Page 68 of Triple Threat

Roan came to me and hands lightly on my hips, dipped his head. I raised my lips to meet his, and we kissed carefully, slowly, and the tension eased from my shoulders.

“Hmm…” he hummed in appreciation, tongue flicking out to lick my taste from his lips as though I were some sort of fine wine.

I smiled and cuddled into his front and we stood like that, motionless, as he simply held me for as long as I needed him to.

“Come now, Love. Let’s go for a walk, eh?” he asked with a light chuckle and I smiled.

“Sounds good.”

It was strange, yet wonderful, walking down the sidewalk with Roan in the little boutique filled neighborhood. We’d taken a car, another compliment of the hotel, and with how absolutely fancy the rooms we were staying in, I had to imagine for the amount he was paying for one night I probably could have scraped by in a place of my own for like at least a year.

I shuddered at the thought as we passed by a jewelry shop, Roan pausing at the window to scan the necklaces and rings displayed.

“Are you cold?” he asked, bringing my hand to his lips and kissing the back, fixing me with his green eyes.

“Not really,” I said with a smile then thought better of it and with a blush and a slightly awkward giggle, I conceded, “Maybe a little.”

“Bless,” he murmured and tucked me closer into his side. He stilled immediately when I hesitated, pausing outside an artisan soap shop to breathe in the clean and herbal scents emanating from it.

He turned us and urged me through the door and I stepped through reluctantly, but then decided this? This I could do… no one needed to know how dirty I had been for how long and if it was one thing I loved about this new life? It was the ability to shower and bathe every day and beclean.

I stopped at the table stacked with globe upon globe of bath bombs… I had always wanted to try one of these things, but it was a luxury that I so had never been able to afford. I mean, who spent upwards oftwenty dollarson one of these things that you tossed in the water and could only use once? That was like a week’s worth of meals off the dollar menu at Burger World!

I stiffened my spine and turned to Roan who was smiling faintly at me and I whispered to him, “I have always wanted to try one of these things.”

He raised his eyebrows as though what I’d just said was interesting, but I think I’d surprised him, maybe? I don’t know… Roan could be so very hard to read when anyone else was present. He treated stoicism like he’d found God… like it was his own personal religion.

“Color, scent, or sensation, Love? What is most important?” he asked me quietly, and I turned back to the table in the center of the shop.

“I… I don’t know,” I murmured.

“Right.” He smiled and turned to the shop girl and said, “One of each, please; and some of the bubble bars.” He turned back to me and asked, “Lotion? Skincare? Shampoo?”

“I… I don’t know what any of this stuff does or how it works,” I stammered.

“Oh, well I can help you with that.” One of the girls came forward and patted my hand and asked, “Do you normally have dry or oily skin?”

I looked back to Roan who smiled and nodded encouragingly and I swallowed hard and said, “I don’t… I mean, I never really paid attention before.”

“Aw, well I can see why!” She smiled and complimented me, “You really have flawless skin. Here, come sit with me.”

She led me over to a chair and I was expertly drawn into what should have clearly been a trap to sell me literally all of the things. I was introduced to a crazy amount of shit! Scrubs, soaps, polishes, and toners… and I didn’t know the first thing about if any of it worked. Roan rescued me by whispering in my ear as he stood by to just go with what felt good to me, and I ended up with a very nice sugar and salt scrub that smelled of the ocean. Added to that was moisturizer for my face and some artisan soap for body and a specialty wash for my face, all of it supposedly all natural and handmade right here, locally, in DC.

Roan wouldn’t hear of me carrying the large shopping bag.

* * *

“Aye, I’ll make certain.”Roan paused and sighed. “Tomorrow sometime.” I felt my heart slightly sink in my chest as I stepped out of the bedroom into the living room area of the suite so the personal shopper could check the fit of yet another outfit. This one a close-fitting, yet off-the-shoulder, warm sweater dress that was soft against my skin.

Roan made eye contact with me and I mouthed the name…Lach?He nodded and chuckled into the phone.

“I’ll make certain of everything; you don’t have to worry about me, mate.” His green eyes flicked up to mine and his lips spread into a slow grin.

“That you’ll have to figure out on your own,” he said. “I’ll not help you mend that particular fence.” I shook my head violently.

Nope. Kyle needed to apologize to me himself and it was going to need to be arealapology before I would relent. He’d always said when we were teens that I needed to learn how to be hard. Well now he could find out for himself just how hard I could be. We weren’t fucking kids anymore!

“Aye, by what I’m looking at now, good luck with that, mate.”

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