I feel her ass clench around my thumb as her pussy begins to throb. And it’s too much for me too. I’m going to come at the same time she does no matter how much I try to hold back.

I feel her body go tight and roar as my release overwhelms me, the pulses of my cum filling the condom as Dani shatters on my cock. I’m lost to the waves of pleasure, her cries echoing in my ears while my vision goes black. I keep riding her hard, drawing it out for both of us, until I’m panting, breathless from how hard I came.

Blinking, I force my eyes to refocus on the gorgeous sight before me. Dani is boneless against the bed, the only thing holding her hips up is me, and while her eyes are closed, her mouth is open and smiling. I’ll remember this look on her face forever. It’s that beautiful.

But as I start to pull out, keeping hold of the condom, her lashes flutter and she cuts her eyes to me. “You spanked me and stuck your finger in my ass.” The accusation is meant to be harsh but sounds half-assed at best, no pun intended.

So I smack her once more. “Yep, and you liked it.” Instead of waiting for her to argue, because I know she’s going to, I add, “Let me get you a towel.” I step into the hall, assuming one of the other doors must be a bathroom. When I find the small room, I dispose of the condom in the trash and take a washrag from a basket beneath the sink. I wet it and wring out, and reflexively, I glance up at myself in the mirror.

I look shell-shocked.

Hell, I am. As much by how amazing fucking Dani was as everything else.

Back in her room, she’s laid down on her stomach, so I swipe the rag between her legs for her. “What are you doing?” she says, popping up to peek over her shoulder at me.

“Cleaning us up,” I say as if it’s obvious. But given the look on Dani’s face that matches my own in the mirror, I don’t think anyone’s ever done that for her.

The thought leaves me cold.

This amazing woman should have someone take care of her, especially with how much she does for everyone else. I understand that she doesn’t want that or doesn’t think she needs it, but a small kindness shouldn’t be such a big deal. She deserves better.

I toss the rag in the bathroom sink and then return to her once again. Pulling the comforter back, I make a spot for myself and then say, “Come here.”

Dani seems surprised, but she does, climbing beneath the comforter and cuddling into my side when I open my arm for her. She’s quiet for several minutes, her fingers dancing over my chest and down my abs, and I can nearly hear her mind whirling. But I twirl a length of hair that’s come loose from her decidedly extra-messy bun through my fingers and wait while she gets her thoughts together because the noise is starting to come back in my brain too.

“I’m glad you were here when I got home,” she says finally. But then she corrects herself. “I didn’t need you to rescue me, but I’m glad you were here.”

It’s a big admission from her, so I give her one right back.

“I didn’t come here to rescue you. I was on the verge of blowing up my whole life and thought you could save me. I didn’t know where else to go.”

She lifts up, her dark eyes scanning mine uncertainly. “What happened?”

I don’t want to talk about it. Talking about what I heard earlier is the absolute last thing I want to do, but I think I need to, and I sure as shit can’t talk to my brothers or sister about it. Dani’s safe, outside of that whole world, though she doesn’t know how far outside of it she is.

I sigh heavily, putting my other arm behind my head as I stare at the ceiling.

“Family shit I wasn’t expecting,” I say, making it sound lighter than it actually is.

She laughs, lying back down on my chest. “Are we talking about me or you?”

“Fair point. Both. You go first.”

I’m stalling and we both know it, so she gives me the shortest answer imaginable. “Mom lied. Set me up, and I couldn’t tell her no. Another shitty date with some guy I’ll never see again. Your turn.”

That’s pretty much what she said on the phone too, but hearing it again does soothe some of the hurt I felt when I heard her say she was on a date with someone else.

I wish I could give her that type of short answer, but my family issue is a bit more complicated than that.

“My dad texted, asking me to come over. When I got there, he was being nice… and that’s not how he is, not with me, so I was suspicious from the get-go. He’s got a pool project that he wants my help with, but I turned him down. I don’t need him or a pity contract.”

“Is it a good opportunity for you?”

“Wouldn’t matter if it was,” I say dismissively, and she makes a sound of surprise. “If, after ripping the restaurant away from you, your dad came to you and said ‘I’ll set you up in a restaurant now’, would you do it?” I feel the small shake of her head. “Right, because at this point, you could do it yourself if you wanted to. So his suddenly coming in like that, after proving you can do fine on your own, is just shitty.”

“So you turned him down,” she surmises.

“Yeah. He was pissed, but that’s nothing new. I kinda got a kick out of that, to be honest. But when I was leaving, I overheard my mom talking to someone on the phone. I know it’s wrong, but she was talking about me so I couldn’t help but listen.” I swallow, not wanting to give air to what I’m thinking, what’s been running through my mind all day and night, nearly sending me to the bottom of a bottle of whisky and ultimately, sending me to Dani’s porch in desperation.