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VIOLET
Her fingertips were wrinkled prunes by now, and the water had turned from boiling hot to lukewarm. Yet, it was hard to find the motivation to get out of it, even though the chill of the air increased when daylight disappeared from the sky, giving way to night.
A bath was a treat, especially given the state she’d been in, and she was determined to enjoy every bit of warm water by lingering in the copper tub for as long as possible.
A knock on the door had her peering over the rim of the tub before Gavin’s voice filtered through, making her stomach flutter. “Violet, you didn’t go to sleep on me, did you? I need to check your leg.”
She pressed her lips tightly together to kill the idiotic smile that appeared without permission and took a shaky breath to gather her strength and calm her frazzled nerves. “I’m not asleep. Why don’t you come in?”
She climbed out of the tub, spotting Gavin by the door. He was staring open-mouthed at her through the holes in the privacy screen. Her heart hammered when she met his dark gaze across the room.
“Would you hand me my shirt? It’s on the bed.” She watched him fret while he looked for the item in question. His cheeks were bright red when he tentatively approached her, and his eyes followed the droplets of water that trailed down her naked body.
He cleared his throat and turned his face away. “Are you sure I should be here? I can come back later.”
“Do you want to leave?”
He flashed his gaze at her. “No.”
“Then stay.” The heat inside her veins flared, burning through her like wildfire as she shrugged on her shirt, not bothering to do up the laces at the top. She wasn’t one to waste time, and if she was going to seduce him, spending energy lacing herself up tight was a wasted effort.
The fabric stuck to her skin, doing a poor job of hiding her curves. “Should I sit or stay here?” she questioned.
“Y-yes. I mean, whatever you want.” Gavin swallowed and turned his body toward her as she stepped out of the tub enclosure. She had to commend him for attempting to keep his eyes glued to her face, even though she could feel his gaze burning her back as she strolled to the bed.
He’d brought a tray with ripped strips of linen—he’d no doubt borrowed them from one of the sets of drawers—and a bowl of steaming water. His hair was still wet, although tamed from a bath.
Gavin kneeled in front of her and placed the tray to his side before rubbing the back of his neck. “Did you re-injure it when you entered the governor’s house, or while we traveled?”
“Governor’s house.” She didn’t want to relive that moment, not now. Right now, her entire focus narrowed in on him and the way his fists opened and closed as he settled more comfortably on the floor.
He pressed his wide palm over her outer thigh and focused on her cut. He did a decent job at masking his features, and the only thing that gave away his nerves was the quickness of his breaths. A couple of stitches had torn at some point, and the edges of her wound looked redder than she’d remember.
He drew his finger over the injury, and waves of magic rolled through her body, numbing the pain. She gasped as he touched the inside of her thigh, steadying her leg while he healed her. As she exhaled, his hand moved higher, and the ache vanished, leaving behind only his touch, tracing fire over skin.
Her center tingled and ached with the rhythm of her quickened heartbeat. Gavin frowned. “Does it still hurt?”
Her face warmed. Of course he was only thinking of her injury, while she was here burning with the need to be touched by him. After all they’d been through, she craved him—the man she was falling in love with. It was a frightening word to attach to someone, especially in light of her past.
Her fingers prickled, all her senses fully awakened. She swallowed. “No—yes…”
“Yes or no?” The air of his breathy laughter hit her skin, and gooseflesh erupted on every inch of her leg that his hand skimmed.
Enough of this silliness. She took a deep breath to settle her nerves, and only the giddy sensation of needing him remained. He was her husband. She shouldn’t feel ashamed of desiring his touch.
This was more than an attraction to a handsome man. Gavin had saved her life and helped her understand her own self-destructive behavior. He’d chosen to help her even though he might not see his family again.
Now it was her turn to choose him over everything. She’d give him the only thing she had left: her heart.
“I am hurting—but not there.” Violet placed her hand over Gavin’s, pulling it up the inside of her thigh, drawing it closer to where she wanted it.
Gavin’s lips parted as understanding flashed behind his dark eyes. He tilted his head back, revealing the wonderful thick lines of his neck. His Adam’s apple bobbed when he swallowed heavily. His fingertips continued to inch upward, even after Violet dropped her hand, allowing it to fall away from his. He traced small circles over her supple skin. “This way?”
“Higher,” she breathed. He touched the edge where her leg met her pelvis, right where the signs of her arousal were becoming ever more evident beneath his touch.
“Violet…” He held his breath and shifted his weight on his knees. She opened her legs slightly, allowing him an unobstructed path to her aching core.
He dropped his gaze and pulled her closer to the edge of the bed with his other hand, then lowered his lips to her skin, following the lazy trail of goosebumps he had woken before. He teased her sex with his hand, right where she ached the most.
