I had no idea what woke me up. It could have been the pang in my belly telling me that I needed to hit the bathroom ASAP, or it could have just been the unusual quiet of the room. I always slept with a fan going.

But something woke me, and for a moment, disorientation washed over me. I knew immediately that I wasn’t in my room. The mattress was a little too soft, for one.

For another, there was an arm thrown over my waist, and a hard, firm body pressed against the back of mine.

That was another indicator.

Immediately, memory slammed into me, and I had to close my eyes for a minute just to take everything in. I wanted to roll over and look at Lukas in the dim light, but the pressure in my belly told me I really did need to go to the bathroom. I slid from the bed and stood there, shivering for a few seconds as I tried to get oriented.

I hated waking up in a strange room at night.

Spying a door across the room, I hurried over to it vaguely recalling the shower we’d taken in the middle of the night. I was almost positive this was the bathroom.

It was.

Longing panged inside me at the sight of the deep, sunken tub and my aching body whispered how nice it would be to run a bath and slide into it, but that wasn’t going to happen right now.

After taking care of business, I washed my hands and hurried back out into the bedroom. I spied his shirt on the floor and grabbed it, slipping my arms into the sleeves quickly then buttoning it up before slipping back under the covers and snuggling up next to Lukas.

His arm immediately came back around me, and he mumbled a sleepy, “Good morning.”

I stared at him in the dim morning light. Before I could stop it, a smile spread across my face.

“What is it?” He sounded grumpy and tired.

“Nothing,” I said, but there was a note of wonder in my voice. The lines that perpetually grooved his cheeks were gone. The deep furrow that was almost always between his eyebrows was gone as well. He looked ten years younger. Lighter, somehow. It was as if a weight had fallen off his shoulders in the middle of the night.

Lifting a hand, I pressed it to his cheek. Stubble that had grown in the middle of the night rasped against my palm.

He covered my hand with his and turned his mouth toward my palm, pressing a kiss to it. “Thank you.”

“For what?” I asked.

Instead of answering, he pulled me on top of him and rubbed his lips against mine.

“I need to brush my teeth,” I said.

“I’m not complaining.” He rolled on top of me and slid his thigh between mine. I opened for him and he sank inside me, sweet and easy.

It was a slow, easy coming together, unlike any we had ever had before.

His lips met mine in a kiss so lazy and sweet, my heart felt like it was going to explode in my chest, while pleasure built inside me with every breath.

When it was over, he pulled me on top of him and threaded a hand through my hair. I kissed one flat male nipple and murmured, “What was the thank you for?”

“For telling me. For caring enough to find out.” He brushed my hair back, and I looked up to find him watching me, head propped up on his forearm. “Something tells me you were reluctant to say anything.”

“I was.” Heaving out a sigh, I admitted, “I knew I was digging around in your personal business, and I know how private you are, but I couldn’t let it go. Once Gilbert said you weren’t his son…well, I knew you’d want to have answers.”

“You’re right. If I’d had any idea myself, I would have done the digging myself ages ago.” His mouth twisted. “Gilbert has a lot to answer for.”

I bit my lip, a mental debate waging inside me. In the end, I spoke up. “He’s a miserable, angry old man. There’s nothing you can really do that would make him more miserable than he’s made himself. He’ll never have anybody who truly cares about him.” Brushing my finger across Lukas’s lower lip, I said quietly, “I think, in the end, he’s done himself more damage than you can. Why don’t you let it go? Don’t let him draw you back in that ugly, angry world of his.”

Mouth tight, Lukas met my eyes. “I don’t know if I can.”

“Will you try?”

“For you.” He pulled me in close again and kissed my temple.

We lay in silence for a while. He stroked a hand down my spine and said, “I’m not going into the office today. There’s something I want you to help me with. I don’t have any right to ask but maybe a fresh set of eyes would make a difference.”

Pushing up onto my elbow, I met his gaze. “What is it?”

“I’ve got the books, files, documents, receipts, a lot of stuff here that I want to go over. I’ve missed something, and I’m determined to figure out who has been stealing from the company.” His eyes flashed hot. “And who set you up. With you gone, they’ll either stop or come up with a better way to hide everything, so I have to get it figured out now. I want you to help me look at everything.”

“I don’t know how much good I’ll be. Accounting is not exactly my forte.”

He shrugged. “Numbers are my area and I’m missing it. Maybe it’s not in the numbers but something else.”

“If you want me to try, I’ll look.” Teasingly, I said, “Since you’re the boss, do you have to call in?”

He grinned. “I’ll let my assistant know I won’t be in. Everybody else...” He shrugged. “Let them worry. Somebody there is guilty.”