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I force my gaze away as the steam starts to dissolve.
“I’ll, uh, let you finish up.”
“Larinda, hey, wait.”
I turn back, my breath catching at my fantasy come to life. Messy dark hair hanging in his eyes, tattooed body glistening and wet… even the white towel around his waist seems designed precisely to show off the art it’s barely covering. He’s so beautiful, but it’s the look in his eyes that takes my breath away.
“Thank you,” he says quietly.
“For what?” I clear my throat when my voice comes out hoarse.
“For checking on me. For caring.”
For caring.
Tears prick my eyes as I study him in the soft light. I wouldn’t have to know anything about his past to know he’s not used to that.
Do you have any idea how much I care about you?
“Of course,” I force out. “You hungry? I can have food sent up.”
His intense gaze sends shockwaves through my body. My own focus drops to his tattooed fingers holding the towel. I find his eyes again, desperate to read the storm raging in them.
“What do you really want to ask me?” he says quietly.
“What do you mean?”
“You know what I mean.”
I trace his body slowly before returning to his eyes. “What’s the whole story behind the X tattoo? The long version.”
He flinches but doesn’t look away. “You already know the basics.”
“Maybe. But I don’t think I know the important parts. How it affected you. What it truly means.”
After another lengthy pause, he sighs and steps from the shower.
“You sure you want the whole story? It’s not pretty.”
“I not only want the whole story, I want all these stories.”
He smiles when I run my fingers over more of the tattoos on his arm.
“We’ll be here the entire night if I tell you all of them.”
“I have all night.”
He tilts his head, searching me. “Fine. But I want something in return.”
“What’s that?”
“All your stories.”
I bite back a grin as my pulse picks up. “Deal.”
I let him finish up in the bathroom, but do not let him get fully dressed. Not until we complete the private tour of his body. He didn’t seem to mind my demand if his grin when I banned pants and shirts was any indication.
“So bossy,” he says as I point to the bed.
