Chapter 17 Silver #2
The hot water scalds my shoulders, and I relish the burn, watching brown dirt swirl down the drain. Steam fills the glass enclosure, thick and hazy, while my mind wanders where it never should.
Solana’s right down that hall. No more than about twenty, maybe thirty feet away. Naked under the spray like I am, water sluicing over her brown skin, running in rivulets between her breasts, down the valley of her stomach.
My head fills with this kind of explicit imagery—how she’d tilt her head back, exposing her slim, delicate throat, and how the water would bead on her chest and shoulders.
Her hands would glide over her body, washing away the evidence of tonight, soap suds sliding over curves I’ve tried not to notice but can’t stop seeing every time I close my eyes.
My cock hardens almost painfully, reminding me how long it’s been. Throbbing with its demands as I fight off the most sinful of temptations.
I slam my palm against the tile, disgusted with myself. She’s gone through hell, and here I am with a hard-on like some fucking teenage boy who can’t control himself.
…but fuck.
I can’t help it.
This attraction goes beyond physical. It’s strong enough to drive me insane. That much is obvious.
It’s the way she peers at me like I’m her salvation. The way she trusts me so completely. How she fits against me, and how good it feels to give her what she needs. But also what she does for me—she fills the empty space I’d resigned myself to living with.
She sees me in a way no one else does. In her eyes, I’m more than the vice prez of the Steel Kings. More than some outlaw or divorced father who’s effort’s never good enough (according to Rachel).
She sees me for the man I am deep down.
Mentally, emotionally, physically—she’s gotten into every part of me, and I can’t dig her out no matter how hard I try.
I crank the water to cold, letting it shock my system, willing my erection to go down.
When I’ve calmed myself down enough, I shut off the water and roughly towel off like I can scrub away these wrong thoughts.
After pulling on gray sweatpants and nothing else, I open the door to re-enter my bedroom. Then I stop dead realizing I’m not alone.
Solana’s at my dresser, clutching one of my bath towels to her body, the terry cloth barely covering her from chest to mid-thigh. She jumps and squeaks at the realization the bathroom door’s opened and drops the basketball shorts in hand.
The towel rides up dangerously high on her thighs. Water droplets still cling to her shoulders, catching in the low lamplight and looking like tiny diamonds on her smooth brown skin. She’s fresh off her own shower, her locs piled on top of her head.
“I’m sorry! I was just… I need something to wear.” Both hands clutch at the towel to keep it in place, but in turn they make the fabric slip a little lower on her chest, emphasizing the swell of her breasts.
I ignore these details I’ve noticed and rasp out, “There wasn’t anything in Tabby’s closet? You two should be about the same size.”
“I checked. It was all jeans and school stuff. Nothing to sleep in. And, um, Jack’s room had clothes, but he’s ten so they were way too small.”
“Right,” I say, giving a nod. “It’s fine. I’ll get you something.”
I start toward her, heat prickling the back of my neck at the fact that we’re technically both half naked—I’m shirtless in sweatpants and she’s got nothing more than a towel covering her up. All while my bed’s just a few feet away.
Something tells me these details aren’t lost on her either. She takes half a step back as I move past her, still clutching the towel tightly like it’s her lifeline.
I catch a whiff of scent that’s uniquely hers, even after using my soap, and draw the bottom dresser drawer open to pull out some bottoms for her.
“Sweats okay?”
“Um… sure. It’s cold this time of year.”
When I turn to hand over a pair of sweatpants and one of my old t-shirts, suddenly it seems we’re too close.
The damn room might as well have shrunk because we’re only a couple feet apart. Her pulse flutters in her throat and her lips part, pink tongue slipping out to wet them.
My eyes track the subtle movement with more heat warming my blood. But I manage to hand over the items and ignore how even a moment as simple as this feels so damn charged.
Still doesn’t change the fact that my heart’s pounding so hard my chest might crack open.
Solana blinks first, looking away. “I’ll go change.”
She practically runs from the room, bare feet soft on the carpet. I’m left standing here more on edge than I’ve been all night.
Except it’s not a shootout with a drug cartel or the dead body I’ve buried that’s made me this way.
It’s the irresistible twenty-year-old I want more than anything in this life. I shake my head and urge myself to get a fucking grip.
A man’s allowed to fantasize. But it’s allowing these desires to slip into the real world that’s the problem.
Solana is off-limits. End of story.
Tomorrow I’ll deal with Kel’s phone, creating digital footprints showing he got scared and left town. I’ll cover any last loose threads and make sure to protect her from any investigation. I’ll burn the clothes, destroy evidence, and handle assholes like Spencer.
But tonight I need to survive having her under my roof without crossing lines that can’t be uncrossed.
I make my rounds through the house, checking locks and turning off lights. The usual routine that feels anything but normal. My body’s still thrumming with want, skin hot to the touch.
I’ve only just made it back to my room when there’s a hesitant tap at the door.
I already know what she needs. Already sense where this is going. Yet against all willpower and logic in my brain, I go to answer anyway. I’m ready to give her what she needs despite vowing only minutes ago I’d keep boundaries intact.
“Can I...” she murmurs before trailing off. “I mean… I can’t…”
I draw a deep breath, then give a nod, stepping aside.
She enters my room like she belongs here, and I can’t deny that it feels right as much as it is wrong.
I’ve dimmed every light except one. She steps to the opposite side of the bed that I’m on, and I pull back the covers.
We hold each other’s gaze for a long moment as if silently confirming what we’re about to do. She crawls in first, snuggling against the pillow with visible relief.
This is the only way she’s getting any sleep tonight. I climb in next to her, aware how I’ll regret this come morning. But I can’t bring myself to turn her away as she immediately curls into me, laying her head on my chest.
My arms naturally come down around her, holding her in place.
No words are spoken. No words are necessary.
We lie together taking comfort in each other’s presence ’til eventually her breathing evens out. Her body goes lax with sleep.
I’m awake for a while longer, holding this woman who’s half my age. Yet she’s become everything I want no matter what reason tells me.
My eyes close as I accept tomorrow will bring more complications. But for tonight, at least she’s safe in my arms.