When I open my eyes the next morning, it takes me a couple of seconds to realize where I am. I blink at the watery light streaming in through the bay windows. The chipped paint on the panes remind me.

Drake. The cheap hotel.

I snap upright in bed and look around, scanning the room for him, but I don’t see him. There is an indentation in the pillow, but the sheets are cold. Memories of last night come tumbling back. Drake couldn’t get enough of my body. Sinking into me again and again. Like he couldn’t get deep enough. Like a beast. Like he hadn’t fucked in years. Surely, he hasn’t run out on me in a crummy hotel in the middle of nowhere?

So why do I feel this creeping sense of dread?

What if everything he whispered, roared, and growled last night was a lie? A technique to get what he wanted. What if all he ever wanted from me was a night of sex so he could move on already. The sudden sense of loss and hurt is so acute it makes me feel sick to my stomach. Until I hear his voice coming from the bathroom. Oh, God. Thank you. Thank you. My pulse settles down and my panic dissipates magically.

He emerges a few seconds later, as naked as the day he was born, and winding down a phone call. “And… yeah, I’ll see you then. Thanks. Thanks. Bye, Tanya.”

Tanya? Who the hell is Tanya? I drag the sheet up to cover my breasts. Keeping his gaze on me, he hangs up and throws himself down on the bed next to me.

“Good morning, Princess.” He smiles and plants a kiss on my naked shoulder.

“Who’s Tanya?” I can’t help my voice from sounding shrewish and suspicious.

He grins, his eyes twinkling. “My secretary.”

“Oh shit,” I curse guiltily. “Can I borrow your phone? I need to call my Dad and let him know I’m okay. He’s probably worried sick by now.”

“Uh, actually, I’ve already called him and told him you’re with me.”

My mouth falls open. “You did what?

He holds his hand up. “Relax. I didn’t mention that we shared a room.”

“Thank you,” I let out a relieved sigh. I’m old enough to sleep with who I want, but I don’t really want Dad thinking I’d sleep with a man I hardly know.

I smile back shyly at him. “So, you’re meeting your secretary later?”

“We are,” he corrects, letting his finger trail down my arm, scattering goosebumps across my skin.

“We are?”

“Uh… huh …” He kisses the palm of my hand and I feel my stomach clench with need. I have an image of me with my legs thrown over his shoulders and the full length of his cock thrust into me. “After she calls me back with details about the hospital?” he finishes.

My eyes widen. “Hospital? Is something wrong with you?”

He looks at me hungrily. “The only thing wrong with me is your breasts are covered, and your little pussy is not full of my cock,” he tells me.

“Be serious,” I scold.

“It’s not for me. I wanted to pay for the rest of Morgan’s care,” he says simply.

“Huh?” My jaw drops. Yes, we are short on cash, and yeah, we could do with better care for Morgan, but the thought of asking him to pay for it never crossed our minds, but my heart swells up with happiness to know how much joy it will give Morgan to hear that her beloved son is offering to pay for her treatment.

“Yeah, I spoke to your Dad this morning and told him I was taking responsibility for financing Morgan’s care from now on. I didn’t want the worry of getting her the best care possible on his or your shoulders anymore. He was so happy he nearly cried on the phone.” Drake shrugs. “I’ve already got Tanya to book her into the best hospital. She’ll also arrange for a private plane to fly Morgan and your Dad to the city.”

I stare at him open-mouthed. I almost can’t believe this is happening. It’s all too good to be true. He’s too good to be true. This turnaround, where has it come from?

He cocks an eyebrow at me and with a wicked smile, says, “You are allowed to talk while my cock is not in your mouth, you know.”

I blink back tears of gratitude. “Thank you, Drake. Thank you. You have no idea how happy this will make Morgan. All she wanted was to see you again. She never imagined you’d do this. Never.”

“Come on, surely it can’t be that big a surprise that I’m a decent person, can it?” he teases gently.

I shake my head. “I just…” I trail off. “We didn’t, none of us, expected this.”

“She suffered all these years, wanting me, and never having me.” He turns to glance out the window, but I see the flash of pain that he tries to hide. “I just want to do the best I can now that I’m here, you know?”

“Yeah,” I reply softly. There is a moment of silence between us, while I observe him. He has a strong profile. His jaw is set and his eyes glint with some inner determination. He turns away from the window and takes my hand in his.

“So, will you come to live with me while your mother is receiving her treatment.” His gaze meets mine, and it’s as if he’s silently imploring me to agree.

I blink a couple of times. “Live with you?”

“Yup.”

My heart is beating so fast I’m sure he must be able to hear it. “Isn’t that a bit soon?”

“It’s a bit soon if you’re not sure. I’m sure. I know what I want and I want you. From the moment, I laid eyes on you I wanted only you. The only thing that stopped me was the thought that you were most probably part of a half-baked scam.”

“What?” I exclaim shocked.

He nods. “That’s me being honest with you. Yeah, I thought you were out to scam me. What are the chances of a beauty like you being the stepsister I never knew I had? You looked and smelled like a honey trap. I didn’t know what you were after, but I wanted you so much I took the risk. I didn’t care if you were part of a scam, I needed to see you again, Reese. I didn’t need to come down to Petersville at all. I could have arranged for a DNA test, then acted accordingly. I came down because of you.”

I smile up through my lashes. “I never stopped thinking of you.”

“I keep jerking off to the image of you. I even dreamed of eating you out. Hours after you left that night, I could still smell your scent on my body.”

I look deep into his gorgeous green eyes. “When I woke this morning, and didn’t find you next to me in bed, for a moment I thought you left me. You’d taken what you wanted and ran,” I confess.

He frowns. “What a strange little thing you are? You actually thought I’d had enough? Of you? I’m not going anywhere, Princess. You’re mine and I’m here, for the rest of your life. I’m gonna be eating your pussy even when I’m toothless.”

I giggle. “I can’t imagine you without teeth.”

He tucks his lips into his mouth comically and that makes me laugh even harder.

“So, are you going to stay with me?”

“Of course,” I shout happily.

He catches me by the back of the neck and kisses me, hard. And I lose myself happily to the amazing adventure that is my life. Only a few weeks ago, I was the most single girl on the planet and now I’m moving in with an insanely gorgeous guy who seems to have fallen for me as hard as I’ve fallen for him. I know I’m probably being an idiot on some level, but I don’t care. My stepmom’s illness has taught me that life is short and fragile, and I should jump at every opportunity I can to be happy.

He wants this and so do I.

He draws back reluctantly and licks his tongue against his bottom lip as if he’s catching the last little drops of my taste from them. My body has already started longing for the feel of him again.

He glances at his watch. “We should get down to see my… mom.” He bows his head for a moment, and I can tell that hearing that word come out of his mouth to describe another woman than the one he knew as his mother feels strange. “She’ll be moved in soon, and I want to talk to the doctors about… everything.”

I nod. “When are we going?”

He grins suddenly. “Uh, right after I do this.” I gasp when he whips the sheet away from my body and cages me with his arms. His big body hovers over mine as he grabs one of my ankles, and throws it over his shoulder, while he spreads my other thigh to the side. It opens my pussy up like a butterfly to his gaze. Greedily, he watches as his big cock plunges deeply into my body.