Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 101872 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 509(@200wpm)___ 407(@250wpm)___ 340(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 101872 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 509(@200wpm)___ 407(@250wpm)___ 340(@300wpm)
He drew off her shirt before crouching down to pull off her faux-leather pants. She was really regretting putting them on now as they were a pain in the ass to get off. But he didn’t swear once as he got them off, gruffly ordering her to hold onto his shoulders for balance.
Even though he was being extremely gentle with her, by the time she was standing there in her bra and panties, she was breathing heavily through the pain.
“Want me to undo your bra?”
She nodded and he reached around and undid her bra.
“Panties?”
Yeah, no way she was getting them off without help.
“Yes, please,” she said, hiding her wince.
Opal never used to have any issues about being naked in front of someone else, but Stefan had seriously eroded her confidence in her body. But surely, he could help her without seeing too much.
He slid her panties down. Stepping back, he turned on the shower before turning back to her.
Then his gaze ran over her. It felt like everywhere it touched, her skin heated.
“Damn, Gem,” he said gruffly. “I thought you would look good. I didn’t realize it would be amazing.”
“What?” she asked.
“You. You’re absolutely fucking amazing.”
“I thought . . . I thought you weren’t gonna look.”
“When did I say that?”
“Um, when you said you only cared about making sure I was all right.”
“Baby, I am doing that. But I never said I wouldn’t look. I’m not a saint after all.”
She had to grin at that. Somehow, she didn’t feel like an invalid when he had his gaze on hers. No, she felt . . . desirable. “No, you are not.”
Lightly grasping hold of her chin, he tilted her head back, kissing her gently. “So beautiful.”
When he drew back, she let out a noise of protest. “Come back.”
“No.”
“Come back please?” Maybe she’d be able to get her way if she said please.
“Nice try, but no. Like I said, I’m no saint. And kissing you while you’re naked is definitely pushing the edge of my control. Now, get in the shower.”
When she was in, he grabbed the shower head to aim it against her back. “Is that a good spot?”
“It’s perfect,” she said as she leaned her hands against the side of the shower.
Her eyes closed.
Bliss.
Why had she gone to the club tonight? What an idiot she was. Her back hadn’t been that bad before Dean the Dick tweaked it.
Shit.
Now she was calling him that.
“You all right, Gem?”
“Now I’m calling Dean the Dick, Dean the Dick.”
Great. Was she even making sense right now?
He grunted. “And once you earn a name like ‘the dick’ you can’t ever get rid of it.”
“Truer words were never spoken. He’s ‘the dick’ for life.”
“Deserves it.”
“Really wasn’t his fault, though. It was mine. He didn’t know.”
He made a sound like he didn’t agree. “It’s true that you should have told him about your back, but he grabbed you like that out of frustration because he couldn’t control the scene. The man should have called for a pause before then. And that’s why he’s ‘the dick’.”
Right.
Made sense.
“Doesn’t mean you’re not in trouble for not telling him about your back. And for Topping from the bottom during that scene.”
“You’re really gonna punish me for that?”
“Well, it wasn’t my scene,” he said. “Of course, I could punish you for scening with someone else who wasn’t me.”
“Um, considering I thought we were just friends, no you can’t.”
“That is a point for consideration.”
She glared at him over her shoulder. “It’s the only point for consideration.”
“You try Topping with me, I’m gonna shut that shit down real quick,” he warned.
Something came over her. Different than those jabs of happiness he’d given her.
This was more like a blanket.
A warm blanket. One that made you feel at ease.
Which was weird when he’d basically just threatened her.
But if she had to take a guess, she figured it was because she knew that he meant every word. He’d follow through. And he wouldn’t leave her floundering . . . upset and out of control.
Because he would seize control.
“You’d keep me safe?” she whispered.
Shit. She didn’t mean to say that. Opal liked to play. And she liked to sass. What she didn’t usually do was trust. And to feel safe, you needed trust, so she wasn’t sure that she’d ever really had that.
Renard moved in close and opened the door. Grasping hold of her chin, he turned her face toward his. “I will keep you safe, Opal.”
She sucked in a breath and nodded. She believed him.
“Could you pass me the shower gel?” she asked, needing a break from the deep stuff.
“Yeah, baby. Sure you don’t need help?”
“Think I’ve got it.”
It was painful but she managed to wash her body. While keeping her hair out of the water. She didn’t have the energy to deal with that disaster right now.
13
He was a fucking saint.