stay for a couple of hours? Get some sleep, and I’ll drive you to your car in the morning.”
She yawned. “It is morning,” she said. “And Fred will be worried.”
Something else in his eyes, but he merely nodded then moved around the room, gathering up the remainder of her clothing and handing it to her. Then he went through a door, and flicked on a light, illuminating a closet.
He came back out as she was stepping into her shoes, fully dressed, a hoodie in his hands, thrusting it at her. “It’ll be cold.”
There went her heart again.
It was dangerous how vulnerable the sliver of kindness made her. The care that he presented was nothing. She’d seen inside his closet, saw the racks of clothes. Surely, he wouldn’t miss one sweatshirt.
But it still meant a lot.
Because he’d thought about it.
About her.
“Thanks,” she whispered, tugging it over her head and slipping into the bathroom to use the facilities and to wash her hands.
He wasn’t in the bedroom when she came out, and she strolled down the hall, popping in to say goodbye to Sweetheart on her way out. The little pup was curled up in the back of her crate, her eyes closed, but she gave Stef a tail wag and lick on her hand when she reached in and scratched Sweetheart between her ears.
“Bye, baby,” Stef crooned, locking up and turning off the light in the dog room, her lips twitching when she saw that Ben had rigged up several nightlights that left the space in a comforting glow.
Ben was standing across the hall, so handsome that she felt her heart lurch.
“I can’t believe you tamed the beast,” he said, his voice roughened velvet that slipped between her legs. Combined with that and the spicy scent of his sweatshirt surrounding her, and she thought she might already be addicted.
One hit and she’d gone down the rabbit hole.
“She’s not so bad,” Stef said, walking past him. He held her purse, apparently having retrieved it from wherever she’d dropped it.
Maybe the white rug.
Maybe the hall.
Honestly, she couldn’t remember.
“Tell that to the dozens of pet sitters and everyone in my office who have either quit or are terrified of her.”
Stef took the purse when he held it out. “I’m hoping the quitting is related to the pet sitters and not your employees?”
A grin that sunk like an arrow into her heart.
If an arrow was good.
Okay, that was a horrible analogy, but still she felt the impact of his grin like it was something physical.
“The quitters were the dog sitters,” he said, inclining his head to the front door. “The terrified are my employees.”
“Poor things.”
“When you have a snarling beast chasing you, tell me how you’d react.”
Stef snorted. “What is she? All of four pounds?”
“Four-point-six frightening pounds.”
Laughter bubbled in her chest. “That point-six makes a difference.”
“Damn right, it does.”
He held the door open—or rather, pushed the button to call the elevator—and after a few moments the panel slid open, the silver doors parting behind it, and they stepped on.
“A private elevator is pretty fancy.”
His eyes slid to hers. “Perk of owning the building.”
Her brows lifted. “That’s fancy, too,” she said. “And here I was proud of paying off my Prius.”
He went quiet, very quiet, and she almost felt him spooling back into himself, locking down the outer layers and locking them down tightly.
“I’m kidding.” She touched his arm. “My friend’s mom owns one of the big cosmetics businesses, so I know that money can make some people feel awkward.” A wince. “Sorry if my lame attempt at fishing for a joke did the same. She prefers directness, and I shouldn’t have assumed you are the same.”
Still quiet.
The doors opened and she stepped off, immediately seeing the exit of the underground garage and turning toward it.
Ben caught her arm. “My car’s that way.”
She shrugged him off. “I know.” She moved to the exit.
Suddenly, his broad, hard body was an inch from her nose, and she was reminded how she hadn’t had enough time to explore it. She wanted her mouth on every centimeter, wanted to tease out every single sensitive nook and cranny.
“What the fuck are you doing?” he snapped.
“I’m just going to get a Lyft,” she said. “You’ve done more than your due diligence and—”
She yelped in surprise when he suddenly had her pinned against the wall.
He didn’t hurt her, quite the opposite, actually. He’d weaved his arms around her, his hands a barrier between the wall and her body. “What the fuck are you