Opposition (Lux 5)

“You won’t let anything happen to me,” I told him, resting my hands on his shoulders as I drew back. “And I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“That’s my Kitten,” he murmured as he looked me over. “Speaking of not letting anything happen, how are you feeling?”

“Tired. Some sugar would be nice.” For some reason, eating sugar helped after using the Source. It always reminded me of Harry Potter.

“I’ll make sure Archer grabs some of that when he comes back.” He stood and then climbed on the bed so he was sitting behind me. “But for now . . .”

He grabbed my hips and tugged me back against his chest.

“What are you doing?” When his right hand slid onto my upper thigh, my breath caught. “Oh.”

His deep laugh rumbled through me. “Believe it or not, I’m not thinking inappropriate thoughts.”

I turned my head to look back at him, eyebrow raised.

The wicked half grin turned my heart to mush. “Okay. Ninety-nine-point-nine percent of the time I am thinking something that would turn the tips of your ears pink.”

“And you’re not now?”

His lips pursed. “Yeah, all right. A hundred percent of the time, but I actually do have totally appropriate reasons for touching you.”

“Uh-huh.” I rested my head against his cheek. And then I felt his hand slide over the top of my right thigh. “What are you doing?”

“Taking care of you.”

Heat from his fingers radiated out over my thigh. “You don’t need to do this. It’s just a scratch.”

“More like a flesh wound, and you’ve been limping around since it happened. I should’ve done it while we were in the helicopter, but I was too busy keeping you from throwing yourself into the cockpit.”

“I wasn’t that bad.” A small smile pulled at my lips. “But thank you for that. I was afraid I’d hurl all over you.”

“I’m glad you didn’t,” he replied drily.

Once the dull ache in my thigh eased until it was nothing but a memory, I started to pull away, because healing me could take its toll on him, but instead of letting me go, he scooted off the bed with me in front of him. The moment his feet hit the floor, he scooped me up in his arms.

I let out a startled yelp as I swung wide eyes on him. “Whoa. What are you doing now?”

“Still taking care of you.” He started toward the bathroom, his eyes heavily hooded, but there was a mischievous tilt to his lips. “I’ve just realized we both could clean up.”

That was the truth. Once again, I was spotted with grime and dried blood, and so was Daemon.

He took us into a surprisingly large bathroom, gently putting me down in front of a tub. It wasn’t as big as the one back in the mayor’s mansion, but it still seemed abnormally large.

Flicking on the low lights, he turned to me, wiggling his fingers. I stepped toward him. He grinned. “Closer.”

I made it another foot.

“Lift your arms.”

Telling him I was capable of undressing myself was on the tip of my tongue, but nervousness swallowed the words. I lifted my arms and he pulled off the ruined sweater, stopping to ease my hair out before dropping it onto the floor. He didn’t speak as he flicked the tiny pearl button on the pants and then tugged them off.

I placed my hand on his shoulder to balance myself as I snagged a leg free. A flush swept from my cheeks down my entire body. No matter all that we’d shared together, I was still shy around him. Not sure why, but maybe it was because he didn’t seem to have a single flaw while I had a very human body full of them.

The last remaining piece of clothing also hit the floor, and then I was standing there completely in the buff, with him fully dressed. I folded my arms across my chest as he reached around me, turning on the water.

Warm steam immediately poured into the bathroom. As he straightened, his lips brushed the curve of my cheek, sending a shiver down my spine.

I’d never seen a guy get undressed as quickly as Daemon, and before I knew it, I was face-to-face with his corded pecs. My gaze drifted down tightly rolled abs and then it moved lower—

Two fingertips pressed under my chin, guiding my gaze up to a pair of startling green eyes that seemed to carry a sheen of white behind them. “Eyes up here, or I’ll start feeling like man candy.”

My cheeks heated, but I laughed. “Whatever.”

He winked after he drew back the curtain. “After you.”

I’d never showered with a guy before. Obviously. But even if I had, I don’t think it would even remotely touch showering with Daemon Black.

My hands trembled as I stepped under the hot spray of water. A second later, he was in the tub, too, and it suddenly didn’t feel very big at all.

His hands were gentle, the pressure barely there as he turned me so my back was against the spray. Drawing in a stuttered breath, I lifted my head. I expected him to kiss me and do something that would most definitely make my knees go weak, but that’s not what he did.

His eyes locked with mine, and he carefully scooped the soaked strands of my hair over my shoulders. Then, his hands skimmed up my upper arms and coasted over my back.

His arms folded around me, drawing me against his chest, sealing our bodies together. I squeezed my eyes shut as a different kind of need slammed into me. The rising swell of emotion went beyond the physical, and as he held me so tightly that there was no space between us at all, I knew it was the same for him.

I don’t know how long we stood like that, just holding each other as the water beat down on us, but there was something intensely powerful between us that transcended words.