Survivor - By Kaye Draper Page 0,23

to beg him to come into the shower with me. I blushed at the thought. I hadn’t had sex since I was a teenager. My body was weak and covered in scars. My hormones didn’t seem to care about my lack of confidence.

“I can feel that you are… sad?” He didn’t sound sure. “Frustrated maybe? Hurt?” He was the one who sounded frustrated.

“You know what I’m feeling?” Vampire.

I saw his shadow shrug through the curtain. “It’s not one hundred percent, but sometimes, especially if it’s a strong emotion.” He sighed tiredly. “Then again, sometimes it’s like listening to a radio with the volume too soft. You know there is music, but you just can’t make out the words.

I laughed. “I hate when that happens.” I paused for a minute, thinking about what I had just been feeling to make him worry. “I was just thinking how long it takes to get washed up.” I bit my lip. It was embarrassing to admit, but it was easy to talk to him. “I was wishing I was normal.” I clenched my fist as embarrassment started to slide into anger. “I was wishing I was normal so you would think of me as a woman, not a child, or a disabled person.”

He was quiet for a minute. I thought that maybe I’d been too frank. I picked up my loofa and squirted body wash on it, resigned. I was lathering it up when the distinctive sound of a zipper made me pause. I smiled. “There are extra towels under the sink,” I said, happy over this small victory. “I have a couple of really big ones. I don’t think my robe will fit you. The dryer won’t take too long.”

He pulled the shower curtain aside and stepped in. Naked. I sucked in a surprised breath and stared. And stared. Oh my God. He was glorious- lean, and muscular and perfect. He was also not disinterested. In a big way. My face flamed and I stopped staring at the visible proof that he did indeed think of me as a woman. My mistake.

He gave me a lopsided smile and took the loofa. Kneeling, he started at my feet and worked his way up, lathering and caressing. The water beat down on him, turning his silky hair black, and streaming across his smooth skin. When he got to my hips, he gave me a look that went right to my center. “Can you stand for a while, if I help you?”

I swallowed. “Why?” My voice was a register deeper than usual. I cleared my throat and gripped the edge of the bench. This was really happening.

He raised an eyebrow at me. “So I can finish what I’ve started?” He held up the loofa, but I didn’t think that was what he was meant.

I gave him a look. “That’s not what I’m talking about, and you know it.” He grinned, unrepentant. “I know.” He leaned forward, kneeling between my knees. Sliding a hand behind my neck, he pulled me down to him. His full lips met mine and I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him closer.

He pulled back and looked up at me mischievously. “I’ve been trying so hard to keep the proper distance. But don’t ever think that means I don’t want you.”

I frowned at him. The proper distance. “This is a brain injury thing again, isn’t it?” He thought he was taking advantage of me.

“No,” his voice was still odd and it was making me tingle in places other than my fingertips. “This is a respect thing.”

I thought about that for a minute. “I think I can stand up for a while,” I said gravely. He laughed, his eyes flashing to liquid silver. I tried not to stare at the sharp teeth that had flashed when he laughed. He stood, effortlessly pulling me up with him. He had vampire strength and reflexes on his side, he wouldn’t let me fall. For the first time I thought of all the things I could do with this man, instead of the all things I couldn’t do.

He turned me to face the wall, where I could hang on to the grab bars. Then he continued to lather my body with soap. He dropped the loofa, and his large, deliciously cool hands slicked over my curves. He caressed my breast with one hand, gently fondling, as the other snaked down lower. He stroked me gently and I arched back against him. I could feel him pressed