He dropped a kiss on her nose and wrapped his hands around her hips. “I’ll wipe them down with bleach later. Ready?”

She yawned. “Ready.”

“One, two, three.” He lifted her off him, both of them sighing as they separated, and set her on the counter. “All right?”

“Sure.” She waved a hand at him. “Pull your pants up, will you? This is a respectable establishment.”

He yanked his pants up and fastened them, shaking his head at her. “I forgot how goofy you get after a scene.”

“I don’t get goofy,” she protested, and yawned again. “I’m just relaxed.”

“Oh, is that what it is?” He reached for her feet, unbuckling first one shoe, then the other, letting them fall to the floor. “Does that mean you’re not relaxed the rest of the time?”

“Pretty much.”

“Hmm.” He straightened, pleased when she draped her arms around his neck. “We might have to do something about that.”

“You can try, but it probably won’t work,” she told him, her expression sober. “I’m a very tense person.”

He smiled into her sleepy, serious eyes. “Do you think so?”

“Yep,” she said, and laid her head on his shoulder. “What now?”

“Aftercare,” he said, and scooped her off the counter and into his arms.

“My dress needs aftercare,” she informed him as he carried her out of the kitchen. “You ripped it. And it probably has jizz stains on it now.”

“It definitely has jizz stains on it,” he said, taking the stairs slowly so as not to jostle her. “I’ll pay for the dry-cleaning.”

“And the repairs?”

“And the repairs,” he agreed, amused at the orders she was flinging his way. Apparently being ‘relaxed’ meant she forgot who was the Dom.

“Good,” she mumbled, and lifted her head from his chest to peer around curiously. “We’re in your room.”

“I know.” He continued past the bed into the adjoining bath. “And now we’re in my bathroom.”

“Wow. That’s a big tub.”

He set her on her feet, holding her steady as she swayed. When he was certain she wasn’t going to fall, he turned to the tub and opened the taps. When the water was running hot, he flipped the switch to close the drain. She was still standing in the middle of the room, making no move to get undressed, so he reached for the sash still knotted at her waist. “You haven’t been in here yet?”

“Of course not. It’s your room.”

He set the sash on the edge of the sink, shaking his head. “You’re the only person I know who could have an entire house to herself for a week and not go exploring,” he told her, and reached for the cardigan.

“I did plenty of exploring,” she protested, her eyes drifting closed. “I know the contents of your kitchen cabinets by heart at this point.”