“Understood.”
“I’ll check in tomorrow.” Dr. Reeves gathers her bag and walks to the door, resting a hand on my shoulder as she passes. “She’s okay. What she needs right now is you—more than any medical intervention.”
The moment she leaves, Willa’s eyes find mine again.
“Jake?” Her voice is so small. “I hate this.”
“I know.” I sit on the edge of the bed, brushing hair back from her forehead. “But we’re going to get through this together. All of us. I promise.”
“I can still smell him.” Her voice breaks. “I need—I need it off me. Please.”
The request twists something in me. Because I can smell it too—Felton’s scent, still clinging to her skin.
TWENTY-NINE
willa
“Okay.Yeah. Let’s get you in the bath.”
Jake’s voice is soft and gentle as he helps me sit up. My body feels like it weighs a thousand pounds. Everything aches—my muscles, my bones, even my skin feels too tight. But it’s still strange to have someone else here. My first inclination is to push the help away.
“I can do it myself,” I try to say, but the words come out strange. Weak.
“I know you can.” His arm wraps around my waist, taking most of my weight as he pulls me up and guides me toward the bathroom. “But you don’t have to.”
I’m awed by the opulence of the bathroom—this place must’ve cost a fortune. It’s massive—the tub alone could fit four people comfortably.
Everything is marble—floors, walls, even the cascading backsplash—offset by muted brass fixtures that make the space feel warm and inviting. Thick, plush mats cover the floor, and when I glance at the neatly folded stack of towels beside the tub, I just know they’ll be the kind that feels sinful against my skin.
For a moment, I let myself sink into the luxury, breathing in the faint scent of eucalyptus and clean linen. It’s the kind of space that makes you forget everything outside of it.
Jake starts the water running, testing the temperature with his hand.
“Not too hot,” he murmurs. “Don’t want to spike your fever more.”
I’m swaying on my feet, a dizzy feeling circling around my head, and he notices immediately. His hands are on me, steadying, supporting.
“Easy. I’ve got you.”
He helps me out of my clothes, peeling away the shirt that reeks of Felton’s sour scent, intentionally ignoring my nakedness. I’m grateful for it. I have exactly zero bandwidth for anything except the swimming-pool-sized tub in front of me.
I want to cry at the loss of pack scent from Beau and Charlie’s shirts, but Jake’s scent is right here, chocolate and warm spices wrapping around me.
“In you go,” he says, holding my elbow as I step over the edge of the tub and feel the silky, warm water on my skin. A moan of pleasure comes unbidden.
“It feels so good.” I hum with pleasure, and when I look at Jake, I see hunger in his eyes. A small spike of awareness begins to fill the emptiness in me. My Omega likes it. Likes his attraction. But soon I’m lost in the feel of the water.
It’s perfect—warm but not hot—and I sink into it with a sigh. My muscles immediately start to relax, the ache easing slightly. I close my eyes until I realize I don’t hear him leave like I expected to. I glance to where he stands, a look of indecision on his face that’s followed by a shrug as he starts stripping off his own clothes.
“What are you?—”
“Getting in with you.” He says it matter-of-factly, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “You need touch and comfort. Doctor’s orders.”
Before I can protest—not that I want to, because I really, really don’t—he’s climbing into the tub behind me. The water rises, sloshing gently, and then his legs are on either side of mine, and his chest is against my back.
I know that this is my new favorite sensation, and I can feel the need start to pulse to life again. It begins slowly, but all that heated Alpha skin that ripples with movement behind me has my arousal rising again.
I’m intoxicated by the solid, warm, safe feel of him.
