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With Chloe’s release rippling through her, my own release followed hers, the sensation sizzling like fire down my spine. The force of it was so intense my knees nearly gave out. I had to slam one hand against the tiled wall to keep us both from collapsing, but I held on, trembling with her.
When it was all over but for the echoes, she pressed a kiss to the base of my throat, whispering, “You can let me down now before we both fall.”
A chuckle rustled in my throat, and I savored her responding giggle. I eased her to the floor carefully. We both showered and soaped off before bundling into warm clothes and making our way down to the kitchen. I knew the rest of the family would be waiting, and my mom had probably already made me food in the middle of the night.
Chapter Forty-Two
Chloe
Bagels
The following morning, Lincoln’s bruising looked awful, blooming purple and red all over his ribs on one side and extending down to his hip and side of his thigh. “Lincoln!” I exclaimed, meeting his gaze as he stepped out of the shower. “Those bruises look terrible.”
He shrugged nonchalantly, all no-big-deal about it. “I’m a little sore, but that’s it.”
I fumbled in the drawer and thrust a bottle of ibuprofen at him. He rolled his eyes, but he took some. Of course, he slung a towel around his hips, took a few strides and stopped in front of me where I stood by the bathroom counter. “I’m fine. I think I demonstrated that last night.” He waggled his brows suggestively.
“Oh, my God,” I muttered, feeling heat blaze into my cheeks as he stepped closer and pressed a hot kiss on the side of my neck.
Just then, a voice came from the doorway in the common area of the suite. “Breakfast! Your dad’s here, Chloe.”
“Gah!” I pushed him away.
Chuckling, he tugged me back for a quick, fierce kiss. It felt as if my heart was smiling. I hurried out of the bathroom to find Elsa in the doorway of the suite.
“Oh, thank goodness! I was afraid I interrupted something.”
“Oh, no,” I said, trying to sound all casual. Of course, my cheeks were still burning, and her brows rose. “I didn’t know my dad was coming out this morning.”
“Maggie invited him for breakfast. She loves making big breakfasts all the way up to Christmas. We always have a good breakfast around here, but she goes a little crazy the closer Christmas gets.”
“How come I don’t know about this?” I asked as I fell into step beside Elsa.
“It’s not official, you know, but she makes it big.”
“Hey, Chloe girl,” my dad called from where he sat at the table in the family kitchen a moment later as we walked in.
“Hey, Dad.” I crossed over, leaning down to press a kiss on his cheek.
“Maggie says I’ve got to come out for breakfast every day,” he added.
I glanced toward Maggie and she grinned. “Yes, he’s family.”
It was quite the spread, including smoked salmon with fresh bagels. Tommy was practicing bagels, so we were all reaping the benefits of that.
“These are amazing,” my dad exclaimed, slathering cream cheese on a bagel and topping it with salmon.
Tommy grinned. “I’m getting there. The shape is harder to master than I expected.”
My dad shrugged. “Who cares how they’re shaped? Taste is all that matters.” He lifted a hand for a high five for Tommy, who slapped it as he walked by to sit down at the table with his own plate.
I loaded my plate, just as Maggie asked me, “How is Lincoln this morning?”
“He says he’s fine, but his bruising looks terrible.”
“Winter bruising will do that,” Asher said, stopping beside me. “Because of the cold. When your body’s freezing cold and you slam into something, the blood races there like it has a job to do, which I suppose it does.”
“I’m worried he broke a rib, but he insists he hasn’t,” I added.
