“That was fast,” I say as she travels around the island and gives me a quick kiss on the cheek, followed by a knowing grin.
I know she wants to make a “that’s what she said” joke. I can practically see her restraining herself and I can’t help but laugh.
“What’s so funny?”
“You.” I wrap my arm around the back of her thighs and pull the t-shirt up, confirming my suspicion she is completely naked underneath. My well-worked cock hardens. I’m tempted to pull her down onto my lap for another round right here, right now.
She glances down and smiles as I press my lips to the smooth skin of her ass. “I don’t have any clothes here,” she says with a shrug.
“I’ll have Gabe go over to your place and grab some of your things today.” I brush my lips across her skin, making my way to her stomach. She steps away and turns to face me, letting the shirt fall back into place.
“Why can’t I just go?”
Somehow, I knew this was going to be a fight. I just hoped we could hold off and save all the combat for after breakfast. I’m fucking starving, and my head is starting to pound due to a lack of sustenance.
“Look, we will talk about it later. I’m going to go take a quick shower. Will you make the omelets?”
She scowls at me, her annoyance at my delay evident. “Fine,” she says, grabbing the knife off the cutting board and grabbing one of the peppers.
I retreat to the master bathroom and shower as quickly as I can. When I return to the kitchen, she is just placing plates with the omelets on the table. She grabs the pot of coffee and sits next to my spot, pouring herself a large cup.
“You want some?” she asks with some definite attitude in her voice.
Shit.
She pours me a cup without waiting for my response and sets the pot down on the table.
“Yes, please.” I take my place and watch as she adds cream and sugar to her cup before taking a sip and moaning in appreciation. I much prefer when she makes that sound because of me, and who the fuck knows when that will happen again. The way I anticipate this morning going, I won’t hold my breath.
We eat in silence for several minutes, but I watch her out of the corner of my eye. The tension she carries is evident in her posture and I know she has to be exhausted—physically and mentally. Knowing I’m going to make things worse as soon as we finish this meal makes me quickly lose my appetite.
I push away my half-eaten omelet and sit back, watching Danika scarf down her breakfast like she hasn’t eaten in days. I’m relieved. Part of me was terrified she would slump into some sort of depression, but she seems okay today, more than okay.
I always knew she was a badass bitch, but I know she was affected by what happened last night. There’s no way a human being couldn’t be. The nightmares are evidence enough. I just hope she doesn’t do something stupid, like try to ignore it, like I did.
She drops her fork to the plate with a clank and turns to me. “You done?”
I nod and she scowls. “What? You didn’t like it?”
“No, it was great. I’m just not that hungry, I guess.”
She gives me an incredulous look and grabs our plates, taking them to rinse in the sink before placing them in the dishwasher. I head into the living room, knowing she’ll follow me when she’s done.
Besides, I need a few seconds alone to figure out what the fuck I’m going to say to her. My alone time in the shower did me no good. All I could think about was how fucking incredible it felt to be inside of her. How fucking amazing I felt watching her come apart in my arms.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
I head to the couch and pull myself into the corner of it to wait for her. She appears in the archway, with more than a little trepidation in her gaze.
Holding my hand out across the back of the couch, I motion her over. “Come here. Come sit with me.”
She eyes me warily and slowly crosses the room. She stops in front of me, climbs into my lap, and leans back against my chest, resting her head against my shoulder. “You going to tell me what’s going on now?”
I press my lips to her temple, holding them there as long as I can and savoring the feeling of having her in my arms before she gets annoyed at my non-answer. She turns her head to look at me expectantly.
“Shit, this is harder than I thought it was going to be,” I say, running my hand back through my hair. “I don’t even know where to start.”
“Well, what did you want to say last night when you asked me to come over?”
I guess that’s as good of a place to start as any. Truthfully, it’s best we have that conversation right away, because after I tell her about Abello and the rest of it, she may run before even giving me a chance to explain.
“I wanted to talk about us.”
Tilting her head back, she locks her eyes with mine, and I see a hundred questions, and fear. “What about us?”
“I’ve been trying to figure things out.”
Her eyebrow quirks up. “Did you?”
“Some of them. I need you to know, I love you. That never could and never will change.”