“Phantom?” I say, clutching the towel a little tighter. “Are you okay?”
He shakes his head and nods. “Sorry. Fuck me.” He’s beside me in a second, his hand on my arm. “Why are you out of bed?”
“Drenched with sweat,” I say, lifting a lock of my hair. “But the good news is, I think the fever broke.”
His eyes go wide and his nostrils flare.
“Phantom, I’m kidding.” I smile at him, despite the fact that I think my hair might be starting to drip on his bedroom floor. “I took a shower. I’m getting better. I felt disgusting and wanted to clean up.”
“Poppy.” He swallows hard and drags a hand through his beard. “Clothes.”
He points to me, and I follow his finger, looking confused. I’m giving this man the view of a lifetime of my cleavage.
Oh. My. God.
I freeze, not sure whether to tug the towel up and risk exposing my other bits or let go of the towel and adjust it, which would give him a whole eyeful of literally everything.
I might as well just dance naked across the bedroom at this point. I start to back into the bathroom. “Um, I’ll just find something later?”
“Poppy. Wait.”
I stop, my bare toes squeaking on the smooth wood floor. I look at Phantom, my fingers locked in a battlebetween the towel and the forces of gravity that seem to really want me to give this man a show.
Something unspoken but powerful pulses between us, and heat floods my body. His lips are parted, and he reaches to move a wet lock of my hair from my face. We don’t say anything. All I hear is the pounding of my heart and the soft breaths as he flares his nostrils and sucks in a deep breath.
“You’re fucking stunning.” I don’t know when he moved closer, but I have to look up now to meet his eyes.
I stare into his face, and my fingers, shady little bitches that they are, loosen their hold on the towel. It slips an inch, then two, and I draw in an unsteady breath when the cool air hits my nipples.
“I want to taste you.” His words are a raspy plea. “Poppy, you make me… You…”
Holding the towel loosely with one hand—because why bother fighting, gravity’s going to win this one—my eyes flutter closed. “Do it,” I tell him. “Phantom, please, do it…”
He drops to his knees on the hard floor and lifts his hands to cup both of my breasts. I suck in a breath as torrents of heat flow through my body. His thumbs stroke my erect nipples, his rough skin scraping the tender flesh and practically bringing me to my knees.
“Dad?”
The sound of Daisy’s voice outside the door breaks the moment. Phantom is on his feet with lightning speed and lifting the edge of the towel to cover mybreasts. “Bathroom,” he says quietly. “I’ll go see what’s up. Your clothes are there.”
He points to a small suitcase that I’m going to guess belongs to one of the girls. It’s teal blue and covered in faded stickers.
“Thank you,” I pant, which somehow feels like the wrong thing to say. Then I turn, run into the bathroom, and close the door behind me.
My nipples are aching, and a flood of wetness has pooled between my legs. I need to cover up, get dressed, and lock my sex drive back down. This man is getting under my skin. And now that I’ve had a touch, a taste, I want so much more. I’ve never felt more terrified.
I’m feeling well enoughto join the family at dinner. After the kids have eaten, I send them off to do homework, while Phantom and I stay behind to do the dishes.
“I have to be at family court tomorrow.” He says the words quietly. “Do you think you’d be willing to go with me?”
I almost drop a glass as I’m trying to load it into the dishwasher. “Go with you? You mean, as a witness? Will I have to testify?”
“No, that’s not what I meant.” He plants his hands on the sink and stares at the stack of dishes. “I thought it would be safer for you. Just in case…Shayla, you know.”
I don’t know. “What do you mean safer?” I set the glass on the rack and come up behind him. I put a hand on his back. “Do you think she’s behind what happened at my house, Phantom? Why would you be worried about my safety?”
He sighs. “She might be. I don’t know for sure, but she was served notice of the emergency hearing. It’ll go forward whether she shows or not, but I’d feel better if I know the kids are safe in school. And I want you safe. I want you with me so I know you are.”
I step close to him and rest my cheek against his back. It’s an instinct I give in to but immediately regret. I pull back and step away, not sure what to say. I hurry to get back to loading dishes.
