I woke up the next morning better rested than I could recall ever having been, one arm draped lazily across Robin’s chest, the other pinned beneath his body. Both of us were nude. Sometime during the night, Robin had pulled the blue blanket up from the bottom of my bed and covered himself with it. It had partially fallen onto me, covering my legs. Now that I was awake, I realized I was way too hot, and kicked it aside, then unwound myself from Robin and slipped from bed.

I’d lost track of the number of times I’d come last night. As Master, Robin was demanding, and my body was ready to perform for him, even though I wasn’t the spry twenty-year-old I’d once been. I’d been worried in passing while falling asleep that I’d be too drained this morning to be useful, but that was far from the truth. Robin’s youth reinvigorated me, and his greed for my body encouraged me to keep going. This morning, I felt every bit as young as he’d made me feel last night, and I was infatuated with him for it.

I shrugged on a bathrobe and tied the terrycloth belt, then left the bedroom to head for the kitchen. I took a bowl from the cabinet and set it on the counter, then rooted through my fridge for the fresh fruit my personal assistant made sure was always kept on hand. Strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries; I brought them from the fridge and washed them in the sink, then placed them in the bowl. The strawberries, tiny but incredibly sweet and flavorful, were a perfect size, and didn’t need to be sliced.

With food at the ready, I returned to the bedroom to find Robin in the midst of stirring. He stretched out beneath the blanket and yawned, then cracked open his eyes and spotted me across the room. Neither of us had thought to close the curtains, so sunlight streamed in through the back window and lit everything up. It didn’t bother me. My estate was contained completely within walls, and the next closest neighbors were distant and behind walls of their own.

“Good morning,” I said as I returned to the bed. I sat at his side, my heart full. “Did you sleep well?”

“Yeah.” Robin rubbed his eyes, but didn’t make an effort to sit up. “Is it time to get going? We need to get to The Palisade. Shit…”

I set the bowl of fruit on the bed beside him. “Not yet. Let me feed you breakfast.”

“Oh?” Robin’s voice took on a sultry undertone, and he grinned. “Well, if you insist… feed me, Troy.”

One simple command was all it took for me to want him all over again. Holding back from acting on a surge of arousal, I plucked a strawberry from the bowl and held it to his lips. Robin locked eyes with me as he let it into his mouth, then slowly bit down behind the leaves, near where I was holding it from. The fruit disappeared behind his teeth, and I set the green top back in the bowl. A blueberry came next, disappearing behind his pink lips the same as the strawberry had, and then a blackberry. My heart was doing wild, irresponsible things, watching him eat like this.

How the hell could he manage to look so hot eating breakfast? It wasn’t fair.

When the bowl of fruit was empty, Robin hummed and stretched out again. The blanket fell back, revealing his bare chest. I set the bowl aside, then pulled the blanket back and straddled his hips, kissing him deeply. His lips and tongue tasted sweet, and I indulged in them again and again.

“Fuck,” Robin uttered during a break in our kiss. “You’re making me hard again, Troy. Since when have you ever been so bold? If you’re not careful, I’ll have to punish you, and we don’t have time for that right now—we’ve got to go to work. There’s too much to do to lounge around in bed and fuck all day.”

“I can be quick,” I promised, my excitement building. Last night had been wild, but this morning would be something entirely different. There was something about the warmth of the sunlight that sweetened the moment. This morning, I didn’t want to have sex with Master—I wanted to have sex with Robin. Eager, I started to rock my hips, brushing our groins together.

Robin moaned, then shook his head and pushed me away. “You’re so irresponsible when you’re horny, pet—it’s a good thing you have me here to tell you no.”

Our kiss was broken, but I hadn’t given up hope. I nuzzled my way beneath his jaw, planting tender kisses on his neck. Having a little fun this morning wouldn’t make us late for work provided we stuck to one orgasm each. If I could just get him in the mood…

“No,” Robin said firmly. He grabbed my hair and guided me back. “Go take a shower and get dressed, Troy. You’ll need to make a stop at my condo so I can change for work today. I will not wear the same clothes I did yesterday. Lena’s already found a reason to bust out the squirt bottles once.”

I smiled. “You have a point.”

“Of course I do.” He gave me one last kiss—a consolation prize—then pushed me away and rolled over, bringing the blanket with him. “Now go shower. I’m going to find another bathroom and do the same.”

“Follow the hallway out the door, third door to the left.”

“Thanks.” He arched a brow. “Doesn’t excuse you from showering. Now, go on. Get going. Don’t make me punish you over something so trivial.”

After last night’s reward, I didn’t ever want to be punished again. Happily, I left the bed and went to go wash up. While I knew that Robin wouldn’t be coming home with me every night, to know that taking him home was a possibility was incentive enough to behave.

Once the shower was running and the bathroom fan was on, I braced my hands on the sink, looked at myself in the mirror, and laughed. I was glowing.

One day, I would make Robin mine. How could I not? A man who made me feel this good about myself was one I wanted to keep in my life. No matter how long it took, or how difficult it was, I’d prove to Robin that I was worthwhile.