Cruz’s hands roamed over my chest, washing away the blood and filth. My legs trembled as feeling began to return.
“Turn around.” His voice was low and gravelly next to my ear.
I slowly pivoted. Cruz kept one hand on my hip, and the other securely fastened around my waist.
The warm water soothed the bruises and open cuts on my back.
“You’re soaked,” I said and smiled. His jeans were sopping wet, and his shirt clung to his torso.
“I could get undressed.”
Even in this fucked up situation, I chuckled. “The water feels good.” I wasn’t going to try to dissect my emotions. Standing here with Cruz, and with a junkie that considered me his enemy dead at my feet, I was baptized into a relationship with Cruz that was going to change us both. Not only had he come for me, but he’d killed for me.
“Admit it,” Cruz said while using his fingertips to gently rub the coagulated blood from my face. “You were happy to see me come through that door.”
I touched my tongue to my swollen lips and swallowed against the lump of emotions choking me. “I thought I was dreaming.”
A dangerous smile curved his lips. “Do you dream about me often?”
“Nightmares, actually.”
We stared at each other, both probably wondering when we’d gone from hating each other to whatever this was. Water clung to his lashes and dripped from his lips.
“I was fucking scared,” he said. “McKelle is out of her head.”
Just hearing her name had adrenaline firing through me. I needed to get to her, to cling to the one good thing in my life. “Does she know you found me?”
“Not yet. Not until we’re on our way back to the MC. If I told her now, she’d be on her bike headed this way. She doesn’t listen well, and we need to deal with this first.” He glanced down at the dead body.
“I want to get the fuck out of here,” I said. Before the cops came, before Cruz could get in trouble for killing a junkie who would have killed me.
Cruz kept one hand on my waist as I tested the strength in my legs.
“I think a rib might be broken because it hurts to take a breath. Doctors will ask questions. With my probation, they could lock me up while they figure out what happened.”
“Levi’s mom is a nurse. She’ll fix you up.”
I glanced down at the filthy water filling up the bottom of the tub. “We’re going to need a tetanus shot.”
“We can get one of those at the health clinic.” He reached around me and turned off the water. “When we go to get tested.”
Without his hand on me I still felt wobbly. I kept one hand on the wall for balance. “You really think we’ll get sick from this?”
Cruz straightened. His face was close to mine. He stared into my eyes, his focus and intent sending a shiver down my spine. Or maybe my body was still in shock from the beating.
“Nah, not because of this. A test for STDs,” he said. “Because this thing between the three of us is getting complicated.”
Heat slipped under my skin making my heart race. This was how I felt the first time I rode onto the track with McKelle. Unsure and a little scared.
“If you’re with us, you aren’t with anyone else,” he said.
Us.So, like meandhimandMcKelle? She’d confessed to me that he liked guys, too. Was that what he wanted? Because I wanted McKelle, even a part of her, but not enough to date her boyfriend. “I’m not gay.”
“Neither am I.” There was that devilish smirk again. “But we are taking a shower together.”
“There is something wrong with you,” I said.
“I know. Sometimes wrong just works. But it’s our fucked-up relationship. If it’s right for us, fuck everyone else.” He pushed his hair away from his face and stripped out of his shirt. “Neither of us wore a rubber with her. That isn’t happening again until after we have our first group date at the health department.”
