“Put your feet into the water, Remi. Make sure it isn’t too hot,” he said thickly as my body slid down his.
Rhys held me steady as if my weight didn’t bother him at all. The water was hot, but not scorching or uncomfortable. I stepped away from him, but his hand remained on mine until I was sitting comfortably in the tub. My eyes closed against the enticing scene of his delicious body on full display, which didn’t seem to bother him at all.
Rhys’s foot brushed against mine, pressing flesh to flesh as he sat in the tub resembling a large, shallow hot tub rather than an actual bathtub. I sat opposite his large body that spread out in the tub, staring at me, waiting expectantly.
“What?” I asked after another moment of silence sent my nerves rising.
“You’re very beautiful,” he stated softly, slowly sitting up as he moved closer.
“What are you doing?” I demanded, but he grabbed me, pulling me forward and turning me until my back was against his chest.
“I’m washing your hair, since you can’t do that and cover your pretty titties. So, I figured for the sake of your modesty, which I am trying to respect, it’s the least I could do.”
“Oh, okay—” I was the most awkward person alive, apparently. I stopped my lips from moving. Feeling his body against mine was intoxicating, but being around him naked was worrisome. My body reacted to his touch, much more so than any man before had ever caused me to respond.
Rhys brought a cup up, soaking my hair slowly as if he had done this before. Once it was fully saturated, the scent of lemon zest tingled against my nose. Fingers kneaded my scalp, stealing a moan from my lips as I dropped my head back. Momentarily forgetting where I was and whom I was with, I sat back up. I didn’t recall my mother detailing anything about scandalized bathing or hair washing in her tirade of Van Helsing men.
“My mother hates you guys,” I said into the silence of the room.
“It’s warranted,” he shocked me by agreeing to it without argument. “Our families are very much at war, Remington Silversmith. I won’t sugarcoat it for you as others would do to win you to their side. I’m sure she told you never to trust a Van Helsing with your back?” His fingers trailed down my spine, and I shivered.
“Yes, among other things they shouldn’t be around.” I swallowed, internally mentioning me as a whole that shouldn’t be around them. “I’m going to guess I shouldn’t allow you around my vagina, either.”
Deep laughter sounded behind me. I turned, studying the way he watched me. His eyes slid to my hair, and he made the motion to turn back around with his finger. I obeyed as his legs lifted beside me, and something very male touched my spine.
My breathing hitched while I felt it growing, along with the heat filling my cheeks as we both ignored the monster in the room. I shuddered against the feel of him. Slowly turning my head, he rinsed out my hair. I spun around the moment he finished, pushing away from him, only for the candles to crack and wax to shoot toward me.
Rhys moved faster than I could see, blocking my body with his as he grunted. I stared into dark blue eyes that lowered to my hands, which were now wrapped around him as the scent of copper filled the tub. Lowering my eyes to his chest, I grimaced at the glass protruding from it. I’d left his touch, and he’d used his body as a shield to protect mine.
“Sit back,” I urged, watching as he complied. His eyes slid to the candles and back to mine as I moved with him, never leaving his touch. I straddled his lap awkwardly, feeling his hands settling on my hips. “Thank you. I don’t heal quickly, which is probably something I shouldn’t be telling you, I’m sure.”
“You’re mortal still, Remi. It’s a given that you wouldn’t heal fast. I do have fixers and healers on the property for those who are yet to rise to immortality, but they can’t fix you if you’re dead.”
I nodded and swallowed, dropping my hands, expecting his stare to lower to my naked breasts. Instead, he held his eyes on my face while I pulled the glass from his chest. His grip tightened on my waist, encircling it with his large hands. My head leaned over, licking his wound with saliva that could heal injuries as his blood’s coppery tang danced on my tongue.
He growled, his muscles tensing beneath my tongue as my eyes lifted to lock with his. I smirked at the wide-eyed look he gave me as his cock jerked against my belly. My tongue slid over the smooth cut the glass had left, kissing it softly when it had fully healed.
“Silversmiths cannot heal with their saliva, Remington,” he rasped huskily.
“No, they can’t. I can, though,” I smiled, rising to peer into his heated depths that threatened to swallow me whole. My hands lifted to rest on his broad shoulders, feeling the muscles straining against my touch.
“Interesting.” Rhys watched me a moment before his mouth closed the distance between us, claiming mine hungrily.
I moaned into the kiss, allowing him to devour me as my insides trembled with need. His hands slid up my back, and one held my head. The other lowered, lifting my rear, pulling me closer to him. The room spun around me as I rocked against the hardness of his cock with my soaked panties. By the time the kiss broke, we were both gasping for air. He used my hair, turning my head so his mouth could brush against the rapidly beating pulse in my throat. Rhys’s hand lowered, cupping my naked breast as his thumb traced over my pierced nipple, causing a loud moan to escape my lips.
“This is where you tell me to stop, Remi,” Rhys growled, resting his head against my shoulder as his fingers pinched my nipple, twisting it until I cried out. His dark head pulled back as glowing blue eyes locked with mine. “Because in a moment, my demon will come out, and he won’t care that you’re basically an untouched woman who has never been claimed by something like him.”
“Oh,” I whispered huskily, shocked by the sound of my voice.
“Remi,” he warned, noting the war I fought within my mind.
“Stop.” I swallowed past the yes that perched on my tongue. Denial at what I’d actually said, instead of what I really wanted, sat like a rock on my tongue. Rhys rose without warning and abruptly released my body, exiting the tub, which shattered into large glass pieces as water gushed all over the floor.
“Don’t move,” he warned, grabbing me up in his arms, staring down at the mess covering the floor. “How long does the curse normally last?” he asked through gritted teeth, his eyes on my white panties, which were now sheer and doing little to hide my hairless apex from his burning gaze of blue flames dancing within the fiery orbs.
“Eight to ten hours, depending on how much magic I released. We’re at like five hours, max, but I am unsure of the time. You relieved me of my watch, and I usually set an alert the moment I use magic to create weapons or bullets.”
“Put your hands around my neck and hold on to me,” he warned.
The moment I’d grabbed on, the world went off-kilter, and I groaned as my stomach clenched and rebelled from the immortal speed he used. I could use the speed, but it was different when another used it without the mind grasping that took place.
Rhys placed my wet body onto the bed, checking my legs for injury. No emotion shone in his eyes while he touched my thighs, parting my legs to check each one. Once he was confident the glass tub hadn’t harmed me, he reached for the sheer gown beside the bed, handing it to me. Quietly, I pulled it on over my head before lifting my derriere to shed the wet panties. I held them awkwardly before his lips curled into a knowing, smug expression.