end of the roof, Zeph jumped onto a built-in patio on the next building.
“The one after this is mine,” he explained, gesturing ahead.
“The next one?” I asked as we passed by the dark windows facing the patio. “Then who lives here?”
“People.” He shrugged, carelessly.
“Do you know them?”
“Nope. We’ve never met.”
“But they don’t mind you walking through their property like this?”
“So far, no one’s complained.” He climbed over the railing onto the ledge of the next building then helped me do the same.
“Well, this is home.” Zeph lifted open the frame of a large bay window, positioned right under the roof. “Come in.”
I followed him through the window then stepped around a huge oval bathtub inside.
“Is this your bathroom?”
“No.” He turned on the water in the tub then flicked on the light. It illuminated a spacious room, tastefully decorated in light grey and breezy blue.
This appeared to be a studio apartment. A couch stood in the middle with a TV set mounted in front of it. A few tall bookshelves lined the walls. Partially hidden behind a painted-silk screen, a large bed stood to the side.
“You have a bathtub in your living space,” I stated, a bit confused but not overly so. With much of the architecture in this city being there for centuries, some of the more modern elements had often been added in unconventional ways over time.
“Yes,” he replied simply, as if used to being asked this question, then headed to the kitchenette in a niche to the left.
“A glass of Champagne?” he asked, taking a bottle from the small fridge under the counter and a couple of champagne flutes from the cabinet above it. “Sorry, this one hasn’t been anywhere near strawberries.” He glanced at the label. “Just good, old Moët.”
“Thank you.” I accepted the glass from him.
His fingers brushed mine when he handed me the flute. Anticipation fizzed through me like the bubbles in the glass.
The one time I’d been with a man hadn’t left me with a great opinion about sex. I preferred my own hand to anything my one and only sex partner had had to offer. He’d never made me light up with anticipation by merely touching my fingers with his the way Zeph just did.
There was something extremely sensual about Zeph that my body responded to.
It was in the way he moved, with almost feline grace and confidence.
In the way he looked at me from under the strands of his silvery white hair. How the color of his eyes changed from the lightest blue to a rich turquoise, depending on his mood and the lighting in the room.
In the way he talked with that crooked grin of his—teasing, warm, and playful all at once.
And definitely in the way he sang. The moment I’d heard him sing destined me to end this night in his arms. His voice had tethered me to him, stronger than any chain.
Zeph placed his wine glass on the wooden bench that stood between the tub and the window. A stack of blue fluffy towels lay on the other end of the bench next to a few toiletries. After pouring into the tub something from one of the bottles, he started unbuttoning his shirt.
“What did you just add to the water?” I asked, trying to distract myself from the fact that he seemed to be getting ready to take a bath, that very moment...and that the tub was large enough for both of us to fit in comfortably.
“Sea foam.” He slid the shirt from his shoulders, then tossed it on the grey rug on the pale-wood floor. “At least that’s what the label says it’s supposed to smell like.”
“Is it a bubble bath?”
“Yes.” He unbuckled his belt then slid the zipper open. “Do you like bubble baths?” He shoved his dress pants down, taking the underwear with them.
“Sure.” I quickly averted my eyes to the dark window and took a large sip from the glass in my hand to steady my nerves.
My attention did not stay on the window for too long, though, drawn back to Zeph’s tall, muscular body.
He had the figure of a swimmer, with long strong legs. Wide in the shoulders, his torso tapered elegantly to a narrow waist and trim hips.
The lightning speed with which he’d undressed, left me unprepared and slightly anxious. I breathed faster, suddenly finding myself one on one with a completely naked Zeph. The sight of him filled me with lightheaded excitement.
He turned around, stepping into the tub. The scars on his