This time, when the water cools enough to be intolerable, we get out of the bath, Trent towelling me dry before turning attention to himself.
“Do you have a t-shirt or something I could wear to bed?”
He glances over, his gaze lingering for a moment longer on my naked form, then his attention returns to where he’s tossing the towel into the hamper. “I’d prefer you wear nothing.” He walks over and pulls me against him, his cock stiffening as it touches me, then he flexes and makes me jump, laughing.
“I can’t go around naked. What if there’s a fire?”
“Then I’ll hide you behind me and glare at any firefighter who dares to look.”
“Or…”
“Okay. As a special treat for your first night sleeping in my bed, you can wear a t-shirt.”
He cups my arse in his hands, pulling me harder against him and I duck my head, so he doesn’t see me flinching. His hand twirls in my hair, tugging it back so I have to look up at him.
“Did I hurt you?”
“Not really. Nothing that won’t quickly heal.”
His shirt hangs most of the way to my knees and if I lean forward, even with the crew neck, he gets an eyeful. In bed, I roll onto my side, and he grabs my waist to tug me closer, encircling me with his far larger frame.
It’s been a minute since I tried to fall asleep next to somebody. Never since I tried to do it inside someone’s arms.
Despite thinking it will take forever, I’ve barely had time to adjust to his body heat before I’m out like a light.
CHAPTERTWENTY-THREE
TRENT
The next day,my pulse races as I wait for Rosa outside her lecture. Caylon helpfully collected her class schedule from the university server, synching it to my phone a few weeks ago.
Something I’m glad to have now his attention is focused on combing Andy’s phone for additional evidence. If I didn’t know where she was every moment, I think the stress would lead my head to explode.
“Hey,” I call out the moment I see her walking from the lecture hall, juggling her handbag and a textbook while she fits her computer back into her bag. I jump forward, grabbing the laptop when she startles enough to lose her grip, helping store everything away. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to frighten you.”
She tilts her head back for a kiss, beaming. “This is not me frightened. This is me being happy to see you. Although, you know the bus stop is right there”—she points to the interchange running alongside the campus—“so it’s just as easy for me to come to you.”
“Even easier now,” I say, dropping the car keys into her hand. “Brought you a present.”
“In the car?” She presses the button on the fob, scanning the parking lot for the corresponding vehicle. “You might have to give me a better clue.”
“It’s in the glove box.”
She bounces on the balls of her feet, then takes off for the bright red mini. “This is such a beautiful vehicle. Can I drive home?”
“You can do what you like,” I say, squeezing myself into the passenger seat and teasing her as she leans across to rummage for her present. “Sit back and I’ll hand it to you if you like.”
She sits, eyes shimmering in the low afternoon light. I hand her a velvet box, a pulse ticking in the side of my neck because this gift isn’t quite as it seems.
Rosa opens the latch slowly, then her mouth drops open. “Is this real?” She pulls out the tennis bracelet dripping with an excess of diamonds. “Oh, no. This is too much.”
I stifle a laugh as she drapes it across her wrist, twisting it to better catch the light. Not exactly in tandem with her protest.
“Let me,” I offer, leaning across to fasten the catch, pleased when it locks into place with the bracelet fitting her snugly but not so small it’ll cut off her blood supply. “And it’s nowhere near enough. That’s why I also got you this.”
The next present isn’t as immediately exciting to look at. She takes out the thick papers from the envelope and spreads them out on her lap, giving me a quizzical glance. “Do you want to give me a shortcut or are you happy to sit there while I read through them?”
“They’re ownership papers. I thought this car suited you more than it suits me.”
