“Morning,” I reply, realizing how groggy my voice sounds from underuse and a lack of sleep. “The bath’s ready.”
With her brows pinched together, she looks surprised. “You prepared a bath for me?”
“I did.”
She sits with those words a moment longer, like she’s searching for some sort of trap, then her brows relax. Eventually, she nods and slips out of bed, wrapping one of the blankets around herself like a cape and taking it with her.
There’s something annoyingly endearing about it, and I can only huff out an amused breath as she strolls by me.
The urge to reach for her is strong, but I shove it down.
As much as I want her skin on mine again, I can’t do too much. Being overbearing will only make matters worse, and formy concession to work, I need her to trust me. Maybe even like me.
Giving her a moment and some space, I wait until I hear the water shift in the tub, followed by a contented sigh from her, before I enter the ensuite again.
She’s fully submerged now, leaning against the backrest while soap surrounds her. Her eyes open again as I carefully move closer, grabbing a cloth I had set aside as I move behind the tub.
“What are you doing?” She asks, obviously still wary despite everything that happened between us.
“I’m helping,” I murmur, wetting the cloth as I crouch, leaning my weight against the tub. “Lean forward.”
After a brief hesitation, she does exactly that, exposing more of her back to me. Gently, I start scrubbing her down, watching the way the bubbles cling to her soft skin.
A tentative silence lingers between us before she sighs quietly. “You’re being weird.”
“I know,” I agree, in no particular hurry as I wash her. “But I was…rough last night. I don’t want you to be too sore.”
At that, she stills, as if startled by the reminder. Then, she scoffs with a testing tone. “You think I can’t handle rough?”
“If last night was any indication, then I don’t even remotely think that.”
She doesn’t say anything at first, but I catch the small grin that pulls at her lips. Then she shrugs and relaxes again, allowing me to continue my careful touch. “As long as you don’t underestimate me.”
I hum. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”
The ensuite grows quiet as I finish scrubbing her back and shoulders, only to slowly glide my fingers through her hair, watching it grow darker as it becomes saturated. She melts into it easily, eyes closed again.
Seeing her like this, trusting me enough to relax, makes my heart warm more than it should.
But the reality of what I need to do settles heavily on my shoulders, and after a moment, I take a breath.
“Elena,” I murmur, not wanting to break the pleasant spell between us despite needing to.
She keeps her eyes closed. “What?”
“We need to talk about your family.”
She goes still at the mention of them, then she finally glances back at me. Some of her guard returns again. “This isn’t how I expected this morning to go.”
“Just hear me out,” I say carefully, well aware that I have more skin in this than she does.
Elena considers this, then nods once. “Alright…what about them?”
Now I hesitate, well aware this is the point of no return. The very thing I’ve been keeping from her since this all started.
Bracing myself, I begin and gently pull my hands away.
“When I went to Vito’s hideout that night, I went there for revenge because he set me up when I was with the Balakins. I was a runner for them to take care of my sister when I had nothing left, as you already know,” I murmur, keeping my tone as level as I can. “I didn’t agree to take you just to spite the Grimaldi family. I also did it because you reminded me of mysister…and because your brothers have the very thing I’ve been trying to get back.”
