The house was quiet. Too quiet. Lila was out with friends, and for the first time in forever, Daniel's room felt lonely .I leaned against the doorframe, crossing my arms, smirking. "So this is how you unwind? Sitting in the dark, brooding like some hot sad CEO?"Daniel sat on the edge of his bed, shirt unbuttoned halfway, drink in hand. His eyes flicked up at me, tired but sharp. "You shouldn't be here, Maya.""Yeah," I said, sliding in anyway, "but you don't really want me to leave, do you?"He exhaled hard, rubbing a hand over his face. "You think this is funny? My life isn't some little TikTok drama for you to flirt through."That one stung. My grin faltered. "Then tell me, Daniel. Tell me why you're always stuck in this mood. Why you look at me like you're starving, then pull back like I'm poison."
His jaw flexed, and then maybe it was the whiskey he actually answered. "Because my life hasn't been mine for years. Marriage that died long before it ended. A wife who treated me like I was just a paycheck. Nights where this house felt like a coffin and I was the body in it." His voice cracked low, like it hurt to say. "And when she left? It wasn't relief. It was emptiness. Pure silence. No one touched me. No one even looked at me like I mattered."
I swallowed, heart pounding, my bravado cracking. I sat beside him feeling the heat from his bare chest. Slowly, his fingers brushed my wrist,
"And now?" I whispered.
His hand slid higher, ghosting over my arm. "Now there's you."
I sucked in a breath, heat crawling up my neck. His thumb traced my skin, slow, deliberate, like he wanted me to feel every second of it.
"Daniel…" My voice shook. "Then what are we? What am I to you?"
That's when his gaze turned sharp, dangerous. "Don't ask questions you don't want answers to."
I leaned closer, defiant. "No. I want the truth. Am I just your daughter's best friend you sneak around with? Am I just stress relief? Or am I everything you want but you're too damn scared to admit it?"
His hand gripped my thigh suddenly, hard, sending a shock up my body. "You think you know everything, don't you?"I smirked, biting back a gasp. "I know you can't keep your hands off me."That broke him. His mouth crashed onto mine, brutal and hot, stealing my breath. His hands slid under my shirt, palming rough against my skin. I moaned into him, clawing at his back.
But between kisses, words cut through...sharp, angry."This is wrong," he growled, dragging me into his lap."Then stop," I snapped, grinding against him, eyes blazing."God, you're such a brat." His teeth caught my lip, hard."And you love it." I gasped when his hand slipped lower, fingers pressing where I needed him most.We were arguing and touching, yelling and kissing, all at once."You drive me insane," he hissed, rubbing harder.
"Good," I moaned, head falling back. "Maybe it'll finally make you alive again."He cursed, low and filthy, pushing my shorts aside, his fingers working me until my whole body trembled. I bit his shoulder, muffling a cry, nails raking down his chest."You think you're in control," he growled in my ear, hand unrelenting."I am," I panted, rocking against him shamelessly.
He shoved me down onto the mattress suddenly, towering over me, sweat dripping down his temple. "We'll see about that."The room was filled with our ragged breaths, our voices sharp with both lust and rage.
We weren't stopping.
Atleast Not tonight.
Daniel had me pinned to the bed, his hand locked on my thigh, his mouth crashing against mine like he was trying to erase every line we'd crossed.
His breath was whiskey and want,
His shirt already off, heat rolling off his skin.
I clawed at his shoulders, tugging him closer. "Then admit it. Admit you want me. Stop hiding."
His groan was low, animal, lips dragging down my neck. "You don't get it, Maya. I shouldn't fuck...I can't."
I smirked through a shaky gasp, grinding against him. "You already are, Daddy."
That word ripped a curse out of him, his hips jerking forward against mine like he lost control for a second. His fingers pushed higher on my thigh, rough, teasing, making me whimper.
"See?" I breathed, eyes dark. "You love this. You love me driving you insane."
His eyes snapped up to mine, blazing. "God, you're such a brat."
"And you eat it up," I shot back, nails digging into his back.
That set him off...his hand slipped under my shorts, pressing against me with no hesitation. My cry filled the room, raw and needy, as I rocked shamelessly into his hand.
But just when the heat tipped into unbearable he froze. His hand stilled. His jaw clenched.
Then he ripped himself back, breathing like he'd run a marathon.
"What the actual fuck?" I sat up, hair wild, chest heaving. "Don't stop now."
His voice was sharp, like a blade. "You should go."
I laughed, broken and bitter. "Go? Seriously? After you've been all over me? After you use me like that, you're just—"
"Don't," he snapped, eyes flashing murder. "Don't you ever say I used you."
I leaned forward, fury spilling out. "Then what the hell was it, Daniel? Because from here, it feels like you're happy to get me soaked, happy to get yourself off...and then toss me like trash."
His hands curled into fists, his chest rising with rage. "You think that's what this is? You think I don't hate myself every second I touch you? That I don't fight myself every fucking night not to drag you into this bed?""Then stop treating me like a mistake!" I yelled back, voice cracking, eyes wet but burning.His silence was worse than the yelling. He just stared, eyes wrecked, raw, like I'd gutted him. Then, with a curse, he shoved away, pacing the room like he wanted to tear the walls down.
I sat on his bed half-undressed, body buzzing, heat still dripping off me, chest tight with rage and want.And for the first time, I hated myself not for wanting him…
but for the exact words that cut him deeper than I meant.
Oh Lord! Because now, we weren't just burning.
We were breaking.