Chapter 24 Hi
Claire
Climbing the stairs to the house, exhaustion covers my every move. “I was not expecting today to be so tiring,” I say, following Everett into the house. “I feel like I’m peopled out, and we didn’t even make it to Lolly, Aster, or Reid’s shops.
“I can’t believe Stella is conveniently out of town.”
“Oh, I know.”
“Sorry it was more dead ends,” he says.
“We don’t know that. We still have to look through the books we bought, so maybe something will be in there.”
I remove my coat, hang it in the closet, and then kick off my shoes by the door. Moving across the living room, I collapse onto my stomach on the couch.
“I’m tired, but it wasn’t all that bad,” he says. “I had fun getting to hang out with you today.”
Sitting up, I watch as he takes off the Christmas sweater and throws it over the chair, revealing his abs. My eyes rake over him. “Do you always undress the minute you get home?”
“If you had been in that torture device all day, you’d be half-naked right now too.”
He scratches his fingertips over his bare skin, and his biceps flex as he moves.
“So, should we look through the books now? Or do you want to wait?” he asks.
“Honestly, the idea of reading and talking sounds miserable.” My eyes find his bare abs again, following the line of dark hair that disappears below his waistline. “Any ideas of activities that don’t require talking?”
I shouldn’t want him right now, but I do.
I’ve been the one drawing the line in the sand, but suddenly everything I’ve said is flying out the window.
Maybe it’s because he’s standing a few feet from me, shirtless.
Maybe it was the kiss in the bookstore that’s been fucking with me all day.
Or, maybe it’s because part of me is desperate for some normalcy after a very abnormal couple of days.
But whatever the reason, my pulse is beating a little faster, and my skin feels a little a warmer, and between my legs feels a little wetter.
He shakes his head. “You want to jump in the shower with me?”
“Shower sex?” I blurt, my mouth tipping into a grin. Flutters begin somewhere low in my belly.
“No. Just a shower.” He shakes his head.
“Oh.” My cheeks heat. Definitely miscalculated that. Fuck. “Yeah, if you want a shower, that’s fine. I’ll take one after you.”
“That’s not what I asked,” he says, walking towards the bedroom and pausing right outside the door. “I asked if you wanted to take a shower with me.”
“But you said—”
“I know what I said. You look tired, and I know you’re stressed. I thought it might be nice to jump in the shower and let me take care of you in a different way.” His mouth forms a sexy grin, and my body heats again.
“A different way?”
He nods.
“Just you and me. No talking. Let me help you relax.”
“Okay, yeah.”
“Good.” He turns, disappearing into the bedroom. Standing, I hear the shower turn on, and I try not to overthink why he doesn’t want to have sex with me.
Pushing away the negative thoughts, I walk the rest of the way to find that his pants and boxer briefs have already been left on the bathroom floor.
“You ready?” he asks, causing me to look up to where he stands in all of his naked glory.
And every bit of him truly is glorious.
Maybe this was a bad idea.
Need gathers in my core, and I breathe in deep, reminding myself he said this wasn’t going to lead to sex.
Letting my gaze wash over him again, the metal in the tip of his cock catches the light, and I wonder how hard it would it be to convince him to give in?
“I’m up here.” He chuckles.
“Sorry…I…”
“Got distracted?”
Blush paints my cheeks. “Yeah.”
I slowly strip my clothes off under his stare and then walk across the tile floor joining him outside the shower.
“Hi,” he says, reaching up and tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear.
“Hi.”
He opens the door and grabs my hand, helping me step inside. The warm water cascades over me, easing the tension in my shoulders and neck. Everett follows after me, moving in close behind.
“Can I touch you?” he asks.
I nod, and his hands find my shoulders. I let out a low moan as his hands trail down my upper arms and then back up, grazing my skin softly. Goosebumps erupt across my body, and he laughs to himself as he begins rubbing the tight muscles across the top of my back.
“That feels good.”
“Good.” He continues to massage me, and I let my eyes close.
I knew he knew how to use his hands, but I didn’t know he knew how to use them like this.
His touch is tender and full of care. My stomach flutters.
Another moan escapes, and I allow my mind to quiet.
Moving down my back, he then runs his hands just above my ass and relieves the stress I’m holding there too.
“Is that okay?” he asks.
“Mmhmm,” I hum.
He pauses, and my eyes open.
“Why did you stop?”
“Hold on. I’m just getting some soap.” He chuckles as he pumps some body wash into his hand. “May I?”
I nod again, and he rubs the soap between his palms. The sugar cookie scent fills the steamy shower, and he begins to work my body under his touch. His hands are gentle yet firm, and my body continues to melt as he lathers every inch of my upper half, except for my breasts.
Kneeling behind me, his hands find my leg. He moves from my ankle to my upper thigh, stopping just short of touching me where I wish he would. This whole massage is starting to feel like a tease, and with every touch, my desire for him builds.
I let out a disappointed moan as he moves to my other leg, repeating the same motion.
“You can touch me,” I say.
“I am touching you,” he says, pumping some shampoo into his hand.
“You know that’s not what I meant.”
“I know, but this isn’t about that,” he explains. “Trust me, I’ve been dreaming about fucking you again since we finished the other night. It’s why I kissed you today, but right now I want to help you relax. This is about you.”
Butterflies swoop low in my belly with his words.
“I didn’t know you could be this sweet,” I jest.
“There’s a lot you don’t know about me, Sugar,” he says, his hands finding my scalp, and he begins to massage the shampoo into my hair.
The feeling is euphoric, and my head lolls back as he continues to knead his fingers through my wet locks.
Carefully, he rinses out the shampoo and then adds conditioner.
He repeats the same steps, then washes the soap away when he’s finished.
His strong hands move back to my arms, and he gently runs his fingers up and down, softly tickling my skin.
My hands find his, and I pull his arms around me, leaning back into his firm body.
There is something comforting about being wrapped up in his arms. It feels safe and reassuring.
It gives me hope that if we stick to the plan, together we’ll make it home.
We stay like that for a few long moments, letting the water fall over our embrace, and he takes me by surprise when he kisses the side of my head tenderly.
“You feeling a little better?” he asks.
“I think so. Thank you. I wasn’t…um…anyway, that was really nice.”
“I’m glad you liked it,” he says. “Anytime you need me to help you relax, you just say the word, and I’ll be your man.”
I’ll be your man.
Pulling away, I open the door and climb out of the shower.
“I’ll be out in a minute,” he says as I grab for a towel and wrap it around me.
Nodding, I leave him to finish.
I didn’t know shower massages were a thing, but I could definitely get used to them happening more often—especially if Everett was the one giving them.
Something about the tenderness he showed warmed me in a way I wasn’t expecting.
He was so careful not to make it sexual, but it felt more intimate than anything he and I have ever done before, and that’s left me confused.
Doubt starts to creep in that maybe I should have returned the favor. Or maybe all of that was a lead up to shower sex, and I just awkwardly fucked up his plan by getting out and walking away.
Shit.
Turning, I begin to head back into the bathroom as he shuts off the water and steps out.
“Forget something?” he asks, grabbing a towel and running it over his dark hair. Water rolls down his tan skin and beads in his chest hair.
“No. I’m sorry. I should’ve offered to give you a massage or—”
“Don’t apologize,” he says, drying off his body. “That shower was to help you feel good and to get me clean. I’d never expect anything from you.”
“You sure?”
“I’m positive.” He wraps the towel around his waist and walks over to where I’m standing. Grabbing me by the arms with both of his hands, he looks me in the eye. “I promise.”
“But your shoulder. I’m sure you could have used a massage too. I feel bad.”
He chuckles. Letting me go, he rolls his arm up and over his head in a circular motion. “Honestly, it’s weird. It hasn’t bothered me since we got here.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, I don’t know. I’m trying to not think about what it means too much. Let’s get dressed and see what we can find in those books?”
“Sure.”
We both move out of the bathroom to get ready, and I can’t help but wonder why he didn’t mention the shoulder thing before now.
Yesterday and today were a little nuts, so maybe it just didn’t come up, but then again, I feel like it should have.
Shaking the thought, I walk into my closet and begin to get dressed.
We need to buckle down and see if any of these books unlock the secret way back home.