Entry-Level Mistress - By Sabrina Darby Page 0,35

said with a tight smile.

“Don’t be stupid, Daniel,” I said, shaking my head. “You have any number of reasons not to be with me. And only one to be.”

I looked from his face to his lips, knowing he was waiting to know what that one reason was.

I stepped forward, reached up to curve my hand behind his neck, to draw his face down to mine as I stood on my toes. He followed my lead and I directed all of my frustration into the kiss.

The touch of lips to lips was electric. I studied the shape of his with my mouth, my tongue. I drank in every color, texture and temperature of him. When he held me close, his hands stroking me through my clothes, I finally relaxed against him and took the pleasure simply for pleasure and not as a battle I needed desperately to win. It was the calm after the storm.

“Why don’t you take me home, Daniel?” I whispered against his skin. “We can celebrate your decision.” He was swaying. He wanted to say yes, like I wanted him to. I just needed to keep him in this space, keep the tone light, tease him out of this obsession with the difference in our age. I lifted myself on tiptoe, raked my teeth lightly over his earlobe and then said, “But you’d better make your choice quick. I don’t have much time to spare … I’m not getting any younger.”

His laughter shot through me like an aphrodisiac. And like that, the fight was over and nobody was trying to run away. The tension that wound through my body dissipated. I slipped down to my heels, leaned against him, his left arm around me as we both pulled out our phones: he to text his driver, and I to let Leanna know the change in plans. We had at least one more night.

Chapter 10

Thin, early light snuck around the thick, wooden slats of the window shades. Between that and the crazy chirping of the birds, I judged it to be around five. Daniel shifted, lifted his arm and I scooted closer, into the space he had created for me, my head resting against his shoulder.

“I need to go,” I whispered.

“What color is your hair really?”

I laughed, surprised.

“Purple.”

“I’m not entirely certain purple is a natural human color.”

I giggled again, my arm tightening around his chest before my hand started drifting.

“It’s brown. Just slightly lighter than … um … ” I gestured down my body, toward my thighs.

“I’d love to see that.” He shifted onto his side, ran his finger along the under curve of my breast.

“I should go.”

“What you really should do is leave clothes here.”

I laughed. “That’s good for the future, but what about today?”

He rolled onto his back and let me get up. I stood, moved about the room, gathering the pieces of last night’s ensemble.

While he drove me home, I stared at his profile, trying to understand him. The tension of the night before was gone. This morning he was warm and considerate. He wanted me to leave my stuff at his place, as if I were actually his girlfriend. And maybe I was. The pleasure of that symbolic request stayed with me throughout the morning, even after he was long gone. As I showered and dressed, packed my purse and did a cursory cleaning of my bedroom.

Then it was time to go to work.

When my father called as I was walking up the steps from the subway, I flipped the phone open before I remembered I was avoiding his calls.

“What, you don’t call your old man anymore?”

Despite my guilt, I laughed at my dad’s phrasing. The thought of Mark Anderson as an old man, even after all these hard years, was ridiculous.

“I’ve been busy. I hope you got the Father’s Day card.”

“Too busy for me? That sounds exciting. But I thought the fellowship didn’t start until August.”

“It doesn’t.” I hesitated, felt caught in a lie though I hadn’t actually lied yet. “I … I took a marketing job for the summer. Wanted to get some money in the bank. Just in case. Maybe I’ll move to New York.”

“Look at you.” I could hear him laughing and it rankled, awakening the teenager in me that still wanted to break away and grow up. “Talking about getting money in the bank.”

“I’m on my own now, dad,” I said softly, just shy of reminding him that he hadn’t been able to help support me since he went to