Page 56 of Sweet Oblivion

Right here . . . Oh wow.

Steam curls through the warm, wet air, and water beads on skin.

Hard skin. Wet skin. Ryker’s skin.

Muscles shift and bunch as his hand moves, and my brain... It malfunctions.

Oh man, my brain knows it should look away. It might even be transmitting the damn message. But my body isn’t getting it. If it is, that message has been returned to the damn sender.

Holy. Fucking. Hell.

Water drips down his face as he groans, and that sound... It should be illegal.

He doesn’t see me. His eyes are closed.

Doesn’t hear me. It doesn’t look like his hearing aids are in when he’s in the shower.

My heart beats slams against my ribs, threatening to rip right out of my chest as his strokes quicken and my name falls from his lips.

“Delaney...” It’s raw and rough and, even caught as his eyes open and focus on me, I still can’t move.

Too lost in this man. In his body. In his voice.

Locked in a battle raging behind the depths of those beautiful blue eyes.

The silence stretches between us until Tori charges through my feet in an attempt to get back through the door, and I spin around so quickly, I almost trip over myself before I do manage to trip over Tori.

“I’m so sorry.” Shit. I’m not even facing him. He can’t hearme. I turn my head and close my eyes. “I’m sorry—I didn’t mean... Tori... I was trying to grab?—”

“Lane...” The sound of my name on his lips stops me.

I don’t move. I can’t.

“I’m sorry,” I repeat, not sure if I should laugh or cry or run or maybe just hang my head in shame.

“You don’t have to be.”

I’m sorry—what?

I open my eyes but keep them locked on his face. Big mistake. Ryker is still very much in the shower, although he’s turned the water off now. It drips down his face to his very bare?—

Do not look down. Do not look down. Do not look down. My new mantra is playing over and over in my head. Eyes on his.

Head up. I’ve got this.

“Tori steamrolled through the door, and I was trying to catch her. Believe it or not, I was trying to give you privacy,” I finally manage to tell him. “And instead—this happened.”

If I looked at myself in the mirror right now, I know I’d see the most horrific shade of red that man has ever seen.

“Yeah,” Ryker agrees like it’s any other day.

“And you were—and I saw—” Oh. My. God. Shut up, Delaney.

His lips tip up in a cocky smirk, and I may actually die. “How much did you see, Bambi?”

“Enough,” I whisper, lifting my head higher, then signing the word as well.

“Why are you so embarrassed?”