. “It’s been a while since I’ve given a blowjob, but—”

  Hearing her question herself was the last straw. He covered her lips with his and kissed her again. It felt so right, and yet so wrong at the same time. He shouldn’t want this. He shouldn’t be enjoying this. And yet he didn’t want to stop kissing her.

  Resting his forehead on hers, he held her gaze as she fisted the front of his shirt. “Nothing about this has to do with you. You were perfect. You served me well.” Too well. His body was still humming from his climax. It had been years since he’d come so hard in a sub’s mouth.