Page 152 of Her Wicked Plan

“Me too, Leo,” I agree as the heat turns into fire, bursting into flames and making me go over the edge.

I curl my fingers behind his neck, digging my nails deep into his skin. The pain pushes him over right after me.

He’s falling with me.

Straight from the Heavens above to the fiery pits of Hell below.

CHAPTER 40

Veronica

We both cleaned off in the shower, with Leo washing his hair and body and ringing out his pants once the water was turned off. To the best of his ability, he twisted the fabric multiple times, his muscles on full display, until only a tiny amount of water dripped from the material.

Seeing how we were both using the cotton towels, he draped the pants on the rack screwed securely to the wall for them to dry out.

He passed me my brush so I could comb through my curls. After I was satisfied with my hair, I dressed in the clean clothes I grabbed from my room, using the old shirt to dry my hair.

When I walk into his bedroom, Leo throws on a pair of sweats, not bothering to wear a shirt. I gaze at his back while I lean against the doorframe. Bringing my finger to my mouth, I bite the tip while gawking at him.

I had forgotten how beautiful men could be. The muscles in their back, when they lift their arms, roll their shoulders. Staring at his tattooed skin alone was enough to make me want to go another round, and even with how nice that sounded, I couldn’t stay much longer in his room.

“Do you think it will be easy to sneak me out of here?” I broke the silence and the trance I had been holding on to his skin.

“Once all the doctors and nurses find their way back to the rooms for the night, I don’t see it being a problem.”

“And the guards?” I leave the comfort of the doorway and step into the room. “Won’t they wonder why you are escorting me back to my room so late?”

“I’ll come up with something.” He goes for the bed, one knee meeting the mattress before he climbs on it and positions himself on his side. “Come here.”

My eyes dart from his face to the outstretched arm on the bed, a space he wants me to lie next to him. I’ve never been much of a cuddler, actually. I’m not a fan of people touching me, but I allowed Leo to do so—for reasons that have recently been tucked back into my mind.

“Letting me hold you won’t kill you, Vee.” His voice snaps me back to the bedroom, where I unknowingly move further from the bed. “Just for a little.”

Leo pats the space next to him. It would be nice to lie in a bed that wasn’t made of cheap material. I’ve grown accustomed to the back pain from the lovely mattress in my room.

Taking a hesitant step forward, my breathing falters when I take another one. My knees meet the edge of the mattress, and I’m soon climbing into the bed with him, tucking myself into the area saved for me.

He sighs out in relief from behind me, and his arm wraps around my waist.

His hand finds its way beneath my shirt, where his palm lightly presses against my stomach, his thumb brushing along my smooth skin.

Suddenly, my body relaxes before my mind does. This isn’t that bad—not what I thought it would be, but I know I would hate it if it were anyone but Leo. I feel his breath hit the back of my neck before he presses his lips to my skin.

“I didn’t take you as someone who likes to cuddle.”

“I’m not. I hate being touched,” I admit.

“Is there a reason for that?”

I peer over my shoulder at him. “Are we having a session, Dr. Madden?”

“It could be a session, if that’s what you want to call it.”

“What would you call it?” I question.

He thinks about it for a moment. “Two people getting to know one another.”

A soft kiss is pressed to my temple. It wasn’t only me in the shower pretending that this was normal—that we weren’t who we were. This is play-pretend, not reality.