He drew back the covers and she wrinkled her nose in disgust at herself. She was still dressed in the same T-shirt. She felt sweaty and out-of-sorts.
“Your ankle is still swollen. No way you can stand in the shower on it. Plus, you might get light-headed and faint.”
“You’re fussing.”
“I’ve got eight years of fussing penned up inside me. Get used to it.”
“I’m not getting off the plane wearing Caleb’s T-shirt. And I’m not getting into clean clothes stinking of sweat and other things.”
He frowned. “I don’t think that even Wolfe will fit in the shower with you.”
Take a shower with Wolfe? Was he kidding her?
“Hmm, there’s only one solution that I can think of.”
“What’s that?” she asked suspiciously.
“I’ll have to give you a sponge bath.”
Aleki could hardly hide his grin as her eyes widened then narrowed in a scowl. “I don’t think so Aleki Tane Samuels.”
He wiggled his eyebrows up and down. “What’s wrong? You don’t think I can manage to bathe you? I promise to be very, very thorough.”
“Oh, I just bet you will,” she said dryly. “I’ll wash myself, thank you very much.”
Nope. He didn’t like that idea at all. Now that his Vivi was back, he was eager to make up for lost time. He wanted to relearn everything about her. And that didn’t just include her body, but her mind and heart.
He loved her so freaking much. He’d tried his best to bury that part of him. But there was no denying his feelings for her.
And learning of the hell she’d been through just made him want to wrap her up in a protective blanket. He didn’t want her worrying about anything. He didn’t want her to be scared or hungry or lonely.
“Let me take care of you, Vivi,” he told her in a quiet voice. He made sure she could see how serious he was. “I promise I just want to look after you.”
“I . . . I . . .” She dropped her gaze, looking embarrassed. “I’m not the girl I was.”
“And I’m no longer a boy. We’ve both got years between us. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t get to know each other again, does it?”
“I’m just not sure . . . I mean, my body, it’s not . . . it’s not attractive anymore.”
Oh no. He couldn’t have her thinking that. Turning, he straddled her legs, making sure that she didn’t have to take any of his weight. Then he cupped her face between his hands. “You, Genevieve Amelia, are still the most beautiful, courageous woman I have ever met. I know you’ve changed. So have I. But you cannot change how gorgeous you are.”
“I don’t feel beautiful.”
“Then we’ll work to change that, won’t we? Starting now. Let me take care of you, please.”
“Okay,” she whispered, shocking him. He’d thought she would put up more of a fight.
He gave her a gentle smile. “Okay. Do you need to use the toilet?”
“At least you didn’t say potty like Caleb.”
He grinned. “Caleb cannot wait to meet your Little.”
“And if she never shows herself?”
“Then that’s fine too. All we need is you, Vivi. Just you. You’re more than enough. Toilet?”
“Umm, yes.”