"Maybe I should get back to the hotel. It's getting late and I'm sure with two little ones, you won't get a chance to sleep in." Daniel suggests after they eventually break apart.
Stephanie has lost all track of time, all she knows ifs how amazing it feels to have Daniel's lips on hers and how much her body is begging her to take it further, but her head is screaming no.
After Daniel confessed he is falling for her it was like there was a volcanic eruption of butterflies in her stomach. How is it possible that somebody like him could be falling for her?
He knows she comes with baggage, not just her kids but also her trust issue. And then there's that other bagage he doesn't know about.
She had cancer, she might be good now, but there's no guarantee that it won't come back. So far everything seems fine, but what if she gets cancer again somewhere down the line? He is crazy busy, he doesn't need a girlfriend who might need cancer treatment.
But at the moment all those worries aren't important. All that matters is that they are as close as they can be with their clothes on. Their faces still barely an inch apart.
Her lips are swollen and tingling, the skin around her mouth feels somewhat raw from his stubble, but she doesn't care.
The way he kissed her was mind blowing, it was beyond her imagination and in real life he's even a better kisser than in her dreams.
If he makes love just as amazing as he kisses, she knows she would be so lucky if that ever happens.
"You can't go." She whispers, still a bit breathless.
"What do you mean?" Daniel asks.
"Well between the two of us we drank a bottle and a half of your wine. You can't drive anymore."
He smiles, leaning his forehead against her. His hands are still on her jeans clad ass. That ass he has been checking out a couple of times and he already expected it to feel wonderful in his hands, which was the truth. It's nice and round and soft, but also it's firm, from somebody who is on her feet a lot.
Her entire body feels amazing against his. They fit as if they are made for each other. As far as he is concerned they are. Now all he needs to do is make sure she sees it as well. So far it seems he's off to a good start, but he knows not to rush things with her.
"I can call an Uber, I'll pick up the car tomorrow." He suggests.
"Or you can stay here. I can sleep on the couch then you can take my bed."
She would love to share her bed with him, but she's afraid he might expect something she isn't ready to give him. Well, her body is definitely ready for it, but her head is far from it.
"I'm not going to let you sleep on the couch. Then I'll stay on the couch and you can just sleep in your bed." Daniel says.
"What kind of gentleman would I be if I let you sleep on the couch?"
She knows he has to get in the simulator again tomorrow and if he sleeps on the couch he might wake up with a sore back.
"No you can't sleep on the couch. It's not that comfortable." She bites her lip thinking about how to fix this. Of course he could call an Uber, but she doesn't really want him to go.
"Or....ehm. You could..." Stevie starts nervously.
"Don't be nervous. You can ask me anything or tell me anything." He gently cups her cheek and rubs her soft skin with his thumb.
She leans her head against his palm, relishing the warmth he radiates.
He is so gentle, so loving. Realizing this is all new for her even though she was with a man for five years, makes her understand even more how selfish Mitch was.
"Well I don't want you to get the wrong idea, but we could share my bed." She suggests, suddenly becoming really shy.
It's a bold move, but now she is scared he might think this means she wants to have sex with him.
She does of course, but she won't. She doesn't want to chase him away already.
"Only if you are sure. But know that I won't do anything you don't want to do. I promise we will do everything on your pace. Like I said. I can wait." Daniel locks eyes with her, making sure she understands he's telling the truth. He's not going to rush her, he's not going to push her into something she isn't ready for yet.
He gets that her heart has been broken very recently and it's never good to jump into a new relationship. Besides he doesn't want to be a rebound, he wants to be the person she sees in her future. In her kids future.
"I know. I believe you. I swear I'm not stringing you on or anything. It's just... I'm not... I can't.." She doesn't even really know what to say. Maybe it's wrong that she doesn't tell him about her cancer and surgery right away. Maybe it's selfish, but she doesn't want this to end. Whatever this is or will become.
"It's fine. I would love to stay here and we can both sleep in your bed. That's very sweet of you. I'm going to push my luck here maybe, but is it ok if I take a quick shower?" He asks.
"Of course it is. I'll show you where it is. I just don't have any clean underwear for you to wear. Unless you want to wear something of mine." She snickers.
Daniel wearing one of her panties would be hilarious. They would never fit, she has been feeling that bulge pressing against her core and she knows it's big. Really big.
She could never feel it when she sat on Mitch his lap, but with Daniel it's more than obvious that he is turned on and that he is very well equipped.
"I have a backpack in my car. I always carry some clean clothes just in case I get caught up somewhere and can't get back to the hotel or my home. I'll just grab it real quick."
She knows she should get off his lap, but she doesn't want to just yet.
With a sudden rush of bravery she leans in and softly presses her lips on his.
The previous kisses were initiated by him, but this time she makes the first, or maybe it's the second or tenth move.
His hands are on her back, caressing her through her top. They itch to feel her skin, he can only imagine how soft she will feel, but again he doesn't want to move too fast.
She moves her hips slightly, which causes her core to rub over his groin.
A groan escapes his throat when he feels his cock twitch and throb by the stimulation.
She quickly sits up again, ending their kiss.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."
"Stop, it's ok. I can't help getting hard because of you, but I'll just take a cold shower. Don't worry about it."
She finally decides to get off his lap so he can get his stuff and also because it's almost time for Zara her night feed so she can sleep through the night again.
She tries not to look, but her eyes wander down and she can see what she felt the entire time. A massive bulge that Daniel won't be able to hide even if he wanted to.
"I'll be right back." He says after stealing another kiss, before quickly going outside to get his bag from the car.
Stevie cleans away the glasses and puts the wine in the kitchen. At the same time she starts to fill a bottle for Zara with water and formula.
Then she puts it in the special bottle warmer to get it to the right temperature.
Daniel comes back and finds her in the kitchen.
"Do you need help with anything?" He asks her and she shakes her head.
"No it's almost done. Come on I'll show you where the shower is."
She's nervous when he follows her upstairs, soon he will be in her bed and she will be as well. She will be sharing a bed with Daniel.
In her bedroom she realizes the shirt she has been sleeping in the last few days was the shirt her dad gave her. The one from Daniel's merchandise.
He spots it on her pillow and grins.
"I see you've already been sleeping with me."
She starts to blush when she grabs the shirt and crumples it in her hands.
"My dad gave it to me and it's been my favorite shirt to sleep in ever since."
"Well I'm flattered. I'm sure you look incredible in it."
With the shirt still in her hands, Stevie shows Daniel where the bathroom is. From her closet she takes a large towel and she quickly steals some shower gel from her dad. He has dozens of bottles in stock because her mom always buys them when they are on sale so she can get it cheaper.
When she gets back to the bathroom with the towel and shower gel, Daniel has already taken his shirt off.
The vision of his naked torso makes her stop dead in her tracks.
She saw him shirtless in Monza, but she was so occupied with a drunk Seb and the whole situation of getting Seb in his boxers, that she didn't really take the time to fully enjoy Daniel's amazing body.
Right now, in the light of her bathroom she can see every single detail.
She can see how muscular his neck actually is, how strong his shoulders look. How his chest actually does have some chest hair. Not that much, but at least he has it. The dark hairs are accentuating his perfect, tight pecks.
His arms are so sexy, she can see his muscles ripple under his skin and there are several bulging veins visible.
Then his tattoos, they make him look even more perfect. He has an angel on his left arm, underneath he has the word 'LOVE'. There's an astronaut on his upper arm and of course the rose on his hand. There's more on his arm but they are more on the back and underneath so she can't really see.
Then she gets distracted when he moves and she sees his tight abs contract. He has the perfect stomach, his abs are like they have been cut out of stone, and then his v-lines.
She bites her lip when she sees those.
They disappear under the fabric of his pants, but she can only imagine where they lead to. They lead to the same spot as the strip of hair underneath his belly button.
She would want nothing more to explore what he has down there, but if he is right about him first wanting to please his partner, he will want to take off her clothes and she can't show him those ugly pink scars. They are still so bright and fresh. Maybe they will fade in time, but right now they are horrible.
"Do you like what you see baby?" He asks her and she quickly looks back at his face.
"What did you call me?" She giggles.
"I called you baby. I'm sorry it's just a pet name, but I won't say it again if you don't like it." He quickly says.
"No, no I do. I just didn't know we already got to the pet names. But I actually like it. My ex called me doll and I hated that."
She probably should have told Mitch to stop calling her that. It made her feel like an object, but in hindsight that's all she was for him anyways.
"Doll? Nah that's wrong. You're not a thing. Better get used to being called baby or beautiful or my love, because those are the words that I would use for you."
She can't help it, but realizing he is going to use pet names for her makes her all warm and giddy inside. She almost feels like a teenager again when she was having a crush on Channing Tatum.
"Alright, you can call me whatever you want. I was just looking at your tattoos. I really like them." She says, only telling part of what she was looking at.
The twinkle in his eyes tells her he knows that wasn't all she was looking at, but he doesn't say anything.
"I'll let you get to it. I'm just going to get Zara's bottle. Take your time."
She wants to leave the bathroom, but he wraps his big hand around her wrist.
He pulls her against his half naked body and she puts her hand on his chest so she doesn't bump into him too hard.
It may have been a bit of a mistake, when she feels the little hairs on his chest and the muscle move under her hand, all she wants to do is rip her clothes off and step into the shower with him.
"I won't take too long baby. I just need one more kiss if that's ok."
She nods and he lets go of her wrist. His arms snake around her body and he bends his head towards her.
His lips find hers and it's a good thing he is holding her so tightly or she would drop to the floor like a ragdoll.
She lets her hands slide over his chest moving down so she can feel those abs.
She is on fire, her nipples are piercing through her bra and shirt, her core is throbbing almost painful and all she wants is to have him.
But then she hears her parents car park on the drive way and she quickly pulls back.
"My parents are home. I should go and tell them you are staying over."
"Yeah sure, I'll be out in a few minutes."
He lets go of her and she takes a few steps back before turning around to the door.
Once she closes the bathroom door behind her Daniel blows out the air he's been holding in his lungs.
Leaning on the wash table he looks in the mirror.
Was he too soon with admitting he is falling for her? He shakes his head, the way she kissed him proves that there's definitely something from her side as well.
His heart is racing with excitement. The feelings that he has for Stevie are new to him. He never had them with his ex.
All he wants to do is kiss Stevie and hold her. Of course he wants to do more than that, his rock hard cock is enough evidence of that. But mostly he just wants to be close to her, learn everything there is to know about her. He wants to do what's right for her, take his time, make sure she trusts him before even thinking about taking next steps.
Tonight was a promising start. He knows they will get there eventually. And he doesn't mean the physical aspect, that will come whenever the time is right. But the part that she will trust him enough to give him her heart. That's where he wants to get to.
He is confident that he will be able to break down those walls around her heart and that moment will be even better than the moment he will be able to make love to her.
~~~~~~~~~
"Where's Daniel? His car is still here." Peter asks looking around. When he and Trudy came home they spotted the car and looked at each other, both thrilled to see he was still there. They both know, the handsome Australian is exactly who Stevie needs. So they really hope their daughter will be able to open up to him and let him I.
Their little matchmaking seems to be working so far.
"He's in the shower, he's staying the night." Stevie tells them while she lets some of the milk in the bottle drip on her wrist to feel if it's not too hot.
Peter pulls a face that shows what he is thinking a bit too well. His grin is telling how pleased he is to hear that.
"No dad it's not what you think. We both had some glasses of wine and he wouldn't accept me sleeping on the couch. I can't exactly let Daniel sleep on it so we will share my bed. But just to sleep dad. Don't give me that look." Stevie explains, but Peter isn't buying it. He has already seen the looks between his daughter and the Australian F1 driver.
There's so much more than friendship between them, Daniel knows. He can't hide it at all. Stevie is obviously still too scared to accept the fact that she has feelings for Daniel.
But Peter is convinced she will eventually. He sure hopes she does. Daniel is a good man, loyal and honest. Great with the kids and he seems to adore Stevie.
That's all he wants for his daughter. To be loved like she deserves to be loved. And he is convinced Daniel could be that person for her.
"Of course darling. I'm sure all you did was drink wine and talk. That's why your lips look as if you had a proper make out session with somebody who might have a bit of a stubbly beard." He says, it earns him an elbow in his ribs from his wife and Stevie's face turns bright red.
"Don't listen to your dad honey. We are just really happy for you. Daniel is a good man. He's not going to hurt you." Her mom says, putting her hand on Stevie's cheek.
"I hope not mom. It will take me some time, but I do really like him. I'm just scared."
Her dad quickly puts his arms around her. Making her disappear against his bear like physique.
"We know Steevs. But we truly believe he will treat you right. With Mitch we both had our doubts, but with Daniel it just feels good. The way he looks at you is beautiful to see. Just give him a chance to show you how much he cares. You owe that to yourself."
"I will dad. I'll go give Zara her bottle and then take a shower myself. Please don't say anything to embarrass me tomorrow morning ok?" She looks up at the loving face of her father.
"Would I ever do that?" He asks acting offended.
All she does is raise one eyebrow before going to Zara's nursery to feed her.
She hears the shower running in her bathroom and knows Daniel is in there, naked.
Walking into Zara's bedroom she quickly shakes that image out of her head.
Zara is just waking up so she picks her daughter up from her bed and doesn't waste time. Her nappy is changed before Zara can even start to fuss over it.
Then Stevie sits down with her daughter and takes a moment to just relax and let the events of the night go through her head.
What are they now? They kissed and Daniel told her he is falling for her, but what does that mean for them?
She will just have to ask what his thoughts on that are, but that is scary.
She can guess what Daniel might want, but what does she want? Is she ready to give this a name yet, should they even give it a name? Maybe they should just roll with it and see what happens.
"Oh girly your mom is a mess. It's not just me I have to consider. It's you and your brother as well. But you like Daniel don't you? I've never seen you smiling so much to a stranger... well Daniel isn't exactly a stranger anymore." She sighs.
Once Zara is done she burps her and then puts her back in bed.
There's a sound behind her and she sees Daniel standing there in nothing but his boxers, his hair still damp from the shower.
"Is she sleeping yet?" He whispers.
"Almost." Stevie puts her hand on her daughters little tummy.
Daniel comes closer to look into her crib.
"Sweet dreams princess." He softly says as he rubs her little cheek.
"She is so cute. So is Cole. You are an amazing mother Stevie. I hope you know that."
"Thank you. I do my best. I'm the only parent they have right now."
They see Zara's eyes slowly close as she is drifting back to sleep.
"I'll just take a shower myself. Make yourself comfortable and I'll be right there." Stevie says when they get back to her bedroom.
It's so strange having Daniel here. Mitch never really wanted to spend the night here, so Daniel is pretty much the first guy sleeping in this room with her.
She grabs her shirt and a black lace thong.
Daniel spots the underwear she took out of her drawer and he knows he is going to have to muster up all his control to keep his hands to himself. It won't be easy being in bed with a stunning woman like her and not make a move. But for her he will.
It doesn't take long before Stevie comes back, now dressed in the t-shirt and probably the thong, but she is drowning in the shirt so it reaches halfway down her thighs.
She braided her hair in a long French braid and her face is completely free of any make up.
Not that she was wearing much, but somehow without it she looks even more breath taking to him.
A bit shy she climbs in the bed. He guessed her side of the bed was the one where her t-shirt was so he made sure to lay on the other side.
"Are you comfortable? Do you need another pillow? I can get one if you need." She starts to ramble, nervous beyond imagination.
"I'm fine baby. Your bed is perfect. Just relax, you don't have to be nervous around me. It's just me."
Slowly she slides further down under the covers until they lay there side by side. He seems so calm and relaxed about it, while she is freaking out on the inside.
Deep down Stevie would love to snuggle up against him to cuddle. She's craving that touch, that feeling of strong arms around her. But she is too scared to say that out loud. Worried that Daniel will read too much into it. Of course they had an amazing make out session on the couch, but to cuddle in bed is still a bit scary.
Daniel lays on his back with his hands under his head. If only he could hold Stevie, it doesn't have to lead to anything, but just holding her in his arms would already be enough.
After their passionate kissing earlier, it shouldn't be such a big deal to just snuggle up against each other.
He decides to just take the gamble.
"If at any point during the night you want to cuddle, don't be afraid to snuggle up against me. I'm really good in cuddling."
Stevie hesitates, she is so tempted, but what if he expects more? She can't give that to him, that would mean she would have to get naked and there's no way she will show her scarred chest to him.
"You don't have to of course. I shouldn't have said that maybe. I promise I won't do anything else but hold you. And maybe steal a kiss or two." He grins, hoping to make her more relaxed if he lightens the mood a bit.
At first she is hesitant, but then she realizes, life is too short. She should know that, you can't waste time being scared.
So she takes the plunge.
"I would actually like that." She says so soft he is afraid he heard it wrong.
He didn't though, she really did say it.
He removes his hands from under his head and holds the duvet up a bit so Stevie can slide to his side.
A bit unsure she moves closer to him, inch by inch she is coming to him.
When she is close enough she lays her head on his naked, warm shoulder.
He puts that arm around her and pulls her even closer. His other arm reaches over and places her arm over his naked chest.
She feels tense at first, afraid to move. But then he gently starts to play with some strands of hair that have escaped her braid.
"Relax Stevie, I've got you." He says in hushed voice.
Then he can feel her body relax against him, she moves even closer and places her hand on the left side of his chest.
Under the palm of her hand, Stevie feels the warm skin, the curly chest hairs and the beating of Daniel's heart. It's beating at a steady pace, but she can feel it is increasing a bit.
How is it that he makes her feel so safe? Just laying against him like this, his arms wrapped around her, feel like nothing can ever happen to her. It feels like coming home, like finding your destination.
"Daniel what are we?" She suddenly asks.
He stays silent for a bit, not really sure what they are.
"I know what I hope we will be. I want to be with you. I want to be able to call you my girl. I want the whole nine yards with you. But I understand that might be a bit too much too soon. What do you want us to be?"
Of course he wants them to be together at some point. Like really together, out in the open for the whole world to know.
"I want to see where this goes. I want to spend time together, I really like you and I do think I could be falling for you as well." She admits.
"You think yeah?" He smiles widely.
"Well, actually I know I am falling for you and it's freaking me out."
She turns to face him.
"I really do believe you won't hurt me. It's just scary to really break down that wall around my heart."
He leans in to kiss her forehead.
"That's ok. Let's just take it one step at a time. We don't have to tell anybody anything. We can keep things behind closed doors. I can't say it will be easy, because now I've tasted your lips all I want to do is kiss you. But I also realize you have kids and you have to look out for them. Let's just keep going the way we are now and just let things develop as we go."
"That sounds good. I know it will be hard for me not to kiss you in public as well, but behind closed doors you can kiss me as much as you want." She smiles at him and he can see the warmth in her eyes.
"Good. How about one before we go to sleep?"
She moves up a bit and their noses rub against each other. Then she presses her lips on his and they get lost in each other again.