He ran a hand over her head. “Allison, look at me.”
Relaxing her jaw, she let the blanket fall from her mouth and opened her eyes to look at him. He swiped at the tears running down her face. “You did well.”
She held his gaze for a long moment. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean...”
Daniel continued to brush at the moisture on her cheeks. “Come here.”
Rolling to her side, he helped her to sit up. The new position put pressure on her ass, reminding her of her punishment.
He wrapped his arms around her, tucking her head beneath his chin. His lips grazed the top of her hair as he held her, letting her cry. It wasn’t only the physical pain she cried about, but also the weight of disappointing him. She should have called him, or at least sent a text.
Her tears began to ebb and her breathing returned to normal, matching its rhythm to his. “Feeling better?” he asked.
“Yes, Sir.”
He tilted her chin up and gave her a soft kiss. “Get yourself ready for bed. I’m going to make sure everything’s locked up for the night.”
Ali nodded and got off his lap. Her backside was still burning, but she knew it would be. He hadn’t held back when he spanked her, and she would still feel it in the morning.
She took her time in the bathroom washing her face, brushing her hair, and taking care of business. Remaining in only her panties, she headed back into the bedroom and crawled into bed.
The sound of people talking drew her attention, but they were far enough away she couldn’t make out what they were saying or even who they were. She figured one had to be Daniel but was the other one Bradley? Or worse, her mother?
The urge to throw on a robe and investigate was there, but she pushed that notion back where it came from. Daniel had told her to get ready for bed. And while he hadn’t specifically told her to wait for him in bed, it had been implied and she wasn’t about to disobey him again. Not only couldn’t her bottom take it, but neither could her heart.
It felt like an hour before the bedroom door opened and Daniel walked through, although it was probably more like ten minutes. His gaze landed on her in his bed and from the look on his face, she knew she’d made the right decision.
He strolled to the hamper and began removing his clothes. His back was to her, and she watched as his muscles flexed with each movement.
When he turned around, he caught her staring. A small smile pulled at his lips. “Roll onto your stomach. I want to put some cream on your ass before bed.”
Ali did as he requested, carefully getting into position.
He moved one side of her panties out of the way and rubbed the cream into her backside, then did the same to the other side. She bit the inside of her cheek. Even though he wasn’t pressing hard, it was still tender.
Returning the cream to the nightstand, he went into the bathroom. She stayed where she was while he was gone. Part of her didn’t want to move because every time she did, her sensitive bottom scraped against the sheets. The other part wanted to stay there to give the cream time to soak in. It wouldn’t do any good if she rubbed all of it off on the sheets.
She was still in the same position when Daniel emerged from the en suite. He walked to his side of the bed, pulled the covers back, and lay down. “Come here.”
Without hesitation, Ali moved closer to him, turning on her side so she could rest her head on his shoulder. He circled his arms around her, holding her tight. She could hear his heartbeat beneath her ear, and she let the steady beat relax her. “Good night, Sir.”
He pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “Good night, sweetheart.”
CHAPTER26
The sun wasn’t up yetwhen Daniel crawled out of bed the next morning. Ali was sleeping soundly, the covers tucked under her chin as high as they could go.
After a few minutes in the bathroom, he slipped into his swim trunks and made his way out to the pool. The morning air was brisk, and he wasted no time tossing his towel onto one of the lounge chairs and diving into the water.
One of the things Daniel loved most about swimming was how he could either push himself until his muscles ached and his lungs burned, or he could glide through the water and let his mind drift. This morning, he needed to blow off some steam, so he pushed himself hard. He didn’t stop until his lungs felt like they were going to burst out of his chest.
Resting on the edge of the pool with his forearms pressing against the cool tile, he watched the sun rise over the back of his property. It was a new day, and he knew it was going to come with a new set of challenges. Ali’s boss needed to be dealt with. He’d cleared his calendar for the morning and was going to spend the time going through the folder Peter had sent him.
Normally, he’d stay at the house to do that, but he feared that would be a bad idea. Ali’s mom was an unknown factor. He didn’t know enough about her to get a read on her next move, which meant he needed to be cautious.
Zelda Foster thought her daughter had landed herself a sugar daddy. Something he didn’t think had the same negative connotation in Zelda’s mind as it did in Bradley’s. From what Ali had shared with him, her mother tended to bounce from man to man, returning to Ali only when each relationship came to an end.
The French doors at the back of the house opened and he turned to see Bradley. His son had thrown on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt and was carrying two cups of coffee.