Why did nobody tell me casual is attractive on a man?
“I worked out while you were still sleeping,” he says, his mouth full. “The beauty of having a gym in the building.”
Guilt sits heavy in my stomach. “But you were supposed to go toyourgym today, weren’t you,” I say, not a question. “I messed up your plans.”
He leans out of my view for a second, and I hear him spit into the sink. “It was my decision, Scarlett,” he says simply. “And I stand by it.” Then he’s walking toward me in all his half-naked glory. “Now come on, I’ll grab some fresh clothes and make you some food while you take a bath.”
“You don’t?—”
He pulls me to my feet and tugs me toward the bathroom. “I don’t want to hear it, Red.”
Oh, God. My lipstick.
For the first time, I get a look of myself in the mirror.
I look exactly as bad as I was scared I would.
Mortified, I turn and shove Nico out of the bathroom so I can close the door behind him. “Oh myGod, don’t look at me!”
I can hear his chuckle through the door. “Baby, you couldn’t look bad even if you tried. But I’ll leave you alone for a minute. I laid out a few things for you on the counter.”
When I turn around, I see an unopened toothbrush, toothpaste, some mouthwash, and a separate glass of water. Next to the steaming bathtub, there’s a fresh towel and a comb on the small side table.
Are all men this thoughtful?
I’ve never met one this thoughtful.
Sighing, I set to cleaning myself up. I look wrecked from a night of vomiting; my hair a rat’s nest and my makeup is either smeared or nonexistent.
After I brush my teeth twice and rinse with mouthwash—also twice—I drink some of the water before peeling off my clothes. Everything hurts. Myabshurt. My skin hurts to touch. But as soon as I sink into the too-hot water, I let out a deep groan of relief.
“Temperature okay?” I hear through the door.
My eyes slide closed. “It’s perfect,” I slur. “What did you put in here?”
“Just some Epsom salts. Figured you’d be sore.”
“You’d be correct,” I say through a light moan, sinking deeper into the water.
After a moment, Nico asks, “Can I come in?”
“I’m naked.” But my tone is flat. I couldn’t care less about being naked in front of him. This feels too good.
“Baby, I’ve seen every inch of you.Tastedevery inch of you.”
“Now is not the time to make sexual innuendos, Nicholas.”
His huff of laughter makes me smile. “Yes, you can come in,” I call out before I can think better of it.
I hear the door open and sense Nico stepping into the not very large space. When I crack an eye open, he’s standing beside the tub with a plate in his hand.
“Feel better?”
I nod, eyeing the plate. “What’s that?”
He doesn’t answer, just pulls a stool over from who knows where and takes a seat beside the tub. Then he picks something off the plate and holds it out to me.
It’s a strawberry.
