Page 15 of Daddy's Best Friend

His offer was generous and gave me hope. However, the tone he used when he said the words “the incident” didn’t bolster much confidence. The idea of going to his home excited me, until I realized the last time he had invited me there was to hang outwith Trevor. Not only did I want nothing to do with him; I now thought of Trevor as a sleazeball. He frightened me. If Alan hadn’t been there…

“What do you think?” His question interrupted my thoughts.

“Uh, well, I’m not sure.” I bit my lip, then instantly realized he could be reading me as hesitant to be with him, which wasn’t at all what I wanted him to think. I wanted nothing more than to dive forward and see where this went.

“If you’re worried about Trev, he’s going to be out of town this weekend. Some hiking thing in the Rockies.” Alan folded the report shut and picked it up, tapping it so the pages straightened out, then putting it in his top desk drawer. “It would be just you and me.”

I swallowed hard, a shot of adrenaline through my body making me suddenly aroused by that idea. Just me and him, alone at his house. And the fact that he had been able to read me like a book and know my hesitancy was Trevor. I couldn’t resist.

“Of course. I love that idea. So, tonight? What time?” I stood, smoothing the wrinkles out of my skirt and securing my purse on my shoulder again.

Alan smiled at me. “How about eight. That will give me time to clean up a bit. Trevor had some friends over the other night and the maid has the week off.” He rose to his feet too, the way he always did when I left the room after a meeting or a short visit. “I’ll see you tonight. Should I send a car for you?”

“Uh, no thanks. I can Uber. I’m used to it.”

I tried not to squeal or skip to the door, but inside I felt like a 13-year-old girl whose crush just asked her on a date. I was giddy.My smile, all too genuine and radiant, did not escape Heather’s gaze as I opened the door and walked out. She glowered at me, though I didn’t know why. And when I got to the elevators, I noticed her standing at Alan’s door. It made me wonder why she looked so grumpy, but I brushed it off.

Alan and I were having dinner—alone—at his house.

The elevator doors clicked shut and that is when I let out the giddy school-girl scream. This day could only get better.

12

ALAN

Dinner with Ella was pleasant. We talked about work so much that I almost forgot the entire reason she had come over was to discuss what happened at her birthday party. She hadn’t brought it up, so neither had I. It was nice to sit and talk about the thing that interested me most—my business ventures—with someone who seemed to genuinely appreciate it and be interested in it too.

Ella had very good ideas and brought a perspective to my thought processes that challenged me. She came from a different vantage point—youth. Something I had neglected to remember as I aged. At 40 years old, I had a tendency to think that middle-age was the prime time in life, much the same way I had thought my 20s were the pinnacle age.

“So anyway—” she sipped her glass of wine and smiled over the rim at me before continuing “—what I was saying was that the entertainment within the hotels, on the cruise liners, all those places you’re already drawing people to, it needs to be more fun for the younger crowd. Don’t book Dolly Parton, book Taylor Swift. See what I’m saying?”

Her eyes sparkled, reminding me of my youth, my zest for life when I was most passionate about striking out on my own to make a legacy. That glint of light flickering off her eyes also made me see how gorgeous she was, inside and out. Ella gained nothing from offering her encouragement and support of my business. For all she knew, her internship would end with nothing more than the money she made and a great reference letter to take to her first job.

“I think you’ve really got something there.” And she did—my heart. She was fucking with something deep in my heart I couldn’t even put my finger on. Things between Kirsty and I were so bad, she accused me of having an affair because I worked so much. It had made me doubt my passion and drive to build this company. Ella, however, was just as passionate as I was. I just didn’t know if that was because she was actually interested in the company, or if it was because she had a crush on me.

Ella dropped her napkin after wiping her mouth. “Now, you said there was a pool here? Shall we go splash around a bit?” Her smile was contagious, and so was her zest for life. I wiped my mouth and tossed my napkin onto the table.

“Sure, I’ll clean this up later. You need to get changed?” I stood and she joined me.

“Already wearing my bikini.” Her eyes darted to the large sliding glass door. “It’s that way?” She pointed to the patio, the pool hidden from sight by the large palms and palmettos. The sun was already dipping below the horizon, so I knew the lights would be coming on soon if they weren’t already.

“Yes, I’ll grab some towels and change quick and meet you out there.”

Ella grabbed her wine glass and mine, then snagged the carafe and headed toward the door. I watched her sashay outside, then darted up to my room to change. I resisted the temptation of watching her take her shorts and tank top off poolside by spying out my bedroom window, but it was a struggle. And after grabbing two towels I headed out back.

Ella sat on one of the lounge seats, dripping wet. Her hair fell in soggy tangled waves around her face. The tiny, black string bikini she wore was barely large enough to cover her nipples. Her tits were perfect, curvy and full. My cock stirred, my groin tensing as I took her in. Looks weren’t everything; our dinner conversation was proof of that, but honestly Ella was the whole package.

“The water is amazing. Saltwater is the best; pools can stay so much warmer, so they don’t feel icy when you jump in.” She reached for a towel, and I handed one to her, sitting down on the lounge next to her as she dabbed her face. “Are you getting in?”

“Ella, I think we should talk first.” I set the towel down next to me, realizing if I didn’t get this discussion over with, I’d end up making a bad choice again tonight. “Don’t you think?”

She pushed herself up straighter on the lounge, then turned to face me. Our knees touched, so I readjusted the way I was sitting. The electricity that passed between us even at that slight touch made it difficult for me to think straight.

“Yeah, so… I guess we need to talk about what happened last weekend.” She used the towel to squeeze the water out of her hair casually, as if what we were about to discuss was an every-day topic. I wished I had that same carefree attitude still.

“Ella, what happened… Well, it can’t happen again.”

The almost imperceptible pause of her hands drying her hair felt like a kick in the nuts. But she slowly continued working the long red strands through the towel, then tossed it aside. Her fingers didn’t even falter as she reached beneath her hair and untied her bikini top, then behind her back to undo those ties too. The material fell to her lap, exposing what was left of her breasts. Her nipples were hard peaks.

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