Maggie

 

“How’s the water?” Blade asked as he squeezed the washcloth over my shoulder, letting hot water run down my back and chest. I had finally stopped shivering.

 

“It’s perfect,” I told him. I reached up and touched his hand. Our fingers intertwined briefly, but the touch sent intense waves of pleasure through my body. He was so gentle and caring, always trying to protect me. I felt horrible for going behind his back, but all of that was over. I let go of his hand and let him return to dripping hot water over me using the washcloth.

 

We sat in silence in his bathroom. He sat on the side of the tub and rubbed my cold body with the warm, wet cloth. I sat and listened to the water as he dipped his hand back into the tub. I was slowly warming up.

 

The heat was soothing to my sore, tired muscles. I felt them unknotting in my shoulders and my back. My legs had relaxed almost as soon as I had sat down in the scalding hot water. Blade had offered to let me bathe and soak alone, saying he understood if I didn’t want anyone around me naked for a little while. I didn’t want anyone around me naked, but Blade wasn’t just anyone. Blade had been there before, when my nudity had been used against me, just as it had been earlier in the evening by Axel.

 

“I’m really sorry,” I said, my voice splitting the silence suddenly.

 

“Sorry for what?” he asked, his voice as tender as his touch.

 

“For going behind your back with Axel and setting you up like that. I shouldn’t have done that,” I admitted.

 

“I get it. You were scared. If he treated you in your relationship the way he treated you tonight, I understand why anyone would have been scared of telling him no,” Blade assured me. His voice was deep with exhaustion and emotion.

 

“Would you be surprised if I told you he was actually a little nicer tonight?” I asked, speaking slowly, timidly. I didn’t want him to take my question lightly.

 

“I am so sorry, baby,” he said, rubbing the cloth gently across my shoulders. “I can’t imagine anyone treating you or anybody else like that.”

 

“You’re sweet, but you met me at a sex slave auction. You can’t tell me it’s foreign to you for someone to treat women the way Axel treated me,” I reminded him.

 

“I know.” His hand paused on my back.

 

I turned and grabbed his hand, letting him drop the washcloth in the tub. I held his hand and stared up into his eyes. He looked lost in thought. I wondered where he’d trailed off to.

 

“Hey,” I said, urging him back softly.

 

His eyes focused on me and he smiled. “I’m sorry, I was just thinking about all those girls who were sold through those auctions over the years.”

 

“There’s nothing you can do about that now, Blade. And there probably wasn’t anything you could have done then. Your hands were tied,” I told him.

 

“Yeah, I guess. I guess it’s like you and Axel. You didn’t feel like you had any other choice. I understand that. I felt like I owed Vlad my life and any service I could provide, without question,” he explained.

 

“Exactly, but you’ve done a great job protecting me and looking out for me,” I said to encourage him.

 

He sighed and reached down into the water for the washcloth. He was being careful not to touch me intimately. I understood why he was being careful, and I appreciated it. I wasn’t quite ready for sexual intimacy. He ran the washcloth across my shoulders again, letting the water run down my arms and back.

 

“I didn’t do such a great job,” he said after a moment.

 

“How do you figure? You fought off the guys at the auction house, and you chased after the two guys who were trying to kidnap me and take me God-knows-where after Axel was shot,” I argued, laughing.

 

“For one, I never should have let you out of my sight. And I certainly shouldn’t have left you in one of our safehouses, even with a prospect,” he refuted my argument.

 

I didn’t have the nerve yet to tell him what happened at the safehouse. I didn’t know if he knew, but it didn’t seem like he did. He hadn’t said anything about what had happened.

 

“You did what you thought was right at the time.”

 

“I could have done better. And going forward, I will do better,” he said, his tone turning serious. “No more safehouses, Maggie. From here on out, you’re with me, if you want to be,” he said.

 

I didn’t know what to say. I looked at him and opened my mouth to try to accept his offer, but I couldn’t say it. I stared at him blankly, stunned that he would even offer, but I figured we’d avoided the topic for so long, it was high time to discuss it. Just not while I was in the bathtub recovering from the night we’d just had. Any other time would have been better.

 

“You don’t have to answer now. I know, tonight’s been rough.” He dipped the washcloth back in the water and ran it up along my arms. “Your water is starting to get cold. Do you want to go ahead and bathe?” he asked. He didn’t sound put-off by my lack of a response. He simply sounded the way he always did, like he was trying to take care of me.

 

“I probably should,” I answered.

 

“Okay. I suppose you want to do that yourself.” He smirked.

 

“Yeah, probably not a bad idea. I’m not helpless.” I winked.

 

“Okay, I’ll get scarce,” he said, getting up from the tub.

 

“No, wait,” I said, grabbing his arm to stop him.

 

He turned back and looked down at me.

 

“I’m flattered by your offer, but I think that’s something we should talk about after I’ve had a chance to recover from tonight. Maybe after you have, too. Tonight was hard on both of us, I think,” I told him.

 

“No, you’re right. You’re absolutely right,” he responded. “I’ll let you get a bath now. I’ll be in bed.” He flashed his warm, caring smile and started to turn away again.

 

“There’s something else,” I said in hurry to keep him from leaving.

 

He turned, still smiling at me.

 

“I’m sorry about Vlad. I know he meant a lot to you despite everything else.”

 

“It’s the life we live, baby. Even on the side I try to stay on, the risks are the same. He knew that. I know that. It’s fine. Thank you, though.”

 

“But I feel responsible in some way.” I gripped his arm tighter.

 

“Don’t blame yourself. Axel was gunning for us anyway. That’s why he put you in the auction. That’s why he put that young girl in the auction. That’s what started the whole thing. If you hadn’t agreed to help him, he would have found another way, and it probably would have ended the same, if not worse. So, don’t worry yourself over it.” He leaned down and kissed me on the top of my head. “Take your bath before the water gets cold,” he urged me, walking out of the bathroom.

 

I sighed. The real reason I didn’t want him to leave wasn’t because I had so much to say. It was because I didn’t want to be left alone. The day had been so hectic, I didn’t trust being alone anymore.

 

I grabbed the washcloth and Blade’s bath gel. I opened it and poured a little onto the cloth, and the delicious smell of the man who’d been slowly winning my heart filled the room. I felt less alone surrounded by his scent.

 

I scrubbed my whole body with the cooling water, taking the time to care for myself. The heat, the cloth, and the touch of my own hand across my tired flesh comforted me and gave me a renewed sense of security. This body in the tub was mine. I owned it. It belonged to me. I was not a piece of meat. I gave myself to the person I chose. No one got to say when, where, and how, unless I allowed them to.

 

I reclaimed myself. I had never belonged to anyone else for someone to be trying to reclaim me. Axel never owned me. I never belonged to him. I hadn’t sold myself to anyone, certainly not Blade. I had given myself to him in passion and through a deep feeling of safety and comfort.

 

These thoughts helped recharge me. They helped me feel confident in my skin again. I needed the self-encouragement. I needed the time to reconnect with myself.

 

I set the washcloth aside and started to drain the water. The faucet in his tub was high enough for me to wash my hair under it the way I would have in the sink. As the water drained, I cranked the hot water and dipped my head under it. I grabbed his shampoo and washed my hair, laughing to myself because I was going to get out of the tub smelling like Blade, not like myself.

 

Once I was finished, I got up and grabbed the towels he’d left me on the counter. He was so good to me. I didn’t even have to ask for a separate towel for my hair. He knew to do it already. I wrapped one towel around my chest and the other around my hair after drying off.

 

I opened the door to the bathroom and found Blade lying on the bed in just his boxers, his feet on top of the covers. He lay on his back with his hands folded on his stomach. He looked so peaceful and serene I didn’t want to say anything.

 

I contemplated going to his closet myself to grab some clothes, but I didn’t know how he would react, so I walked over to the bed. I put a hand on his and squeezed his fingers, hoping my touch would wake him.

 

He took a deep breath and moved his arms, reaching above his head into a stretch. He opened his eyes and looked sleepily at me. “Finally done?” he asked with a goofy, sleepy grin on his face.

 

“I am, but I need some clothes to wear.”

 

He squinted at me. “No, you don’t,” he laughed, waving a hand to dismiss the notion.

 

“I guess I could sleep naked, but I’ve been naked a lot today,” I told him.

 

“Yeah, yeah. Clothes.” He slid out of bed and put a caring hand on my shoulder as he walked around me and to his closet. “How about a t-shirt?” he called from the depths of his wardrobe.

 

“Sounds good to me. Sounds comfortable,” I told him.

 

“Good, because that’s what you’re getting.” He walked out of the closet with an old faded black t-shirt in his hand. He stopped in the doorway to the closet, wearing just his black silk boxers.

 

His body was a work of art. His muscles rippled down his arms and down across his stomach. Underneath his broad, protective shoulders, his chest invited me to lay my head on him. His legs were toned and fit, too. Every inch of him had been perfectly sculpted, and in the dim light of his bedroom, he looked a painting come to life.

 

I dropped my towel as he walked over to me, sharing my newfound confidence with him. I was offering myself to him, but not sexually, and he seemed to get that. He handed me his shirt and wrapped his arms around my waist. He kissed my lips lightly and moved aside to let pull the soft cotton over my head and down onto my shoulders. The gentle fabric conformed to my body perfectly, making me even more confident in my shape and my power.

 

He climbed into bed and pulled me with him. I slid down underneath the covers next to his strong, firm body. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close to him. It was a comfortable, possessive embrace.

 

I was his. Yes, I was his. There was no doubt about that. I was giving myself willingly to this man. Mind, heart, body, and soul.