“Me, too,” Ender insisted.
Wrecker’s jaw clenched, but he nodded.Fox was his youngest son, and I knew he was struggling with sending him into something that could be dangerous.“You two can go with Mason and Thorn to grab him Friday,” Wrecker went on.“Quick.Quiet.No scene.Bring him straight back here.”
I hated it.Every instinct in me wanted to be the one putting hands on the guy who thought he could touch her and walk away.But Wrecker wasn’t wrong, and he was the president.His call.
“I’ll be here when they bring him in,” I said.
Wrecker met my eyes.“That’s exactly where you’ll be.”
I nodded once.Acceptance didn’t mean I liked it.
The voices from the main room drifted down the hallway.“I’ll fill in the rest of the club.Hopefully by Friday afternoon, we are going to have a shit ton more answers.”
I turned and headed for my room.
Star was waiting for me.
And Friday was only two days away.
Chapter Nineteen
Star
Steam turned the bathroom into a private haze, like the walls had leaned in and decided to keep our secrets.The mirror was completely fogged, and the light overhead softened until the whole room glowed, and the air felt thick enough to cling to my skin.
I stood under the spray with my palms flat against the tile, head tipped forward, eyes closed.The heat soaked deep into my shoulders, slid down my spine, and loosened places I hadn’t even realized were still holding tension.My body felt loose.
I breathed in slowly.
For a few quiet seconds, I let myself just be here.Warm.Safe.Whole.
The shower curtain shifted.
I didn’t turn around.I didn’t need to.
“You planning on using all the hot water?”Cole asked, his voice already low and rough in that way that made my stomach tighten.
A smile curved across my mouth.“Depends,” I said.“You here to complain or contribute?”
The curtain slid shut behind him.
Then he was there.Solid and close, filling the space like he belonged in it.His chest brushed my back as his heat mixed with the steam until I wasn’t sure what was water and what was him anymore.
His hands settled on my hips.The contact made my breath hitch before I could stop it.I leaned back into him without thinking as my body responded before my brain could catch up.
And that, right there, felt like a small miracle.
My skin buzzed under his palms, and my body arched into him like it trusted him completely.
I didn’t feel small or like a victim.
I felt wanted.Claimed in a way that didn’t take anything from me.
His mouth found the curve of my neck, warm and unhurried.“God,” he murmured against my skin.“You feel good like this.”
The words sank straight into me.
I tilted my head to the side, giving him better access, as my fingers pressed against the tile while his lips traced down my neck.He kissed me like he had nowhere else to be, and like time itself had slowed just for us.
