After Dark Read online

  After Dark

  DONNA HILL

  This series is dedicated to all the mature ladies who are bringing sexy back! You know who you are.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 1

  Ellie reached for her silk robe at the foot of the bed, careful not to disturb Ron as she got up. She slipped the smooth fabric over her naked body and loosely tied the belt. She stood and her muscles ached, but in an all-too-good way.

  She smiled to herself as she tiptoed into the kitchen. Her thighs trembled ever so slightly when she walked and she could still feel the fullness of Ron deep inside her—hours later.

  In her twenty-five years of marriage, sex had been enjoyable but never mind-blowing. Her ex-husband, Matt, hadn’t been particularly adventurous, although, she had to admit, he was caring and always tender. Hmmph, it had all been a facade.

  She flipped on the wall switch and her sunny yellow and white kitchen came to life under the muted lighting, courtesy of Ron. His touches were everywhere throughout the two bedroom apartment, from the recessed track lighting, to the mosaic floor tiles, the hand-crafted book case to the refurbished walk-in closet. Even when he wasn’t physically with her, his presence was still felt and she loved it.

  Elizabeth went into the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee and see what she could throw together for a filling breakfast. She opened the refrigerator and leaned down to scan the shelves.

  “What a view,” came the rich voice from behind her.

  She grinned and turned around. Damn, even first thing in the morning he was a vision to behold.

  Ron Powers was all man, from the rugged, well-toned physique to his no-nonsense, take charge persona. Whenever she was with him she knew that he would look after her. At six foot two, with a warm chocolate complexion, a slow sexy smile and bedroom eyes, Ron was not just an appetizer but a full-course meal.

  “You’re not too bad to look at, yourself. Good morning.”

  He stretched and the hard muscles of his stomach rippled. LL Cool J didn’t have nothing on her man.

  He strolled over to her. “And what, may I ask, are you doing?” He took the carton of eggs out of her hand and set them on the white marble countertop.

  “I was in the process of starting breakfast. I don’t know about you but after last night and this morning, I’m starved.”

  “And what is today?” he asked like a teacher quizzing a student.

  She frowned for a moment in confusion. “Um, Tuesday.”

  “Two points deducted. Today is your day off. That means no work of any kind. I’ll take care of breakfast. You work that pretty behind of yours off every day. Let me take care of you for a change.”

  “Well, since you put it that way…” She tiptoed and kissed his soft lips. “Be my guest. You know where everything is.”

  “Yep. Go relax—preferably in bed until I’m done.”

  She gave him a mock salute. “Yes, sir. Is it okay with the sergeant if I take a shower, first?”

  “Yes, private, then off to bed with you.”

  She spun away, undid her belt and let her robe fall to the floor before walking off.

  “That kind of behavior will get you the results you’re looking for,” he called out.

  “I hope so,” she yelled back.

  God she was happy, she thought as the steamy water splashed over her. She used her loofah sponge on her hips and her heels then rubbed her favorite mango and guava shower gel into her skin. Soon the room was immersed in her fragrance. Rinsing off, she reached for her shaver in the shower caddy and touched up under her arms and neatened up her pubic area before a final rinse. She noticed a few gray hairs down there and cringed. Well, looks were deceiving. It may look like it was getting old, but it sure played like a young girl.

  She stepped out of the shower and wrapped up in a thick towel before padding off to the adjoining bedroom. No point in getting officially dressed she mused while applying lotion to her body. She had every intention of staying as close to her bed and Ron as possible for the rest of the day. But, at least, she could pretend to clothe herself.

  Elizabeth opened her top dresser drawer where she kept her lingerie. It was filled with lacy undies, garters, thongs in splashes of colors. The kinds of things she’d worn during her marriage, but Matt never seemed to really notice. Ron was a different story. He loved to see her show off her body and always complimented her on the way the dazzling colors looked against her skin. Most of all he enjoyed taking them off of her. She would have thought her basic black or white undergarments would have sufficed until one day they were in the mall and passed a Victoria’s Secret store, and Ron insisted that she go in and pick out whatever she wanted.

  She was a bit self-conscious at first until she’d felt him next to her and he started making suggestions. She soon discovered what he liked and that she liked it, too. From then on, Ms. Victoria was her best friend.

  Elizabeth pulled out a burnt orange demipushup bra with a matching thong. She grinned. Ron loved her in orange.

  Doing as commanded, she hopped back in bed and turned on the morning news. As usual, it was a litany of chaos: Fires, car accidents, police shootings and terror suspects.

  The newscaster’s story was on the heightened security measures that the FBI and Homeland Security were employing to weed out possible suspects here in the States. He went on to say that there was legislation that was being considered allowing the government to tap into the phones of American citizens without a warrant as long as they were considered suspect.

  Elizabeth shuddered at the thought. Where would it end? She pointed the remote at the television and began to surf. It was too early in the morning to get depressed. She finally settled on Monster In-Law on one of the cable stations. She’d seen it three times, already, but it never failed to make her laugh. The movie was up to the scene where Jennifer Lopez and Jane Fonda have it out at a restaurant.

  “Breakfast, as they say, is served, Madame,” Ron announced with a really bad British accent. He walked in with a large tray.

  Elizabeth flattened out the covers and propped herself regally against the thick pillows.

  “Smells delicious.”

  Ron placed the tray on her lap. Grits with cheese, a western omelet, wheat toast, coffee and an icy cold glass of orange juice.

  “Wow.” She looked up at him. “This is wonderful.

  “Enjoy it.”

  “Aren’t you going to eat?”

  “Yep. Be right back.”

  Shortly he returned with an identical setup and they watched the movie and laughed their way through the meal.

  “I’ll take these out to the kitchen,” Elizabeth offered once they were finished.

  “Nope. I will. Stay put.” He took their trays and empty plates into the kitchen and put them in the dishwasher.

  When he returned to the bedroom, Elizabeth was sitting up with her arms folded tightly across her waist.

  “Something wrong?”

  “You don’t have to fuss over me, Ron. Seriously.�
��

  He came over to the bed and sat down, the side sinking with his weight.

  “Look, it’s not often that I get a chance to do anything for you. I see you working like a fiend every day running the spa. I know it can’t be easy. Ellie, even on your days off you have errands to run and loose ends to tie up. Today, I really want it to be a day off for you.”

  She smiled at him and cupped his chin in her palm. “Thank you. I really do appreciate it. I have been going nonstop since we opened.”

  “My point exactly.”

  Elizabeth stretched and wiggled her toes beneath the sheets. “Okay, I surrender.”

  “Good.” He pushed against her hips and she scooted over, making room for him in the bed.

  “How did you manage to get the day off today?” she asked, resting her head against his chest.

  “I’m the boss, remember?” He chuckled lightly. “I have a few new jobs coming up, but I’m waiting on the contracts to be finalized. I have Ali running things today. The job up on Lenox is almost finished.”

  Ron was a private contractor with his own small construction firm specializing in rehabbing brownstones, which was how she’d met him. He was the contractor that was hired to renovate the Harlem brownstone that housed the day spa, Pause for Men, as well as her apartment that was on the top floor.

  “I still can’t get over how Ali was the connection to Stephanie’s dad. Fate truly brought them together.”

  “Yeah. If he hadn’t been working on that job for me, he might have never met her. When is she coming back from Texas?”

  “I don’t know, exactly. I’m sure she wants to spend as much time with her father as she can. But she probably won’t stay away too long. She does have her sister to think about.”

  “Now, that is a sad story. I don’t know how Stephanie has been able to deal with seeing her sister like that all these years.”

  “It can’t be easy. But Stephanie is a tough girl. She may have her faults, but she can hold her own.”

  “All of your friends, Barbara and Ann Marie are pretty amazing women.”

  “I only surround myself with the best.” She looked up at him and winked. “Including men.”

  “Hmm, now that’s what I like to hear.”

  In the distance, the faint sound of the downstairs doorbell could be heard. The spa was open for business.

  Ron had done an excellent job of soundproofing her place as much as possible to keep out the noise from the spa below. When it was full and the music was playing it would have been a bit much up in the apartment. But for the most part the noise was sufficiently muffled.

  Ron leaned over to kiss her just as her telephone rang. She wrinkled her nose and leaned over to pick up the phone on the nightstand.

  “Hello? Hi, Carmen. Whatsup?” As she listened she frowned. “Okay, give me five minutes.” She hung up the phone. “I need to run downstairs for a few minutes.”

  “For what?”

  “There’s a problem with the registration program. I just need to check it and I’ll be right back, I swear.”

  Ron gave her a hard stare. “Don’t make me come down there and get you,” he grumbled.

  “I love you, too.” She popped out of bed and grabbed her navy blue sweatsuit from the closet, dressed in a flash then darted out.

  When she entered the main floor of the spa from the side entrance, the exclusive locale for men only was in full swing. It was barely 10:00 a.m. and the café was already filled with clients. Several men were signing up for massages, the workout room was in use and small group of men simply sat and chatted in the lounge.

  Elizabeth smiled in awe. It was still hard to believe that one night of drunken brilliance between four girlfriends could have spawned such a successful endeavor.

  She hurried over to Carmen who looked totally flustered behind the computer.

  “Oh, thank goodness. I’m so sorry to bug you on your day off, but I didn’t know what else to do.”

  Elizabeth came behind the desk. “No problem. Let me take a look.” She hit a few keys and unlocked the registration program. The new screen popped up. “There you go.”

  “Thanks.” She sighed, looking shamefaced.

  “Everything else okay?”

  “Yes, so far. I’m really sorry to bug you on your day off.”

  “Don’t worry about it.” She took a look around. “Looks like we’re going to be busy.”

  “I know,” Carmen said with a sigh.

  Elizabeth checked the schedule to see who was on duty. Stephanie was out of town, Barbara had to put in a full day at the hospital and Ann Marie was not due in until three o’clock. Although all of the founding members were pretty much off for the day, they’d hired a very reliable staff to cover the three floors and the basement. And, from what Elizabeth could see, everyone had signed in.

  “Okay, if there’s nothing else, I’m going to head back upstairs.”

  “Sure. See you tomorrow.” She walked back upstairs, checking out the handsome and fit clientele as she went. Hmmph, hmmph, hmmph she thought in amusement. It was a tough job watching good-looking, half-dressed men all day, but somebody had to do it.

  Ron was in the shower when she returned so, by habit, she started straightening up the bedroom, then the living room. When she heard the shower stop, she hustled back into the bedroom and greeted Ron with a big smile and not much else.

  “Now, that’s what I like to see,” Ron said in appreciation as his eyes rolled up and down her body. He crossed the room with only a towel draped around his waist. He climbed onto the bed and right up on top of her. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her flush against him. Then he leaned down and kissed her long and slow.

  She hummed against his mouth, just as the phone rang again. Ron groaned.

  Elizabeth held up a finger. “One minute. Hold that pose.” She went to the phone, spoke softly for a few minutes before she hung up. She turned to Ron. “I’m sorry. I need to go downstairs again. I’ll be right back.”

  “Ellie…”

  “Right back,” she said as she grabbed her clothes and headed for the door before he could protest further.

  Apparently, there was some confusion with one of the client’s massage appointment and he was making quite a stink. When she got downstairs, Drew, the security guard, was standing near the reception desk ready to toss the irate client out at a moment’s notice.

  “How can I help you, sir?” Elizabeth said, stepping into the fray. “I’m Elizabeth Lewis, the spa manager.”

  The man whirled toward her and began going on about how he had an appointment, had paid his monthly dues and how he expected to be serviced at his appointed time. He was a busy man, he declared and didn’t have time to wait.

  “We’ll work this all out.” Elizabeth stepped behind the desk and took a look at the schedule on the computer. Yes, there was definitely a conflict. Elizabeth looked up. “Mr. Blaine, first, let me apologize for the wait. It was definitely our error. Unfortunately, the masseuse is not free for another half hour and I know you don’t want to wait. This is what I’m willing to do. I will return a month’s membership fee to your credit card. And I will personally set up your massage appointment, myself, right now for whatever day and time you are free.” She raised a brow and waited for his response.

  His puffed up chest slowly deflated. “Fine,” he grumbled.

  Elizabeth went through a few key strokes, made the deduction then conferred with him about his schedule and made his appointment.

  “Thank you.”

  “You’re very welcome, Mr. Blaine. We want to make sure that all of our clients are happy and satisfied.”

  He walked away.

  “Oh, Ellie, I am so sorry. I just didn’t know what to do.”

  Elizabeth patted her shoulder. “It’s okay. I’m glad I was here. And now I’m gone.” She smiled and walked off.

  When she returned upstairs, Ron had gotten dressed and was sitting in front of the television in the living
room. She inwardly flinched as she walked inside and quietly closed the door behind her. She went to the couch and sat next to him.

  “I’m sorry,” she said as sweet as she could. “Carmen is relatively new. Some things she just isn’t up to speed on.”

  Ron turned to her, his expression set in hard lines. “Then, she shouldn’t be there alone if she can’t handle it.

  Elizabeth jerked back slightly from the vehemence of his response.

  “I’m not telling you how to run your business—Well, maybe I am. The purpose of hiring and training someone is because you want them to be able to handle the job with or without supervision. What would she have done if you weren’t around?”

  “But I was around. I’m the manager. It’s my responsibility—”

  “And you have a life.”

  She huffed and pushed up from the couch. “For twenty-five years I devoted my life to making a home, being a wife to the exclusion of anything I wanted for myself. I didn’t know I could do anything other than cook, clean, decorate and be a wife and mother. This spa opened a new world for me. It’s given me a confidence I’d lost. It helped me realize that I’m so much more than I had been.”

  “I understand that. But, at the same time, Ellie, you can’t now allow the job to become your new dependent. At some point, you have to find a way to separate yourself from the job.”

  She averted her gaze. He didn’t understand, not really. How could he comprehend how much it all meant to her? The spa is what helped her heal, got her over the hurdle of Matt’s betrayal and the ensuing divorce. If she didn’t have the responsibilities of running the spa she would have lost her mind.

  “Ell, all I’m saying is make time for you so that you can make time for us. That’s all I’m saying,” he repeated.