“Come here.”
She doesn’t move, doesn’t speak, so I lean forward and gently turn and pull, until I’ve settled her back into my chest.
Just like the last time, I have this sense that she fits me perfectly. “Why are you doing this?”
“What?”
“You went to great pains to be clear tonight, Win. You’ve been using me from the start. Even last night… Why muddy the waters now?”
She doesn’t need to say more. I know she means Rebecca, and her own role in my plan for revenge. I wrap my arms around her, holding her tight. “Tomorrow I’m spanking your ass for running off in the dead of night and allowing yourself to fall into the hands of men like that.”
Her head whips around, her eyes full—full—of fight. “You spank me and I’ll shred the skin off your back.”
“I’d deserve it.”
That makes her eyes go wide. “You would.”
“Now lean back and let me wash all that dirt off you.”
“I can wash myself.”
“You can, but it’ll be much more fun if I do it.” I grab the soap and start gently gliding it over her skin.
She relaxes back into me, her eyes fluttering closed, falling silent again. But this silence is one of contentment, so I take my time, gently soaping every inch of her body. Her pale skin has turned pink in the water, the color no less pleasing.
I bring one of her palms to my mouth and kiss the wet skin.
“Win.” The warning is unmistakable.
I smile into her skin. “You know, I’ve never met a woman who matched me in strength.”
She snorts. “Fear not. You are superior in every metric.”
My jaw tightens, my teeth grinding together. Is that what she thinks? “I’ve been given every advantage you’ve never had.”
“It doesn’t matter.” She shakes her head, her hair brushing my chest. “I’m not winning against him or you. I see that now.”
Her words gut me. Katarina should not be trying to win. She should be given a protected space to heal and bloom. “My father was a piece of horse’s dung, not like yours. Mine was more run of the mill in his cruelty. Until I met you, I blamed him for my hard nature.”
“What has changed since you met me?” she asks, looking back.
“If you can sparkle this much with a father who was ten times worse than mine, then shitty parenting isn’t my only reason I am the way I am.”
She snorts again but I feel the shift in her, the way her mood lightens. “Sparkle. What am I? A unicorn?”
I like her snorts. I like her jokes. “Unicorn? You know, that fits. You’re beautiful enough, and you’d have the alicorn for goring men who piss you off.”
“So, you admit my claws are much bigger than a kitten’s?”
“They are. But with me, you can just be a kitten whenever you want. Curl up in my lap. Purr.”
“No, Win, I can’t. That’s what tonight has been about, hasn’t it? You letting me know the exact part I play in your game.”
“That game has changed, kitten.” I say to her and mean every word.
“So, I’m not a pawn?”
She is. She’s a pawn, but I think I’m changing the rules. “I’ve got a new proposition for you.”
