CHAPTER NINE

The following morning I woke to an empty bed, but it was not my own. It was the first time Sebastian and I had spent a full night together. Joe had always driven me home in the past. I didn't know if my staying over was intentional or not, but I chose to believe it was.

When I finally managed to drag myself from Sebastian's impossibly soft sheets, I found a folded white robe waiting for me on the dresser. It was accompanied by a note.

Your clothes were positively filthy, so I had them put in the wash. Your underwear too. They're drying at the moment, so you'll have to make do with something else for now.

I held it up in front of the mirror. Sheer and short, with a hem that barely covered the middle of my thighs, it hardly deserved the name 'robe' at all. I had no idea where he'd gotten it from.

My clothes may have had a day's wear, but " positively filthy" was definitely a stretch. It didn't take a rocket scientist to see that this was another of his little games. And as much as I enjoyed playing them, I felt a sudden desire to turn the tables on him.

A few minutes of exploring his extensive wardrobe turned up an over-sized tie-dyed tee shirt that fell all the way to my knees. It wasn't the sort of thing I could ever see Sebastian wearing, but it suited my needs just fine.

I found him in the kitchen. " Morning, " I said nonchalantly, as I strolled in.

" Good morning. " He did a double take. " Where on earth did you find that? "

I shrugged. " In your cupboard somewhere. "

" Was the robe not to your tastes? "

" Oh it was fine. I just figured if you were going to hold my clothes hostage I'd do the same to you. "

He laughed loudly. " Fair enough. Although I have to say, if commandeering your clothes causes you to dress like this every day, I'm not sure I'll be giving them back any time soon. Are you naked under there? "

I grazed my teeth over my bottom lip and tried to look innocent. " Maybe. "

He made an appreciative noise. " Well I have to say, you look fucking sexy wearing my clothes. "

" So it is yours? " I asked, grinning widely.

He sighed. " Regrettably, yes. Let's just say I was going through a phase. "

I laughed. It was impossible to picture Sebastian looking anything other than perfectly dapper — even now, naked, save for a pair of loose fitting slacks, he looked stunning — but it was nice to know he was human too.

My stomach rumbled as my brain finally registered the smell of oil and eggs. Looking around, I realised that breakfast was already well on the way. There was coffee brewing in a rather elaborate drip filter pot, and several fry pans were sizzling on the stove. Sebastian was busy flitting between them, spatula in hand. There was something about the image that made me giggle.

" What's so funny? " he asked.

" Nothing, I just didn't take you for much of a cook. "

A look of mock offence crossed his face. " And why would you think that? "

" I don't know. I just assumed you'd have somebody to do it for you. "

" Because money means you never do anything for yourself? "

" I didn't say that! It's just an amusing image. The millionaire dom who liked to cook. It's like a bad erotic book title. "

He grinned. " Even us steely sadists have to eat. "

" Well it smells great. " I slipped closer to survey what was on offer. " Mmm, Chorizo for breakfast? You're living dangerously. "

" I do everything dangerously, Sophia, " he deadpanned. We both laughed.

" You know, I honestly can't remember the last time a guy cooked me breakfast, " I said, taking a seat as he slid a plate in front of me. " I have to say, I kind of like it so far. "

He joined me at the bar. " Sounds to me like you've been dating the wrong guys. "

" You can say that again. " As much as I willed it to stay put, the smile fell from my face. I hated that two years later, Connor still had the power to hurt me, but he did. Just thinking about him made my stomach knot with shame.

Sebastian gazed at me for several seconds, his expression mirroring my own. " He must been one hell of a bastard. "

I nodded. " He wasn't exactly boyfriend of the year. "

" I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring him up. "

I sighed. As much as it hurt to discuss, I still felt a little like I owed Sebastian an explanation for my past behaviour. " It's fine. I should be able to talk about this stuff by now. "

He hesitated, but took the hint. " What happened between you two exactly? "

" Nothing worth talking about. He was rich and charming, I was young and naive. It was a match made in heaven... for him at least. "

" Were you together long? "

" A few years. Long enough to make me feel like an idiot for ever trusting him. " It came out more bitter than I'd intended.

" Hey, " he said, reaching out to stroke my arm, " everybody's allowed a mistake, here or there. God knows I've got my share. "

" There's a difference between a mistake and outright stupidity. All the signs were there — unexplained nights away from home, mysterious texts — but he always had an excuse ready, and I ate them up. Looking back on it now it seems so fucking obvious. "

" People don't behave rationally when they're in love. You can't hold that against yourself. Besides, from where I'm sitting, you're not the one that really fucked up. "

" Oh? "

He smiled. " You're a strong, beautiful, amazing woman, Sophia. He may have had you for a year or two, but he gave you up. One day, someone is going to have you forever, and then they're going to be the ones making him look stupid. "

I stared at him for several seconds, a rush of some foreign emotion blazing in my belly. Talking about Connor always left me feeling angry and embarrassed, but somehow Sebastian had washed all that away with just a few lovely words.

" Well, it's hard to argue with that, " I said.

" Then don't. "

We moved on to lighter topics. Sebastian had several less than flattering stories about Thomas. I think he was just trying to get revenge for 'Locky'. The whole experience was a bit of a revelation. Every time I was with him, he revealed a new side to himself, and I had to admit, lazy Tuesday morning Sebastian was quickly becoming my favourite. As fantastic as the sex was, it was nice just sitting around and chatting with him too. Away from prying eyes he seemed more relaxed; the professional superman persona was stashed away in the wardrobe alongside his racks of designer suits. Here he was just Sebastian, a man who wore old clothes and cooked scrambled eggs and delivered sweet words over coffee. What's more, he seemed at ease doing those things with me.

In spite of what Thomas had said and the initial discussions between Sebastian and I, it was hard not to feel like things were changing. Our last two nights together had been anything but casual, and it seemed impossible he didn't feel it too. The word 'forever' lingered in my mind. I didn't know how to take that comment. Was there more to it than simple comfort? Part of me wanted to think so.

After breakfast, we found our way back to the bedroom. He told me to leave his shirt on while he fucked me, pinning my arms behind my back and whispering dirty things about how hot I looked in his clothes. There were no cuffs or paddles or lengths of rope, just the unbreakable strength of his hands and the exquisite pressure of his cock. It was more than enough.

Afterwards, we lay snuggled in bed, flushed and glowing and blissfully satisfied. I desperately didn't want the morning to end, although I knew I couldn't delay much longer.

" Has anyone ever told you you tend to go above and beyond the call of duty? " I asked, dozing against his chest.

He began stroking my shoulder. " In what way? "

" Well, I tasked you with cheering me up, but apparently you weren't satisfied with that. Right now, I've left cheerful way behind. Seriously, you can't even see that shit anymore. I'd say I'm well into blissful territory. You deserve a commendation, sir. "

His hand froze. " I'm glad you're feeling better. "

" Next time, I'm totally going to call in sick and see how far we can push this. "

There was a pause. " Next time? "

" Next time we do this. I'll tell you; a girl could get used to sleepovers and homemade breakfasts. "

The silence that followed should probably have set alarm bells ringing in my head, but I was too content to really notice. All I could think about was how for the first time, it felt like things were really coming together for us.

How wrong I was.