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His brow creased. “Why did you go to their house?”
“To… I don’t know. I was just so fucking angry.”
He sighed and started undressing me carefully. “Dan, I’m fine.”
“Yeah, but you might not’ve been,” I croaked, then pinched the corners of my eyes when they filled up with tears again. “Sorry. I’m just a little emotional. Beans did a jig on my back.”
“I think you’re a bit dazed,” he said gently. “After a shower, we’ll get into bed. I’ll make you a hot cocoa.”
“’Kay.” I sniffled, letting him lead me over to the shower.
He hurriedly stripped off and climbed in with me, probably worried that I wouldn’t be too steady on my feet. But as the hot water rained down on me, I sighed and started to feel a bit more normal. Like the water was washing away the horror of Frank and Beans.
Rafe poured shampoo into his palm and reached up to wash the paint from my hair. I swayed on my feet and cupped his waist, my shoulders gradually unclenching from the soothing touch.
“What’s their house like?” he asked curiously, like he couldn’t help himself.
“Just… fucking weird.” I shivered. “Full of shit they’ve stolen. And they had yodelling playing on full blast.”
“How did you get their address?”
I shrugged a little. “Asked these cops I know.”
He sighed. “Dan.”
“I was so fucking angry, kitten,” I rushed out. “I wasn’t going to hurt them, but I… just needed to do something. They hurt you.”
He gave me a tiny smile and leaned up to kiss me. There was green paint on his nose when he pulled back. “Well, thank you for getting an apology from them for me. I appreciate it. And I’m sorry they pelted you with paint and that, uh, Vince lost his pants. Did they want the zipper?”
I eyed him in bewilderment. How did he know that? “Yeah.”
“Makes sense.” He nodded at me. “Close your eyes.”
I obeyed, screwing up my face as he scrubbed the paint away. While I rinsed the shampoo out of my hair, he moved on to my neck and arms.
Once we were both fully clean—I’d gotten paint on Rafe—he helped me dry off and tucked me into bed, then pulled on his pyjamas to go downstairs and make me a hot chocolate.
I sighed, snuggling under the comforter and burying my face in Rafe’s pillow to breathe in his scent. After a minute, I felt my body sag, finally relaxing fully. Rafe’s bed made me feel safe and warm. Rafe made me feel safe and warm.
My heart clenched as I pictured him downstairs making me a hot cocoa. Looking after me, like I’d looked after him last night.
Maybe I could be an okay partner. Better than I had been a neighbour, at least. Maybe it came somewhat naturally with the right person. Because it didn’t feel like any kind of effort to spend time with Rafe, to do things for him. I wanted to spend time with him and do things for him.
I’d always assumed I was too selfish to be in a relationship with someone. I mean, I guessed I had been before. Unwilling to commit, unwilling to put in even the bare minimum effort when it came to anything other than sex with someone else. But with Rafe, it had just… happened. Because I’d wanted to put in effort, even if I hadn’t realised it at first.
Tonight, I’d come close to… not death, but something perhaps equally as daunting. And it had solidified what I’d already realised last night.
I wanted Rafe. All of him. Not just casual sex with him. I wanted everything else. And I needed to tell him. There was no point wasting time.
When I heard him coming up the stairs, I sat up in bed as my heart started to race.
Fuck, I was nervous.
What if he turned me down? I’d have to leave. We’d stop seeing each other. That would be it. Over.
My heart lurched when he walked into the bedroom, carefully carrying a steaming mug with his laptop tucked under his arm. He set the drink down on the nightstand and climbed into bed.
“It’s really hot, so better let it cool down for a minute.”
