“I’ve wanted you since the day you and Clara moved in with us.” His eyes are focused between my legs, where he leisurely washes away any remnants of blood. “I’ll never forgive myself for treating you the way I did. For ruining your prom, for threatening all the guys to make them stay away from you. I knew I could never have you, but I couldn’t take watching you with anyone else. It was … childish.”
I don’t know what to make of this confession.
Dayton has always wanted me.
I moved away and married an abusive prick while this man was here, pining over me.
He’s traveling up my body with the soap, cleaning every part of me. When he reaches my breasts, he spends extra time, and I can clearly see that he’s hard, but he doesn’t seem to be initiating sex. He just likes touching me.
I let him finish before rinsing off. He washes himself, and we both step out. He hands me a towel. I dry my hair and body off while he goes into his closet, returning with a green T-shirt that he hands to me. I pull it over my head, chewing on my bottom lip while watching him put on a loose pair of gym shorts.
His eyes meet mine, and he reaches for my hand. “Are you hungry or anything?”
I shake my head. “Tired.”
We brush our teeth in silence, and I’m struck by how oddly comfortable I feel with him, doing these mundane, everyday grooming tasks.
He pulls me behind him into the bedroom. I quickly grab a pad from my bag and put it on in the bathroom before climbing into bed with him. Despite my efforts to stick to my side, he pulls me up against his chest.
“Go to sleep.” He kisses my cheek, tucking the blanket around my chin.
“Before I do, I have a request.”
“Anything.”
“I have one final house design change.”
“How much is this one gonna cost?” He sighs.
“It’s just a little bit of a tweak to the back deck. I think we should add an outdoor kitchen. Like a small one, with a mini fridge, a countertop, a sink, and a flat-top grill. Imagine sitting out there and grilling burgers while your kids run around on the beach at sunset.”
He pauses. He must be actually picturing it. Finally, he answers, his words a low rumble against the top of my spine, “That would be pretty spectacular.”
“Perfect. I’ll let Javier know. The painters are done, and the flooring guys will be there tomorrow. So, we’ve only got two to three weeks left, minus the outdoor kitchen. I think we should go ahead and have Mr. Akana give us an estimate on the listing price.”
“So, you want to sell it now?” he asks.
“I thought that’s what you wanted?”
“That’s what I want, yes. But you’re pretty persuasive when you want to be.”
“Hmm, I’m too tired to keep talking about it tonight. Let’s talk about it in the morning.”
“Sweet dreams, baby. Go to sleep.”
I don’t fight it, letting myself drift off to the steady rhythm of his breathing.
chapter thirty-two
Dayton
“Mr. Copeland,” Ava says, poking her head into my morning meeting with the executive branch manager. “You have a guest waiting in your office.”
It’s the quarterly meeting for our Miami branch, and we’re on Zoom with the New York office.
“Let’s take lunch,” Jim, the branch manager, says.
I stand, stretching my legs. I asked Summer to have lunch with me before her flight this afternoon. She wouldn’t stay another night, so I guess I’m heading to Coconut Beach after my Friday meeting.
