Which was a pointed reminder she and Gavin needed to talk.
He rinsed the plates and refilled their coffee. “So what’s on your mind, Ree?”
Damn perceptive man. “I’m new at this morning-after stuff.”
“I know. You avoided me Friday and Saturday morning after our Thursday night.”
“You noticed that, huh?”
Gavin leaned forward, sliding his knee between hers and placing her left hand between his. “This conversation is about the start of something between us, not the end, right?”
“Right.” She sipped her coffee. “Let’s deal with the elephant in the room first thing. Sierra.”
“Part of me thinks that my sweet, but self-absorbed teen won’t notice the change in our relationship. The other part of me thinks she’s already sensed the shift in the last few weeks. Not that she’s said anything to me.”
“Her suspecting we’re involved and her seeing us groping each other on the couch…two different things.”
He nipped the tips of her fingers. “Will you let me grope you on the couch now?”
“Maybe. But my point is I’d prefer to keep this between us for a little while longer.”
“Why? You think it’ll burn out?”
Rielle set her hand on his cheek. “No.”
Gavin kissed the inside of her wrist. “I don’t want to hide what I feel for you. I want you in my bed some nights. But I don’t want you feeling like you have to tiptoe down the hallway so my daughter doesn’t see you sneaking out of my room.”
“Or see you creeping up the stairs from my bedroom at the crack of dawn,” she countered. “But that does bring up my other point, Gavin. I want to spend time with you, but not at the expense of the time you spend with Sierra. And I don’t want you suddenly inviting me to do family things. We both know she’d resent that and me. I won’t put you in that position, nor will I put myself in that position.”
“Without pissing you off, this is exactly why I’ve avoided relationships. Why does it have to be so complicated?”
“It doesn’t.” Rielle pressed her lips to his, coaxing his mouth to open to her kiss. She loved this intimacy. The give and take. The taste of him. The feel of his breath on her face, sometimes fast and short, sometimes soft as a sigh.
He eased off first, then kissed the corners of her mouth, the apples of her cheeks, her temples and between her eyebrows. “So we can only be like this…openly affectionate…?”
“During the day when Sierra is at school. Or at night when we’re alone.” She gazed into his eyes. “Not forever. Just for a little while. You’ll know when the time is right to tell her.”
“I’ll tell her? Not we’ll tell her?”
Rielle shook her head. “She’s your daughter. I’m just a woman who lives here.” She slipped her arms around his neck. “Who is wildly attracted to her father.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Wildly?”
“Uh-huh. And I’ll prove it.” She nuzzled his ear. “Did you happen to bring a condom with you?”
“Nope. I brought two.”
“Always prepared. I like that about you.”
“Ree, I know you haven’t been with anyone for a long time. I haven’t been either. Can we skip the condoms?” He caressed her face. “I’d like to make love to you without latex between us.”
“I, ah…talked to Doc Monroe last night, and she wrote me a prescription for birth control. But even if I get it filled today, it’ll take a month for the pills to be effective.”
Gavin had a pensive look on his face.
“What?”
“There’s no chance I’ll ever get you pregnant. I had a vasectomy nine years ago.”
Her eyes searched his. “Really?”
“After the divorce and dealing with Ellen using Sierra to manipulate me…I never wanted to give a woman that much power again or to do that to another child of mine. So I scheduled the procedure. I love my daughter. She fills my life with enough joy that I’m content with having one kid. Are you all right with that?”
“Do you mean was I hoping to get pregnant at age forty when I have a twenty-four-year-old daughter?” She shuddered. “That boat has sailed for me. But I already had one unintended pregnancy in my life. I wasn’t keen on taking chemicals to prevent that from happening again at my age, but I’d do it.” She kissed him. “So I’m very happy I don’t have to.”
“Me too.”
She hopped off the barstool. “Race you to my room. Whoever wins gets to be on top.”
The man had such a competitive streak. He nearly knocked her on her butt as he raced down the hallway and jumped on her bed.
But he let her be on top anyway.
Gavin’s cell phone rang early Monday morning. “This is Gavin Daniels.”
“Gavin! Good to hear your voice. This is George Krebs. I’m with the Bracken Investment Group?”
He tried to put the name with a face but couldn’t. “You have me at a disadvantage, George. Have we met?”
“Once, briefly, last year. At a Shout It Out fundraiser.”
“Natalie, my media coordinator at Daniels Development Group, handles donations for those events—”
“No. This call isn’t about a fundraiser, but we do appreciate all your support. The reason for my call is…a little odd. So bear with me.”
“Okay.”
“My understanding is you’ve stepped down from the day-to-day running of Daniels Development Group?”
“Technically I’m still running DDG, but not from the Phoenix office. I’ve relocated.”
“Permanently?”
“Why don’t you tell me why you’re so interested in who has control of my company?”
“One of our clients is interested in buying the Golden Valley property recently listed with DDG. I assume you’re familiar with it?”
“Very familiar.” That was the last chunk of undeveloped land his father had purchased fifteen years ago, prior to his death. Gavin had been holding onto it, waiting to see what type of development sprang up in that section of Maricopa County. It’d been completely unzoned at the time of purchase, which meant it could end up residential or commercial. Now the surrounding area contained medical complexes and high-end high-rise condos. With the possible shift in the commercial real estate market, Gavin had decided to list it right before they’d left Arizona. And if his assessors were correct, the sale of this chunk of dirt would be the biggest financial payout of his career.