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He was clean, as clean as I could get him, anyway.
It’d take much more than an hour standing under the water to scrub away what they’d done to him. Still, it was a start.
“There, all dried,” I urged, gently pulling him toward me.
He followed me into the bedroom and just stood there as I pulled a soft white t-shirt over his head and eased him against the bed. Sleep shorts were next. I heaved his heavy feet upwards one by one until I gently pushed him down on the bed and worked them up as high as I could.
Cold rippled through me. My sodden sleeves clung to my skin. I needed to change, put on something warm.
“Stay.” The word was a husky plea.
I glanced at his eyes as they closed, then at the bedroom door. “Okay.” I pulled the covers high up to his neck. “Whatever you need, but I need a shower first.”
He reached behind him and tugged the covers low on the other half of the bed as I kicked off my boots, pulled the wet shirt over my head, and hurried for the bathroom.
Get it off…the stench and the filth of that place were like a brand I needed gone. I scrubbed hard, using the last of the hot water to wash cobwebs, grime, and the sickening smell of that kill room off me until the water ran cold.
The bedroom was quiet, not even a shift under the covers. Hurry. I washed, then stepped out grabbed the towel, and dried before heading back into the bedroom.
He was still awake, still…unresponsive. I slipped on a pair of panties I’d left here earlier, then one of his massive black t-shirts and climbed in. Fear made me hesitate as I reached for him, so I curled my fingers, then pulled away and tugged the covers up high instead.
He just lay there, unmoving, with his back to me. I didn’t know if he was asleep.
I wished to hell I could sleep, but every time I closed my eyes, I saw that room.
That fucking room where they’d held him.
I shifted my gaze, watching his big chest slowly rise and fall with every deep breath. He was asleep…good. I lay there, staring at the ceiling, fighting back tears. That’s really good. You sleep, baby. You sleep and let me stand guard this time.
My attention moved to the door, and the sliver of faint light out in the hallway. Carven and London were out there somewhere, maybe even asleep themselves. I glanced back as a wave of exhaustion slammed into me. Right now, I felt lonely, with the weight of my thoughts ready to take me under.
I tried to stay awake by opening my eyes and my mouth wide until the corners of my mouth stretched.
Still, that heaviness waited. My eyes drifted closed. No…I opened them once more. Gotta stay awake…if…he…needs…me—
* * *
The bed shifted beside me. Still, I stayed under, sinking deeper into that heaviness, until a hard blast of a breath battered against my cheek. I cracked my eyes open, saw a shadow looming above me, and for a second my mind didn’t understand. “Go back to sleep, Colt. It’s too early.”
A low, guttural rumble followed, loud enough to drag me back into reality. The kill room…Colt chained there. Colt…a savage be—
I snapped my eyes wider, finding him on all fours, hovering over me. That threatening rumble like thunder in his chest making my pulse spike.
“Colt?” I croaked.
He lowered his head, his heavy breaths scattering my hair.
“Colt, what’s wrong?”
“Not. Colt.” The blunt snarl followed.
Not Colt? I flinched as he moved, placing one hand on either side of me and leaned down to sniff the back of my neck. I fisted the sheets, my gaze directed at the wall of the room and away from the door. But I didn’t dare turn my head. Not when he—
That snarl grew deeper and his breath was hot against the side of my neck, before he licked.
It was the same thing he’d done earlier, right before he ran from the dungeon where they’d held him. Would he run again? I winced as his tongue came once more. I couldn’t let him run again, couldn’t do anything to scare him.
“If you’re not Colt, then who are you?” I dared to whisper.
