CHAPTER 8
I wake up and I feel warm, the sensation of Mr Ledger’s arms still wrapped tight around me lingering like phantom limbs, his imaginary muscles rippling as he holds me in my dreams, and then I realise I’m not dreaming, and he’s still in my bed.
I breathe in sharply as I panic.
‘Blake,’ I whisper.
He stirs beside me as I look toward the door. It’s still closed, but the lock is broken. If one of the girls were to come in…
‘Blake, wake up,’ I say, louder.
‘Mmm,’ he groans, squeezing me tighter, his hard cock already pressing insistently between my thighs as I giggle and smack at his hands.
‘Blake,’ I hiss.
‘What is it?’ he says, and then he opens his eyes and whispers. ‘Shit.’
His arms loosen as he lets me go, and I roll over to face him as he looks at me and smiles.
‘Morning,’ I say, blushing as I remember everything.
‘Morning,’ he rumbles, mischief in his eyes, then he sniffs and glances at the door. ‘I have to go.’
‘I know,’ I say, looking down at his lips as his hand comes to rest on my bare hip.
I lean in and kiss him gently and I smile as he kisses me back, and then he throws back the covers and slides out as quietly as he can. For a brief moment, I see him naked and I realise with rising embarrassment that’s it for the first time. He sees me looking as he goes to pull on his discarded boxers and he must know what I’m thinking because he grins and turns toward me and I blush so hard I think I might be glowing.
I cover my eyes and then peek through the lattice of my fingertips as he dresses, and then he kneels on the covers again and leans in close and takes my face in his palms and kisses me softly before he dances away, and before I can even blink, he’s gone, and a heartbeat later Harpy comes wandering in, rubbing her eyes and yawning and I pull the covers up and smile with wide eyes.
‘Morning angel,’ I say brightly as she stands unsteadily, blinking at me.
‘I’m thirsty,’ she says.
‘And I’m Mackenzie, nice to meet you,’ I wave.
She screws her eyes up at me, but her scowl quickly turns into a grin, and then she wanders over and picks up my glass from my nightstand gulping down the contents in a flash before wiping her mouth.
‘Why were you and daddy kissing?’ she says as she catches her breath.
I freeze, my mouth half-open as I try and process the words I’ve just heard tumble from my four-year-old charge’s mouth.
Fuck.
What do I say? How do I answer this? I don’t know. There isn’t a way to answer this, and I’m left with nothing in my arsenal but white lies.
‘I think maybe you were dreaming sweetie,’ I say, biting my lip as I hope.
‘I’m hungry,’ she says. ‘And don’t say, nice to meet you hungry.’
My face flushes with relief as I nod. ‘Then let’s get you some breakfast,’ I say, my eyes widening as I remember the state of my dress.
I spy my underwear on the floor beside me, out of Harper’s eye-line, and I grin and lean forward. ‘Race you downstairs?’ I say, and her eyes light up as she spins around and tears out of the room.
I breathe out.
Fuck.
I don’t know if Mr Ledger heard everything that just happened, but I know it won’t be the last we’ll hear of it. Children don’t forget things like this, they just misplace them for a while and then find them again when you least expect it.