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He rolled his eyes as he turned off the lights behind them. “Every day is hard for you. You work all the time.”
“I have a friend at another shelter who could step in for me for one day, but not both,” she said, trying to figure it out, even though she knew she shouldn’t. He was asking her to go with him now, after amazing sex a midnight snack, and a lot of laughs, but he might not feel the same in the morning. “Let me see if I can sort it out.”
She couldn’t really see his expression as he got under the covers with her, but the faint moonlight coming through the windows caught the edge of his angular face and she got the notion that his jaw was set slightly with displeasure. He stretched out in bed and reached for her, pulling her close. She heard him huff a breath.
“Why are you so difficult?” he asked, but she could feel the humor in his voice.
She smiled into the dark. “You just hate anyone saying no to you.”
“Because they don’t. And you haven’t. You’ll fix your schedule, and come to the Berkshires with me,” he said with absolute certainty.
He was like an immovable object. Abbe sighed in frustration. “You’re impossible.”
“Yup.” He kissed her and fell almost immediately to sleep.
Abbe did not. She heard Daisy’s collar clinking, and felt her jump up on the bed on the other side of Rafe. As Daisy settled in and fell asleep, Abbe shook her head at herself in the dark, wondering when she had gotten so stupid.
She must have fallen asleep at some point because she awoke in the barely-there light of pre-dawn to Rafe pressing himself against her ass. She arched back into him, turning her head to the side as he kissed the edge of her jaw. He was drowsy and moving slowly, tugging on her yoga pants with hands that couldn’t quite grip yet. She eased herself out of her clothes and rolled under him. His muscles were still soft with sleep, his eyes were closed, and the only part of him completely awake was his erection.
The only sound they made was the pull of their breathing and the whisper of the sheets as he slid inside her. She wrapped her arms and around him, the curve of his shoulders above her, blocking out everything but him. His thrusts were slow and gentle and he said her name almost soundlessly. She felt his lips moving against her neck with the word more than she heard it. When they both came it was a soft release, and the sound he made was high and surprised, like he was only just then waking up to what he was doing. He lay on top of her for a long time, staying inside her, and she almost thought he’d fallen asleep like that, but he shook himself fully awake and pushed back to look at her.
“Morning,” he said. She smiled in response. He got a distracted look. “I have to go.”
He dove out of bed and then turned around to drop down again, placing his hands on either side of her like a cage to kiss her once quickly. “You can use whatever you want in my sister’s room,” he said, and then he pulled back and rushed to his own bathroom to get ready.
Abbe took a second to gather herself, staring at the ceiling, and then she went to take a shower. All of the bathroom product, from the body wash to the shampoo, was fancy and smelled incredible. The closet was overwhelming, but Abbe eventually found a drawer with underwear that was new, still wrapped in tissue paper. Natori Feathers. She put it on. Even though the bra was a little tight and pushed her slightly fuller breasts together seductively, Abbe knew it looked amazing. The jeans were designer and the sweater she chose was cashmere, but it’s not like she had any other choice.
When she met Rafe back in the kitchen, he was wearing a light gray suit like he was born for it, a white button-down, but no tie. His shirt was open at the throat, leaving a divot of his smooth skin exposed. Not a lot of skin, but enough that she felt her hips swivel under her, reacting to him of their own accord. He looked up from his phone, his demi-tasse of coffee halfway to his mouth, and put them both down.
“Come here,” he said, his voice low.
He was looking very dangerous, and she didn’t have time for that. Abbe stayed where she was. “Are you sure your sister is okay with me wearing her clothes?” she asked instead, feeling self-conscious.
“Course,” he said. “I mean, they’re not really hers. I had my personal shopper stock the closet. Bianca’s probably never even seen anything you’re wearing.” Impatience flashed through his eyes. “Come here.”
Abbe stayed right where she was. “I can get past the personal shopper thing, but walk me through this. You hired someone to buy clothes that just sit therein caseyour sister wants to wear them?”
“Yeah. I like to be prepared for anything. Now comehere,” he repeated a third time, and this time he meant it.
“You’re so weird,” she said, coming around the kitchen island and fit herself against him. “And I have to go, like, now or I’m not going to make it to the shelter in time,” she told him, in case he had any ideas.
“I have to go too,” he said, and then he lowered his mouth to kiss her.
He backed her against the counter, one of his knees pressing between her thighs to push them apart. Abbe pulled her mouth away from his and started laughing helplessly.
“I can’t!” she said, pushing against his chest.
He was laughing too. “I can’t either,” he said, still pulling her against him as she pushed. “You need to run, I think.”
He did finally let her go. She drank his espresso and they scrambled out of his place, with Daisy in her harness trotting along beside him.
“Do you take her to work with you?” Abbe asked as they took the elevator down.
“Sometimes, but not today,” he replied.
When they got downstairs the concierge came forward solicitously, and Rafe passed off Daisy’s lead to him.
“Any treats for her this morning, Mr. Loring?” the concierge asked, already reaching down to pet Daisy’s soft head fondly. She was an obvious favorite, and her tail wagged in recognition and excitement. Abbe guessed from her reaction that the concierge must be slipping her a lot of treats.
