Page 84 of The Edge of Never

“Ye mentioned wanting a shower.”

I bent down to take my boots off.

“You can go first. It’s your place, after all.”

“Or ye can join me.”

I froze in the process of untying my laces.

“Join you?”

“Aye. Ye owe me a reward.”

My mind went blank at that. I finished untying my laces and kicked off my boots as I tried to think of what he might mean by it.

“A reward.”

I looked over at him. Thane wore a smirk that made me shiver.

“Ye said I could see yer chest tattoo. Well, I already saw it, but I didnae get a guid look.”

The memory of us having sex came back to me. The challenge I issued. I owed him since he had succeeded.

“Oh yeah, that totally slipped my mind. Um, sure, let me get my stuff.”

I took off my coat before moving over to my suitcase, setting it down and unzipping it to dig out my toiletries.

“There is one small issue, though.”

“That is?”

“I can’t shower without music. It keeps my mind distracted from the sensory overload of water pounding on me and, well, I don’t want to switch my phone on.”

It felt odd to reveal that piece of information to him. No one else knew about my coping methods when it came to my sensory issues. It was something I kept to myself. No one needed to know about the little routines I’d created to help me do daily tasks that seemed to come so easily to everyone else.

“No bother. Mah tablet is on the coffee table. We can play ye something through that.”

My heart squeezed. The fact that he accepted it so readily left me reeling. Being around Thane made me feel less… othered. I didn’t have to be ashamed of myself for the way I was built. The way my mind worked. And I didn’t know how to process that.

I put my toiletries down on the dining table and took a deep breath.

“Thane.”

“Aye?”

“Are you going to judge me if I cry over how nice you’re being to me?”

He blinked.

“Am no being nice, Kit. If ye tell me ye need something, I’ll give it ye if I can. Ye deserve tae have yer needs respected.”

Tears welled in my eyes at his words. I wanted to run to him, curl up in his lap and sob. But I didn’t. I sniffled and rubbed my face.

“Let’s get in the shower before I make a mess of my face, then.”

He smirked and got up off the bench, peeling off his coat before he hung it up.

I gathered up my things and his tablet from the coffee table. The door on the right-hand side of the corridor opened into the bathroom. It had a huge rainfall shower with a big glass screen separating it from the sink and toilet. I handed Thane the tablet after I followed him in. Taking out my shampoo, conditioner, and razor, I put them in the holder by the shower before retreating to undress.

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