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“It needs to be under cold water right now.” I was shaking my head before he’d even finished, but my objections were clearly ignored because he got to his feet and placed his hands on my hips. “Get in the bath.”
The order was sharp.
Demanding.
He shuffled past me to the bathtub, proudly sitting on the other side of the room.
I braced my hands on the sink, leaning into it. “You have a bath,” I commented, a breathy chuckle following.
He turned on just a single faucet—the cold one—letting me know this wasn’t going to be pleasant or relaxing. No lit candles, no book to read. He checked the temperature with his hand, unsuccessfully hiding the cold shudder before he turned to face me again. “Most of the boys asked for them when this place was renovated about seven years ago,” he answered, slipping his club colors off his shoulders and catching it in his hands. “After riding for hours, we want to rest our muscles, not stand in a fucking shower.”
“Right.” I nodded, gritting my teeth.
“I’m gonna call someone. We’ll get the pain under control and make sure it’s not worse than it looks.” His cell phone was already to his ear, murmuring quietly so I couldn’t hear him over the rush of the water.
I knew he was right.
I needed to get the burn under some cold water and make sure it was clean, or I would be dealing with one hell of a painful infection in a day or so. Unfortunately, I also knew this process wasn’t going to be pleasant.
My stomach churned a little as Hawk stepped around me, placing his hands on my hips and helping me step out of my shorts before shuffling us toward the bath.
“Hawk,” I protested, blinking through the tears that I could feel beginning to burn my eyes. “I hate that I’ve made a strange habit of fucking crying around you.”
“I think it’s cute.”
“You do not.”
When we reached the side of the bath, his hands went to his jeans. A single flick of his belt and they gathered at his feet. He kicked them to the side and reached for his black T-shirt, grabbing the back of the neck and pulling it forward. The scrap of fabric joined his colors on the hook on the back of the bathroom door.
He then stood with me, his body something that should be on magazines or in goddamn porn, and his Calvin Klein’s doing nothing to hide the curve at the front.
My heart didn’t know what to do, but I knew between the burn and the way I couldn’t stop admiring the man in front of me, the amount of adrenaline that must have been coursing through my veins at that moment should’ve killed me.
“What are you doing?”
“We’re getting in the bath,” he answered, leaning over to turn the faucet off before stepping into the water. Once he had both feet in, he held out his hand for mine, holding me steady while I lifted my burned leg in first, the raw injury screaming.
With both feet in, Hawk turned me so my back was pressed to his chest, and we slowly sank into the water.
The shock of the cold hit me instantly, stealing my breath for a second. My brain’s natural reaction was to get the hell out, escape the cold and find somewhere warm to hide.
I attempted an escape, but Hawk’s arms circled my waist, pulling my body against his chest and holding me tight as my legs touched the water. “Holy crap,” I sobbed, trying to fight through the cold water and the pain and hope like fucking hell for some kind of respite.
I was okay with pain.
I’d been through enough of it to know my tolerance was pretty damn high.
But this.
Fuck.
I knew the burn needed water, that was best for it, but the second they met, my stomach tightened and I cried.
I fucking cried because the relief was instant, but it was so damn cold.
I couldn’t tell you how long we stayed there with Hawk holding me, pressing his lips across the curve of my shoulder, making soothing noises like I’d make to Kadey when she was upset. I can’t imagine it was long, given the freezing temperature, but it felt like an eternity. I tried to focus on him, letting my breathing fall in time with his and allowing myself to ease back into his chest. He dipped his hand into the water, then brushed it back over my hair. “That feels good,” I murmured, not realizing how hot my face was from the tears and stress. “Always surprising me, Swayze.”
His chuckle rustled me a little. “I need you to remember how good I am to you.”
