“Oh, sweetie. It has nothing to do with you.” My heart splinters at the pure anguish on Aria’s face as I wipe away the tears rolling down her cheeks. “He’s just been working late.”
That’s a lie, and I hate lying to Aria, but there are times when it’s best to not tell the truth, especially to child Aria’s age. Theo and I will be having a long talk tonight once he gets home. That is, if it isn’t too late, like it was last night.
Her eyes meet mine and the pain in them guts me. “You promise?” she asks tearfully.
I bend down and kiss her forehead, wishing so much I could wipe away any doubt in her mind. “I promise, honey. Your daddy loves you very much and he misses you just as much as you miss him.”
She nods, and her little arms wrap around my neck. “I love you, Jules,” she whispers against my ear. My throat clogs at her sweet words, and I squeeze my eyes shut, hoping like hell I can control my emotions until I leave the room.
I take a calming breath, kiss her soft cheek, and pull back. ?
?I love you too, Aria.” And I do. I love this little girl so much.
The hopeless expression is gone, and a smile replaces it, bringing back the beautiful cherub girl of before.
I smile, glad her despair is forgotten for the moment. “Good night, baby. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Good night.”
I kiss her cheek one more time before getting up from the bed. Leaving the light on in her closet, I close the door until it’s only left open a couple of inches, just the way she likes it. I leave her room, my emotions all over the place, and walk out into the living room. Taking a seat on the couch, I wait for Theo to get home.
I wait, and I wait.
After three hours, I know it’s going to be another late night. Getting up from the couch with an irritated sigh, I go to the bedroom to get ready for bed. After Aria leaves for school tomorrow, I’ll have a talk with him. He needs to know his daughter is feeling neglected, and I swear to Christ, he better do something to fix it. No child should ever feel that way. No child’s eyes should ever carry that desolate look.
I climb into bed, my eyes already drifting closed before my head hits the pillow.
I STRETCH LAZILY AND smile when I feel warm breath at my neck and the hard body at my back. A heavy arm lies over my side as fingers tickle across my lower stomach, eliciting goose bumps to pop up over my skin.
“Mmm… that feels good,” I whisper, and arch my back, wanting more of the featherlight touches.
“It sure does,” a deep voice growls in my ear. Hips press into my butt, and I feel the hardness of his dick.
When his hand on my stomach travels south, butterflies form in my belly in anticipation. The first touch of his finger against my swollen clit has me gasping at the pure bliss it brings to my body.
I clench my legs together, trying to capture his hand. He chuckles behind me, his breath fanning against my fevered flesh.
“So impatient,” he rumbles.
“Please,” I beg, shifting my hips. “I need more.”
“I know what you need, baby, and I’ll give it to you.”
His fingers move away from my clit, and I whimper at the loss. It fades away into a moan when he lifts my leg, placing my foot behind his calf, and wedges his thigh between my legs, exposing my pussy to his greedy hands.
My nails dig into his forearms when his finger grazes my slit. His dick slides between my butt cheeks and he grinds it against me.
“Fuck me,” he breathes. “You’re so fucking wet for me, Jules. Only for me.”
“Only for you,” I repeat.
He pulls on my nether lips, driving me insane, before sliding a finger inside. His lips at my shoulder suck on my flesh, then he groans when I purposely clench my inner muscles around his finger.
“Vixen,” he growls, and gives me another finger, just like I knew he would.
I giggle, but it quickly turns into a soft cry when his thumb meets my clit. “Two can play that game.”
His free hand moves to one of my breasts and he tugs on the tip before plumping it into his hand. He moves his hips back, and a second later, I feel his dick slide against my slick pussy. Wanton need has my hand reaching between my legs to grab hold of his hard length. I want to put him at my entrance and have him push inside me, but his fingers are in the way, and he doesn’t seem to be done playing yet. I’ll give him a few more minutes, and in the meantime, I press him against me as close as I can get. He’s slick from my juices, so my hand easily slides along his firm shaft.