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He poured the malbec and handed her a glass. “Let’s go out back.”
She wasn’t sure why he didn’t want to be inside the house. She wondered if his daughter was already asleep when it was only nine, which would be a bit strange for a teenager. Maybe she was ill, and that’s why he was being so quiet. They settled on two cushioned chairs he had on the deck. He turned on some string lights in the backyard, dimming them.
“Is Carli asleep?” she said and sipped the wine to control her nerves. “Not that it’s not nice being outside.”
“No.” He gazed at her for a few beats. “Uh, I’m not ready to tell her about us yet.”
Rae looked down at her wine, a pearl of insecurity forming in her chest. “Because of what I do?”
“Not at all,” he said, his voice too emphatic, which made her think there was truth to what she’d asked. “I just haven’t dated in quite a while, and Carli had a hard time when my last relationship ended. So, I’d like to wait a bit before I introduce you to her. I hope you understand.”
She did, but it also made her think about the awkwardness of Lily meeting him. She wondered if Dayton thought she was a bad mother for allowing it to happen. Parenting for her was often like being trapped in a pitch-black room, and she didn’t always know how to find a lamp to shed light on situations, but then she reminded herself she didn’t have the best example to follow.
“Of course, I understand.” She fiddled with her watch, felt the soft thrum of its ticking against her fingers, before drinking more of her wine, hoping the alcohol would somehow help her get into a seductivemood, which was the furthest thing from her mind. She needed to distract him so she could find the flash drive. She watched him sip from his glass. “Do you like it?”
“I know nothing about wine,” he said, “but it tastes good to me.” He paused, examining her with his dark eyes like she was a slide under a microscope. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. Why do you ask?”
The space between his brows creased as he scrutinized her more. “You seem nervous. You have a pretty obvious tell when you’re anxious.”
“A tell?”
“Everyone has one. Like a tic when they’re nervous or being deceptive. Yours is playing with your watch. It’s pretty. Is it a family heirloom?”
“You could say that. And I’m not nervous,” she said, but her voice shook.
“You know, I didn’t have any expectations with you coming over tonight, if that’s what’s bothering you.”
She held his gaze and tried to tap into a confidence she didn’t feel as her mouth quirked. “Really? No expectations?”
“Okay, maybe I did. But I don’t want you to think this is only about sex for me, and I don’t want you to feel pressured.”
“Maybe I like pressure, especially if it’s done right.”
Dayton fixed her with his eyes again, almost like he was trying to decode her words and see if she was serious. Then he set his glass down on the little table between them and stood up. He placed his hands on either side of her chair and leaned in, gently kissing her before kneeling down in front of her chair. He looked up at her, the string lights dancing tiny fires in his dark irises.
“Tell me what you want, Rae.”
She had imagined this scenario many times, him on his knees in supplication, begging her to allow him to touch her. He wasn’t exactly begging, but his eyes were. It was a subtle shift in power, one she knewhe was offering to her like a tentative gift. She took it from him, and the swell of control made her forget about why she was at his home to begin with.
“I want you to kiss me.” She motioned to her lap. “Right here.”
He moved his long fingers along her thighs, pushing up her flouncy skirt until her panties were exposed. Without a word, she let him slide her thong down and watched as he parted her legs. When he ran his tongue inside her, she closed her eyes tight and allowed herself to sink into the pleasure he was giving her. Just like before in her bedroom, he knew what he was doing, and a moan escaped her lips as her fingers tugged his thick hair, pressing him harder against her.
She wanted to suspend time, to allow herself to swim in the growing tickle and feel it spread warmth throughout her body, to explode pure, blind bliss from the center of her. But then Bobby’s threat flashed in her mind, and she involuntarily shut her thighs, forcing Dayton to stop.
“I’m sorry, I can’t do this,” she said. She felt disgusting for trying to manipulate Dayton, like she was Bobby’s puppet. She’d been manipulated enough in her life to know how that kind of betrayal felt.
He pulled back from her, and she had to look away from the intensity in his eyes. “What’s wrong?”
She reached for her wine. She downed it in a few gulps, then smoothed her skirt back down over her thighs.
Confusion was all over his face. “If this is going too fast, then tell me.” He paused. “Or did you change your mind?”
“No, it’s not that.” She took several deep inhalations to stifle the panic in her. She had to say it. “I ... I need the flash drive with the footage.”
“What?” He stood up and stared at her. “Why?”
