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“You don’t have to take me to Teague’s. It’s too far out of the way for you.”
I jolted at the sound of her voice and stuck my head out from behind the curtain. “I’m taking you.”
She had my toothbrush stuck in her mouth again. And now I had a view of her long legs.
I ducked back into the shower, trying to erase the image from my mind. But it was already ingrained there.
She could be wearing a gown and high heels and made up to the nines, but it wouldn’t compare to what I’d just seen. Her . . . comfortable and at home . . . with me.
Would it have been like this? With us? For us?
“It’s kind of nice not having any stuff,” she said around the toothbrush. “I don’t have to lug anything around.”
This woman had been beaten, stalked, controlled, and manipulated, yet she was making the best of it. I sure as hell wouldn’t have had that attitude.
She’s stronger than you ever hope to be.
I scrubbed shampoo over my head with more force than necessary. Yesterday, I was some chump with a boatload of problems but a life that was okay. Today, I was the chump that had everything I’d ever wanted . . . except she’d been forced into cementing herself in my world.
So I couldn’t enjoy one of the best mornings of my life.
“Shit, that’s cold.”
Warmth pressed against my back and my body came to life.
“How do you stand this?” She reached around me and turned the hot water knob higher.
I didn’t have the heart to tell her it wouldn’t do any good. It would be another five minutes before it got hot.
“Used to it,” I grunted. The cold had helped tamp down my arousal, but one touch from her and the chilly water was no competition.
Who was I kidding? It was her, brushing her teeth, that did it.
She shimmied around me and squeaked when the spray ran down her face. “One-hundred-degree weather. The scorching hot desert. The Everglades.”
She seemed to hold her breath as she rinsed her hair. All I could focus on was the way her tits perked up when she lifted her hands to her hair.
Get a grip, Cal.
Oh, I wanted to get a grip all right. On her hips as I took her right here in this shower. Kiss her. Touch her. Bring her to an orgasm that would stay with her all day long. I was already wound up, imagining her moans of ecstasy.
Apparently, my body was completely on board with that.
And then I caught sight of the purple hue on the underside of her arm. Anger doused my desire. I couldn’t touch her. Not when she was still hurt.
I squirted shampoo in my palm and massaged it into her wet hair. Her eyes flew open, but she made no move to stop me.
I tried to be clinical, which was impossible when it came to Beau. Her hair was like silk, even though it was wet. She hummed as I worked my fingers over her scalp. Goose bumps raised on her skin.
Something about knowing I had that effect on her . . . it satisfied something deep within.
She turned, and I shampooed her long hair. I tried to stay focused on the dark locks, but the smooth line of her back that gave way to her ass was too much to ignore.
She was perfect. So damn perfect.
How had I ever been lucky enough to hold her? To know her?
I threaded my fingers around the back of her skull and massaged.
