“Ell, calm down, breathe.” His voice had deepened, becoming almost stern, as his warm hands pressed against her shoulders, holding her in place. Between the order, his hands holding her, and the throbbing of her ass, her brain finally stopped flipping out. She took a deep breath as Michael moved around to the side of her.

For a moment his arm curved around her shoulders, and then it suddenly dropped to his side and he took her hand as he sat next to her. Reluctantly, Ellie made herself look at him.

Even in the morning he was beautiful, his hair tousled and falling around his cheekbones, stubble darkening his jaw, and hazel eyes with only half the alertness they normally held. Wearing nothing but a pair of boxers, he looked like the kind of man every woman dreamed of waking up to. Well, maybe not every woman. But Ellie liked that he was lean muscle instead of bulky.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, his voice gentle but firm, letting her know he wanted a real answer.

She blushed, averting her gaze in embarrassment at how she’d just freaked out for no real reason.

“I’ve never do sleepovers,” she mumbled.

Michael’s fingers twitched around hers and he was silent for a long moment. “Well then, I’m honored.”

“I can’t do this again.” She kept her eyes on her lap, not wanting to see his reaction. Not wanting to see if she’d just hurt his feelings. “This is too much for me right now. I don’t know how to do this. I don’t even really know how to do a club contract, but I want to try that at least, this is...”

“Ellie.” He squeezed her hand as he interrupted her. She still didn’t dare look at him but his voice remained gentle. Calm. Soothing. “It’s okay. Next time, I’ll find a way to get you back to your house or we’ll stay at the club longer, or... something. We can talk about it, okay?”

“Okay,” she mumbled.

The bed shifted as he leaned towards her and gave her a kiss on the side of her forehead. “I’m going to go get breakfast ready, okay? The bathroom is right across the hall and there’s an extra toothbrush in the medicine cabinet. Come on out whenever you’re ready.”

She nodded, still not looking up at him as he pulled open a drawer on his dresser and walked out of the room, pulling on a shirt as he left.