13. Noah
13
C harlie groans and I leap to her side, turning her, keeping my eyes fixed on her face and nothing else.
“Oh my God.” She yanks on the covers, pulling them off the bed and over her bare skin.
“What happened? And why are you—” I hear the shower running in the bathroom and glare down at her accusingly.
Charlie pulls the covers to her chin. “I…wasn’t expecting you back yet.”
Dropping her, I stand. “Oh, I’m sorry. Should I leave?”
“No, wait. Can you help me get on the bed?” She reaches up with a pout and as if I’m not already getting a semi, I picture kissing it off her sneaky little face.
I leave her on the floor and go to the bathroom, shutting off the shower and drawing a bath for her instead. I exhale a frustrated breath and pick up her body wash, pouring a generous amount into the tub as the water rises.
I grab a large bath towel and take a minute to contain myself. And my cock.
The fuck is wrong with you? There’s a woman injured and in pain out there and all you can think about is tearing that flimsy sheet off her body.
And fuck what a body it is. The brief glimpse I caught of it before she yanked that sheet off the bed was enough to drive any man wild. Because that’s what Charlie is. Every man’s dream . Big firm breasts, narrow waist and hips I’m still itching to grip with both hands. Her legs were crossed but I still got a cock-twitching look at her round ass.
“A little help here,” she calls.
Returning to the bedroom, I find Charlie sitting up on the floor with the sheet wrapped firmly around her body, rubbing the soles of her feet.
She looks up at me and holds up a phone charger. “Found the culprit.”
“I drew you a bath. But you’re not getting in there with my sheets.” I close the distance and hold up the towel to block her from view. “Let me know when you’re ready.”
My gaze is fixed on the floor, the towel between us, until I see her feet push the fabric completely off her body.
Bending my knees, I wrap the towel around her and lift her into my arms. “Hang on.”
The towel is loose and her eyes are shut. I can feel her clench where her ass rests over my left arm and it takes everything I have not to pivot toward the bed instead of the bathtub.
“Are you hurt?”
“Just my pride.” She dips her gaze to the bathtub. “That’s a lot of bubbles.”
“It’ll keep you decent.”
She frowns. “Why would I need to stay decent?”
I lower her into the tub until she's under the suds and pull the towel. “Because I’m staying.”
She sucks in a sharp breath and scans herself in the water, confirming no skin showing. “You’re not watching me bathe.”
“Of course not. That would be weird.” I dim the lights and return to her. “In case the bubbles die down. I won’t see anything.”
“See anything?”
I reach over, untying her hair, letting it fall around her shoulders. “While I’m bathing you.”
“I can bathe myself,” she shrieks.
“Don’t be a baby. You know I’m not looking at you that way.”
Hurt flashes her eyes and I know I won’t be able to take that one back any time soon.
That’s what happens when I say the opposite of what I’m thinking. Of what I’m feeling. Of what I want.
I end up hurting her.
“Dip your head back.”
She hesitates then tilts back, wetting her hair underwater. I reach for one of the two matching bottles she prepared and pour the shampoo into my hands before lathering it over her scalp.
“Take a shower with me,” Charlie pulls playfully on my arm.
“Baby, you know that’s a dangerous idea.”
She pouts which makes turning her tempting offer down nearly impossible. “Why?”
I release a breath, careful with what I say. “Because I’ll never want to leave,” I say honestly with a kiss. I never want to lie to her.
It hurts more than making excuses for not taking her bed.
At least that has purpose.
It’s a moral decision.
It will make things easier for both of us. Charlie deserves a man who will treasure her. Not take something sacred from her knowing this isn't forever.
“That’s fine. I have a lot of hair. You could…take your time washing it. And I’ll take my time…doing other things.” She bites her lower lip teasingly.
She’s relentless. Her hope, her plans, her expectations. She trusts me with everything she has to offer. Her never-ending faith in me is out of control. It’s like no matter what I do, I’ll never get off this pedestal she keeps me on.
There’s a faint moan from her throat as I massage her head, lathering every inch the way I know she would.
“That’s good, thanks,” she clears her throat.
I smooth it down and hand her the teal loofa she prepared. “Hold this with both hands over your chest and arch your back.”
She’s a fucking goddess, the way she takes my direction, arching her back to soak her head. The loofa did little to hide her breasts when she rose over the bubbles, but the effort was there…I think.
She lifts her eyes to me. “I’ve got the rest, Noah.”
“I’m not leaving.”
She lifts a brow. “Then you can watch.”
I growl and stand, facing the door with my hands in my pockets. “Do you need more light?"
"No. This is fine."
"It smells good,” I tell her after a moment of listening to bath water lightly swooshing behind me.
She laughs. “Feel free to use it.”
I listen for any hint of struggle or pain, but she seems to be doing okay. “I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable, Charlie. I'm just trying to help.”
“I was fine. You seemed uncomfortable.”
“You’re saying you would have let me wash you completely?”
“I’m saying you wouldn’t have made it three seconds past my chest. I'm finished. Do you mind throwing me a towel and pulling the drain?”
Charlie is on my sofa wrapped in my oversized bathrobe and I make a mental note of something to add to the things I need to pick up for her this weekend. She has a small pint of coffee ice cream on her lap.
I look at the television and pick up the remote. “House rules. No Outlander .”
Her eyes widen. “What kind of rule is that?”
“A reasonable one.”
She hands me her carton. “Take my ice cream. Not my Jamie.”
“Wow.”
Her smooth skin glows in the dim lighting. It’s just past ten when I usually sit up in bed working on my cases before crashing. But my "bed" is currently the sofa, which she's on. And there's no way in hell I'm moving her. “You look better.”
“I feel better. Sorry I was a brat earlier. You’ve been…more than good to me and I guess I don’t know how to deal with it.”
I grin. “A thank you is fine.”
She covers her face and growls at herself.
“Will you relax? I get it. Our truce is a little awkward and we’re both—”
“No. No, it’s not fine, I flashed you on purpose,” she mumbles behind her hands.
“You what?”
She sucks in a breath, lowering her hands. “But it’s only because you said you don’t see me that way and well…I wanted to prove I do have some effect on you and rose above the bubbles on purpose when you were rinsing my hair."
My mouth opens but she cuts me off.
“Anyway, you were right. Either you’re amazing at holding it together or that did nothing for you, which is fine. That means we’ve officially re-entered the ‘friend zone’. You bathed me and had zero interest in my boobs.” She finally meets my eyes. “See, you’re laughing at me!”
“I’m not laughing.”
“Then what is that look on your face?”
“I’m smiling.”
She scrunches her face. “Why?”
“I’m impressed, Charlie…Mission accomplished.”
She giggles. “Yeah, right. Maybe I can make a career at being a flash bather since my feet don’t work.”
I laugh and scoot over to her, digging into the ice cream with her spoon, reeling in the fact that she’s in a better mood now.
And that I might have some part in it.