“You’re being very kind to me,” he said, his voice low.
Was she? She didn’t feel like she was being kind. She was getting something out of this too. Being able to be close to him, to take care of him, made her feel warm inside.
“Not really,” she whispered. “It’s just a good excuse to see you naked.”
For the first time since she’d met him at the station, he laughed. As they made it to the bathroom he pulled his t-shirt off, revealing his hard, muscled chest. Like the rest of him, it was covered in dirt. Though she tried not to ogle him, it was impossible not to sneak a peek out of the corner of her eye as she turned on the shower and grabbed some toiletries for him from the bathroom cabinet.
When she pulled a towel down from the rack and turned to him, he was already naked, and it took every ounce of strength she had not to allow her gaze to roam all over him. She swallowed – hard – then put the towel down on the floor beside the shower. “I’ll leave you to it,” she told him, her voice thick. “And get your clothes put into the wash.”
He reached out for her, his fingers curling around hers. “Stay with me,” he said. “Please.” He took a step back, his eyes focused on hers as he pulled her toward the shower with him. “Shower with me.”
“Okay,” she whispered. “I’ll stay.
* * *
It had taken a few minutes for him to scrub the dirt from his skin. Ember had helped, her hands gentle as she’d washed away all the evidence of the past few days. He’d watched as the soot and the ashes had turned the water black, whirling on the shower floor in a clockwise circle before it disappeared down the plughole. Eventually the dark water turned lighter, before becoming clear. The combination of the warm water spraying down on him, and Ember’s gentle touch, made his skin tingle in the best of ways.
She was so close, her naked body only inches away from his. It was impossible not to be tantalized by her.
“Should we talk about this?” he asked her, the grit in his voice the only piece of dirt left. He wanted to touch her all over, the way she was touching him.
She shook her head. “Let’s talk in the morning,” she whispered, reaching out to trail her fingertip from his shoulder, down his chest to his stomach. “There’s no need for words tonight.”
It was exactly what he needed to hear. The very fact she was here in this shower, naked, told him that she wanted to be here as much as he did. And yeah, he had questions – about a thousand of them – but he wasn’t ready to ask them. He’d need to be awake enough to process the answers.
For now he wanted to use his mouth for something else. He wanted to feel, rather than think. He wanted to touch her, taste her, run his hands all over her soft, wet skin, and forget about everything outside this shower cubicle.
“Come here,” he said, reaching for her. She immediately stepped into his arms. Her body melted into his, her soft curves molding into his hard muscles. They were like yin and yang, different and yet somehow perfectly matched. He couldn’t get enough of the way she felt, the way she smelled. She filled every sense he had, leaving room for nothing else. And he loved it.
He dipped his head down and looked into her eyes. They were dark, dilated, and he could see himself reflected in their depths. “I’ve thought about nothing but you for the past four days,” he whispered, feathering his lips against hers. “Thought about touching you like this.”
She shivered as he ran his hands down her body, following the line of her waist and hips. “Are you sure you aren’t too exhausted?” she asked him.
“Not for you.”
He kissed her again, harder this time, feeling their lips clash together as his tongue slid against hers. Her nipples tightened against him, her body warm and pliant as he pulled her closer still. He lowered his head to kiss and nip at her throat, tasting the water that coated her.
It was impossible to get enough of her. He wasn’t sure he ever could. He wanted to be inside her, outside her, all around her. Wherever she was, he wanted to follow.
He ran his hand down the warm curve of her backside, then trailed his fingers down the back of her thigh. She let her head fall back, pushing her chest closer toward him. He lowered his head further still, brushing his lips against her clavicle, licking at the pool of water that had gathered at the bottom of her throat, before he kissed his way down to the swell of her breast.
Catching her hard nipple between his lips, he sucked and licked at it until she let out a soft sigh. Her hands cupped the back of his neck, encouraging him closer, her fingers massaging his scalp as he loved her with his mouth.
He was hard, so hard it hurt. And when she moved her hands down to wrap her fingers around him, he got harder still. He moved to her other breast, worshipping it the same way he’d worshipped the other, wanting to bring her the pleasure her hands were already giving him.
He moved his hand between her legs, feeling moisture there that had nothing to do with the sho
wer, pressing his fingers against her until she began to moan.
The water was pouring over them, hitting his head and her back, running down in thick rivulets to the basin. Ember slid her leg up his thigh, hooking around his waist, and he ran his hands around to her behind, helping her, lifting her, until their bodies were in complete alignment.
It was Ember who guided him to her, and Ember who arched her back until he could feel himself sliding inside. He had to grit his teeth as to not cry out at the pleasure of it, or the overwhelming happiness rushing through him as he began to move.
How had he ever thought he could face life alone? Being with Ember was everything. And as they made love, their skins wet and clean in her steamed-up shower – he knew he could never be apart from her again.
* * *
It was inevitable he’d wake up at some crazy hour of the night. His whole body was out of whack after the week he’d had, only getting rest when another crew had come to relieve them for a few hours. Lucas turned onto his back, then felt his stomach cramp up and gurgle – reminding him he hadn’t eaten for hours.