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The feeling of his fingers sliding through the strands sent a calming sensation through my limbs. “It’s my ex-husband. He won’t leave me alone.”
Declan tensed underneath me. After a brief pause, his hand trailed to my arm, and he ran his fingers up and down my bicep.“Does he contact you often?”
“Depends on if he wants something.” I shrugged.
He paused as though gathering his thoughts. “And how long have you been divorced?”
“Just over two years. I left him in Georgia.” I was better off without my ex.
“And how did things end with you two? If you don’t mind me asking.” His gentle hands held me tight against him as though he could protect me from anything.
“If I’m being honest, it was rough the last few years of our marriage. Between working long hours, him losing his job, and trying to have kids, we just weren’t what we used to be.” I sighed.
“And you want kids?” The question was asked casually, but I got the feeling there was more to it.
“Definitely. We tried for two years but never got pregnant. When I couldn’t give him what he wanted, he got angry and blamed me. Eventually, I’d had enough and left him.”
“I’m glad you knew when to step away. You don’t want someone toxic in your life.” Declan’s lips grazed my temple.
My shoulders released their tension. It was easy to open up to Declan, and even though he didn’t need to know all these personal details, it felt like he had lifted a weight from my chest.
“Is he causing you a lot of trouble right now?”
“Nothing more than usual. It’s his time of the month.” I laughed to myself, knowing it was true in more than one way.
“You just let me know if there’s anything I can do to help. I don’t want to see you upset. We can sic Mikel on him if you need us to.”
“Thanks, Dec.” I turned and placed a light kiss against his lips. He was so sweet.
I snuggled into his arms, and we sat in silence. Any panic or anger from earlier melted away as he cuddled and comforted me.
“What do you have left to do today?” he whispered.
“I was just finishing up. What time is dinner?”
“In a bit. Enough time to give you a soak in the tub. You must be achy from your ride.”
“Which one? Yesterday’s or today’s?” I giggled.
“You are a bad girl.” Declan tickled me, throwing me into a laughing fit.
“What is going on in here?” Thomas stood against the doorframe, arms crossed as he eyed us. To anyone else, he might have looked stern, but I could see the tension in his cheeks. He was trying not to smile.
“Just getting ready for a nice hot bath.” Declan held me against his chest.
“Sounds good. I’ll get the water running.” Thomas smiled and headed upstairs.
I extracted myself from Declan’s arms and retrieved my phone from the desk. Another message from Randol had come through while we were talking, but I ignored it. Taking Declan’s hand, our fingers intertwined as we walked up the stairs and entered his bathroom. In my short stay here, I’d learned he had the biggest soaking tub while Thomas had the biggest shower.
Thomas had the water going and was sprinkling salts in the tub when we entered. The milky water was entirely too inviting, and the tight muscles I’d ignored were screaming in pain. I couldn’t wait to get in and relax.
“What did you put in there?” I dipped my fingers in the tub and dragged them through the water, loving how it warmed my skin.
“Epsom salt for the muscles, lavender to help you relax, and some coconut oil and rose petals to help moisturize the skin after being out in the cold for the past two days.”
I blinked at him, unable to find words to express my gratitude. Tears pricked my eyes and threatened to spill over. No one had ever been so caring and so concerned with my well-being before. He’d thought about all my needs, and the best part is he did it to help me. Not to get something in return.
I walked over to Thomas and pulled him down to me, kissing him with everything I had. I needed him to know how much this meant. He and Declan had been amazing these past few days.
