Page 128 of Pretty Little Scars

“Yeah, I can help.”

I walk around the counter and take the tub from her. She licks her lips before turning away from me, showing me her back. The wound from last week is doing well. She doesn’t need the Steri-Strips anymore, but I can see that it’s still tender.

I’ve done my best not to hurt her. I hardly sleep at night because she wants to be in my arms, which is exactly whereIwant her, but I’m afraid I’m going to hurt her by accident, and the thought absolutely terrifies me.

So I’ve kept sex on the back burner because she hasn’t felt well, and I’m not an asshole.

But fuck if I don’t miss her.

“Wait, let me do you first.”

I almost groan at her choice of words as she spins around and takes the salve from my hand.

“This way you can see how much to use. A little goes a long way. Strip.”

I lift an eyebrow, and she blinks, as if she doesn’t know exactly what she’s doing.

We’ll play this game, sweetheart.

“If you want me to fuck you against this counter, just say so, Duchess.”

“Oh, I absolutely do, but first we need to do this because I’ve been meaning to for weeks and I didn’t have any of this left.” She wiggles the tub in front of my face. “Take it all off, Hotshot.”

With a smirk, I reach over my head and whip my shirt off, sending it to the floor. Darby’s eyes skitter along my skin, and she swallows hard, and I fuckinglove itwhen she looks at me like this. Like she needs to get her little hands on me. Like I’m the best damn thing she’s ever seen in her life.

“Pants too,” she whispers and then clears her throat. “I have to get your hip and leg.”

“Don’t want to miss those.” With my eyes pinned to hers, I unfasten my jeans, kick off my shoes, and step out of the denim, standing before her stark-ass naked. “Do as you wish.”

Her eyes fall to my already-hard-and-ready cock, and I grin down at her.

“Did you miss my cock, baby?”

“Fuck yes, I missed it. You’ve been withholding sex from me, Tucker.”

I grip her chin in my hand and tilt her head back, my other hand going into the hair at her nape and holding on tight.

“I’m notwithholdinganything. You were hurt, baby.”

“I’m doing much better now.”

My lips drift over hers so lightly, it’s barely a kiss, teasing her. “There’s nothing I want more than for you to be pain-free and healthy. Now, let’s do this fascinating witchy-gunk thing so I can get inside your pretty little pussy.”

“How dare you, sir. This is not gunk.” She winks at me and then holds up the tub and swipes her finger through it. “See? Just a bit to start.”

Her hand falls to the scar that bisects my abdomen, and my muscles ripple when she rubs over it. She takes her time, making sure to massage her magical potion into the scar, then drifts down my hip and upper thigh, also working it into the tissue there. It feels fuckingamazing. I don’t usually like to touch the scars, but she has a technique that makes them feel better.

When she’s satisfied with her work, and my cock is so hard it could pound nails, she leans in to place a kiss over my heart and then turns around.

“Okay, my turn. Use the same amount that I did to start.”

Honestly, I wasn’t looking. I was too lost in her, too fuckingturned onby her, but I don’t admit that out loud.

Instead, I gather some of the oily balm on my fingers and start at her shoulders. She’s right, a little goes a long way, and it spreads easily over the skin, melting right into the tissues.

“You can go over the fresh ones,” she murmurs. “They’re closed now, so the sooner the better.”

My teeth clench as I lightly drift over the new injury, but Darby doesn’t stiffen. She sighs, as if it feels good.