AllFreeNovel
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“We do?” I close the book but stay reclined on my bed.
He presses forward, his biceps straining against the sleeves of his white tee. “We do. I was coming to steal you away.”
I grin. “Toplunder?”
His grin turns wolfish. “Exactly. To plunder and to sauna. Dress in loose clothes—or nothing at all. Up to you, sweetheart,” he says, giving me one of those slow once-overs.
I sit up, my head tilting to the side. “Wait. Like a real sauna?”
“Yep. A real one. Meet you in the basement in five.” He taps the doorframe twice and pushes off, walking backward down the hall.
I slide off the bed and flick the door closed with a chuckle. I take two steps to the dresser and pull out a pair of blue cotton short shorts and a loose skinny-strap tank top. I've done a handful of sauna sessions before, but it's usually at a spa after a massage—and alone.
A few minutes later, I find Nova waiting for me outside the sauna. He's dressed in a pair of black swim trunks and nothing else, his skin kissed golden by the summer sun. He grins when sees me, his gaze languidly roaming all over me.
“Ready?”
“It's been a while since I've done this,” I murmur, stopping in front of him.
He nods, his hand skimming down my arm. “Don't worry, sweetheart, I'll be gentle.”
The teasing glint in his eyes hints that he's not only talking about the sauna temperature. I let the smirk curl upward and murmur, “Promises, promises.”
He chuckles and pulls open the glass door, ushering me inside the four-person infrared sauna. Warmth wraps itself around me, soft and subtle, and I sit on the bench closest to the glass corner. Nova closes the door behind him and takes a seat on the bench perpendicular to mine.
“I started warming it up a few minutes ago when I got down here. It's pretty quick, so it shouldn't take long.”
I nod, looking around and breathing in the scent of eucalyptus. My muscles start relaxing on instinct, the gentle warmth already working its magic, and I exhale a deep breath.
“I can't believe you guys have this in your basement.”
“After Bane's injury, he needed physical therapy. Silas convinced himself and everyone else that infrared sauna therapy would help him. And one of the guys knew a guy who sold 'em wholesale, so he hit us with a nice discount.”
“And did it? Help, I mean.”
He nods several times, his gaze fixed straight through the thin pane of glass. “Yeah, I think so. Either way, this”—he raps his knuckles on the bench next to him—”is a new model. We kept using it long after Bane didn't need it anymore, and it became a routine.”
I tip my head back against the wooden slats behind me and let my body relax further. “Who knew the Reapers were into self-care? Better not let the rest of the town know, or you'll soften your rep,” I tease.
“Baby, we did a calendar with puppies a few years ago for the animal shelter fundraiser, and we're still the same assholes that run this town.” He says it so nonchalantly, like all those little information bombs he just dropped in one sentence aren't even worthy of a pause.
I can feel how wide my eyes are as I stare at him. “I'm sorry, did you just say you posed with puppies for acalendar?”
“Yeah, me and some of the boys. I think I still have one around here somewhere.” He lifts a shoulder in a casual shrug like it's no big deal, but I see the way the corner of his mouth twitches, like he's trying to curb his grin.
I arch a brow, my smile wide just thinking about the possibilities. “Your brother? Bane?”
“Don't get too excited, sweetheart. It wasn't that kind of calendar,” he says around a laugh.
“Oh my god, I gotta see this.” I can't even get the words out without a giddy laugh. “Also remind me to yell at my cousin for neglecting to inform me that such a calendar exists. To think I could've been looking at all those Reapers this whole time.” I mock-tsk and heave an exaggerated sigh.
He reaches over and snags me around the waist, hauling me across the small space and depositing me on his lap. I let out a startled laugh as my hands fly to his shoulders for balance. He wraps his arms around my waist, locking me in place.
“I changed my mind. I don't think I have any around to show you, not when you're going to drool over those assholes instead of me,” he grumbles into the crook of my neck.
“So possessive.” I drape my arms over his shoulders and settle against his lap, my legs resting on either side of his hips.
He drags his palms down my back and brushes his lips against my pulse point. “Only for you, baby.”
