“I love you too,” I said back. “You see? That's how it's done. One of us says it and the other says it back.”
Xae chuckled. “All right. I'll remember that.”
I looked him over, then took his hand, and led him back to the bed. “Sit down.”
I left him sitting on the edge of the bed and went to the bathroom.
“What are you doing?” he called after me.
I came back with his comb. “I'm going to start showing you how I feel through my actions too. If you can make an effort, so can I.” I climbed up on the bed behind Xae and started gently working out the tangles in his hair. “Don't ever cut your hair. It's beautiful.”
“Maybe you could comb it for me?” Xae looked over his shoulder.
I kissed his cheek. “Every night and every morning if you want.”
“I do want.” He tried to turn for a more thorough kiss, but I pushed his face forward. “Let me finish this. Then I'm going to bathe you.”
“Bathe me?” Xae asked with a chuckle. “That much I can manage.”
“But I want to do it, so you're going to let me. I want to take care of you like you do me.”
“All right, Ember. Do what you will with me.”
“Thank you,” I said primly.
I finished combing his hair, then led him to the bathtub.
“A shower is fine,” Xae said.
I glared him into silence, then ran water into the massive, oval tub. It was freestanding, on a low pedestal, set into a window nook like mine was. Golden pipes came out of the floor to end in faucets that hung over one end of the tub. I turned them both, then held my hand below the flow to feel for the perfect temperature. Once the water was at a good level, I motioned him in. Then I grabbed a sponge out of the shower along with the soap and a bottle of shampoo. As I set everything on the floor beside the tub, Xaedren sighed and leaned his head back on the rim.
“Do you still wish you were showering?” I asked.
He opened his eyes and grinned. “No. You were right. This is wonderful. Especially after a mission.”
“It's about to get even better. But first, dip your head in the water and get your hair wet.”
Xae obeyed, looking like a god as he brought his head up, his hair slicked back, sluicing water, and his strong features in profile. Chest shivering with vibrant emotion, I moved behind him and poured some shampoo into my hand. Spreading it over his scalp, I massaged it in, and Xae moaned in bliss. Grinning to myself, I brought his hair back, over the tub rim and gently lathered it.
“If you conditioned your hair, it would be easier to comb.”
“Condition?”
“I'll get you some. You put it on after you shampoo.”
He grunted.
“All right, rinse.”
Xaedren dipped his head into the water again, shook it about, then sat up. He glanced over at me as I moved back to the side of the tub and gathered the sponge and soap. “Thank you. This is nice.”
I leaned over and dipped the sponge into the water. “My pleasure.”
I started soaping up Xae's thick, gorgeous body, running the sponge over all those glorious muscles, then moving it down his belly to clean him everywhere. “You're not a blundering, uncouth animal,” I said softly as I stroked him. “You're wild, bold, passionate, and beautiful. So amazing that I got past my fear of your people just to be with you.”
“You think I'm amazing?” Xae whispered.
“Yes. And now, I'm going to show you how wonderful I think you are.”
