Page 78 of Nero

He wipes away another tear. “You did. And I’m going to let that go. This time.”

It’s a controlling douchebag thing to say, but it still causes the edges of my mouth to turn up into a smile.

Warm lips press against mine, but before I can kiss them back, they pull away. “Rinse your face off, Payton.”

Wanting the moment for myself, I give Nero my back and do as I’m told.

His body presses against my back, and an arm circles around my waist, holding me in place. Tipping my head out of the direct spray, I open my eyes to see Nero’s other hand reaching around me for the loofa that I have hanging from the faucet handle.

He drags his hand across my stomach before I lose his touch, then the click of my body wash being opened fills the shower.

When I look back over my shoulder, I see Nero squeeze way too much out of the bottle.

“Don’t use so much,” I chastise lightly.

He clicks it shut. “I’ll get you more.”

Shaking my head, because there’s no point in arguing, I melt into the sensation of Nero running the soapy loofa up the backs of my arms, across my back, down my spine. He takes time rubbing soft circles on each butt cheek. And I’m so absorbed in the moment, I don’t have time to be embarrassed when he slides a soapy hand down my crack.

Nero continues to clean every inch of my legs, lowering himself behind me. Again my embarrassment doesn’t flare. Not even when he tells me to turn and face him so he can work his way up from my toes.

I feel like I should feel so much more self-conscious about this. I know I’m not built like, well, like the type of girl a guy like him would normally go out with. Something I feel bad for thinking, because I know our bodies don’t tell anything about the type of people we are. But there’s knowing something, and then there’s believing something.

Somehow, I feel nothing but cherished when I’m with Nero.

I feel safe.

Unbidden, I think of this afternoon and my stomach drops.

“Why did you pretend not to know me?” I whisper the question.

Nero rinses out the loofa, then hands it to me. “I’ll tell you.”

Taking it, I turn off the water and hang the loofa back in its spot.

We stay quiet as Nero uses one of the towels to dry me off, as he stands damp in the cool air, apparently unaffected.

When he’s done with me, I slip into a pair of my plain cotton pajamas and climb into bed.

Nero turns the lights off, one-by-one, as he makes his way into the bedroom. The final lamp going dark a moment before the mattress dips beside me.

“Roll onto your side.” The box spring creaks under our combined weight. “Your bed is too fucking small.”

I almost ask about the size of his bed, because I bet it’s bigger than my Full, but I don’t, rolling onto my side instead.

There’s more shuffling, then Nero, clad in only a pair of boxer briefs, pulls me into his body. His whole front, covering my whole back. His skin a simmering heat against mine.

“I’ll tell you something.” Nero’s words brush against the top of my head. “But then I want you to tell me something.”

“Okay,” I agree, blinking into the dark.

The arm around my waist adjusts until his fingers are tucked between my side and the mattress.

“I have my security company. It’s real. And I make good money from that.” His chest expands on a slow inhale. “But it’s not what I really do.”

“What do you really do?”

“Bad things.”

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