Squatting down next to her, I say, “I’m here if you change your mind.”
“Thank you.”
My hand moves to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, and I caress her cheek. She leans into it, accepting what comfort I can give her. Her eyes flutter shut for a moment, and when they open, the pain I had seen there earlier is gone. I damn near snap when I see her smile up at me. My head begins to move toward hers, and I don’t have the willpower to stop it.
Luckily, she does.
Slipping out of my hold, she moves toward the door.
“Amelia will be up soon. I should get ready.”
“Thanks for hanging out.”
“Thanks for making me feel better.”
Unable to take my eyes off her, I stare at the doorway, watching her leave. The door shuts, and I remain there, staring at the dark wood. Sexually frustrated without a way to satisfy it, I do a workout that takes a toll on me, not just my body but my mind. There’s a war waging inside me, and no amount of weight pressed, no amount of any type of exertion is going to bring it to an end. Only one thing will—Ember.
And Ember is as far off-limits as you can get.
When I get out of the shower, I can hear Ember and Amelia playing in her room. The sound of their laughter and happiness makes my chest constrict. Fucking hell, I barely know the woman, yet everything about her seems to be a major turn-on, even seeing her interact with Amelia.
I quickly dress and peek my head into Amelia’s room. “I’m off to work. I’ll be home for dinner.”
Amelia runs to me and hugs me. “Love you, Daddy.”
I press a kiss to the top of her head. “Love you, too, kiddo. Have a good day.”
Amelia runs back to Ember and begins to play.
“Goodbye, Ember.”
Ember looks up from the game she had been playing with Amelia and smiles.
“Bye, Ryder. Have a good day.”
The scene laid out before me is breathtaking. I love watching the two of them together. In fact, I love it so much that my mind is in a complete fog on my way to work. I’m hoping the caseload I have will keep me occupied and alleviate some of the frustrations of having to walk away from Ember. Mark’s cocky smile as I step into the building, however, does not.
“Don’t even start,” I warn him. He follows me as I walk into the building.
“Someone has an attitude today.”
What does he expect? Every day since Ember began working for me, Mark has been insistent about me having feelings for her or needing to fuck her, depending on his mood that day. Either way, he’s been on a non-stop Ember kick, and it’s driving me crazy. After this morning, I’m not in the mood to deal with it. Rather than argue with him, I turn the conversation to work.
“I’m going to visit with Mrs. Pierce to see what we can do to help locate those missing funds.”
“I’m not really sure what she’s expecting from us.”
“She pays well, though,” I remind him.
“True, and she’s a business partner of Jackson’s, so to him, this is personal.”
“I better get to work,” I say, holding up the file in my hand.
“Okay, fine… for now.” Mark laughs. “How’s Amelia?”
“She’s good.” Thinking about my daughter, I smile. “Real good.”
“Told you that you’d do great with this dad stuff.”