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She laughs lightly and nods against my shoulder. I ease free and wade through the water, taking the steps to get out. “Can we shower? I want to wash my hair.” She sits back, relaxing in my hold as I carry her through the villa, my wet feet leaving a string of prints. Pulling a strand, she sniffs it, wrinkling her nose. “I need to rinse out the chlorine.” I take her straight to the shower, lowering her and flicking it on. The heat pelts my skin, and I pull her back, dropping my head on her shoulder, securing my arms around her waist as she works around me, her small face twisted to the spray.
Her hands work through her hair, causing bubbles to foam and sluice between us. Gathering them, I take over and drive my own hands into her hair, massaging until she groans happily and melts into me. “I’m so tired.” She yawns, laughing.
I soap her body and my own before stepping us forwards to wash it off. “Fancy a nap?”
Twisting, she runs her hands up my chest. “Just sleep though because I really am knackered,” she blurts, red-faced.
I throw my head back, laughing loudly.
“It's jet lag,” she says defensively when I laugh longer. I wrap her in a bath towel, pat her dry and do the same with me as she sorts her hair. “What have you done to my body?” She pouts as I lay us down, tucking the thin sheet under her neck and yanking her leg firmly in place over my thighs.
Laughing, I thread our fingers and sigh. “Owned it.”
She goes quiet and thoughtful, and I close my eyes, knowing that my feelings for this woman transcend simple attraction. They’ve eclipsed any possibility of ever coming back from being only her boss. I click the switch for the blinds, and they whir shut, pulling darkness in from every corner of the room. Locking us away from the world.
Lauren presses her face into my chest and exhales.
* * *
“Show us the pool.” Lauren spins her phone around so that Amberley can see the view, and she coos dramatically. “Lucky bitch. So, other than getting your rocks off, what have you done?” Lauren flicks an amused smile my way.
“Not much.” Her cheeks turn light pink.
“You’ll get a water infection!” Amberley warns, and I grin as I read through my emails. We’re four days in, and we’ve barely left the poolside.
“You're on loudspeaker,” Lauren chastises.
“Good. If she comes home bow-legged, I'm not covering any more of her shifts!” Amberley declares playfully. Shaking my head, I check the main news outlets back home for any updates. Danvers has been keeping me updated, but sometimes, the odd bit of info slips through, and it can be detrimental to us.
“Not even if I give you unlimited access to the wellbeing centre?” I muse loudly, clicking and scrolling.
Silence sits between us all, and I look over my laptop at Lauren biting her lip. “Well… I guess I could cover another,” Amberley garbles.
“As I thought.” That one is predictable, and she is growing on me.
“Wait, you don’t actually want to be bow-legged, do you, Lauren?” she suddenly blurts, and Laurens groans, laughing.
“No, and you don’t need to cover for me. I’ll text you tomorrow—we’re going snorkelling soon.”
“I’m getting ready for work, anyway. Love you!” The phone bleeps and Lauren walks to sit next to me. I woke up gasping again last night, and she has been quieter than normal this morning.
“Everything okay?”
“Just keeping tabs on the case.”
“I know we’ve not spoken about it much. I'm not sure how I can help, but I'm here, even if you want to vent.” She searches my eyes, but I don’t allow her to see the tension pulsating behind my eyes.
“I have a lawyer for that.”
Her gaze is cautious—her hands cupped in her lap. “I know, but every now and again, you get this absent look, and I wa—” she voices softly, but I cut her off.
“I’m fine, Lauren,” I impart calmly. She nods, but her mouth pinches. I lean in and kiss her. “I’m fine. It’s fine.” I address what she won’t. My nightmares. I refuse to give them any power, so I don’t want her to. “They happen, and then they go. It’s fine.” Her mouth twists sadly.
“Do you think Royce will try to get revenge?”
“Oh, I’m banking on it.” I smile grimly. “When we return to London, it will be difficult for us to spend time together. That's why I wanted this time with you.” I don’t want her worrying about the case. Cautious, yes. Worried, no.
“And you needed a break.” Her brow lifts, forcing me to step away from the laptop. I close the lid and rub my jaw.
