Page 85 of The Edge of Never

As I peeled everything off, a sense of relief flooded me. I could get clean and wear something comfy. When I looked up after leaving my clothes in a pile in the corner, I noted Thane had already stripped and was un-braiding his hair. My fingers itched to touch the red strands, but I stayed where I was.

“Dae ye have a preference for what I put on?” he asked, indicating the tablet with his head as he looked at me in the mirror.

“Not really.”

I’m too busy thinking about how hot you are right now.

I rubbed my arms, while Thane put some music on. I recognised it as Lofi as the soothing sounds erupted from the tablet’s speakers.

Thane turned around, leaned against the sink counter, and cocked his head to the side as his eyes went to my chest. I dropped my arms and stepped closer to let him look at my tattoo. He reached out, his fingers hovering over the spot between my breasts where a full moon lay. Above and below were more moons in different stages of its cycle. Crescents of waxing and waning moons. Tiny stars and lines connected them.

“You can touch it if you want.”

The warmth of his fingers seeped into me as he gently placed them on my skin. He traced the lines. I let out a shuddering breath at the delicate touch.

“Ye like the night.”

I nodded.

“It’s quieter than the daytime. Plus, the sky is pretty with all the stars out. Suppose they’re far more visible here than at home with the lack of light pollution.”

“Aye.”

He smiled and dropped his hand. I watched him hobble into the shower and turn it on. After a minute, he beckoned me over. I took my glasses off and set them on the counter before I stepped in. Thane made room for me under the spray. Maybe it should have felt uncomfortable to be naked in front of him, but I only felt safe. Not like he hadn’t seen it all before.

As Thane was the injured one, I let him get cleaned up first. I had a routine that I preferred not to diverge from. Being with Thane might make me feel comfortable, but I was in a place I didn’t know. It made my anxiety spike, but it wasn’t as bad as when we’d been at the hospital. It wasn’t like I had a fight for survival to distract me from the unfamiliar surroundings like I had done in the tent. If I could stick to the things I knew, it would make it easier to remain regulated.

After Thane was done, he leaned up against the wall to take the weight off his injured ankle. I set about washing, running through my normal steps without worrying about what Thane would think. There was nothing unusual about what I was doing, but self-consciousness about my routines and the way people perceived me was a constant struggle.

As I finished rinsing the conditioner out of my hair, I turned my attention to him. Thane was staring at me with a look I didn’t recognise. My hand reached out to turn the shower off as I tried to discern what he might be thinking. The way his pupils had blown made me slightly nervous.

“What?” I asked, rubbing my hands over my arms.

“Ye done?”

“Yeah.”

“Come here.”

My body instinctively reacted to his demand before my brain had a chance to catch up with it. As I stood before him, his hand darted out and tangled in my wet hair. He tugged my head back the same way he had done in the tent and leaned towards me, hovering his face over mine.

“Kit,” he breathed.

I held back a squeak as my hands went to his chest automatically, not to push him away, but I had to anchor myself somehow. My knees wanted to buckle from the way he pulled my hair and said my name.

“Ye’re so fucking pretty. It almost kills me tae look at ye.”

“I don’t really want you to die.”

He let out a huff of air as if he was trying not to laugh and looked between us. His lips curved up into a smile a moment later.

“I’ll try mah best no tae expire on ye.”

“You think I’m pretty?” I whispered.

His other hand came up to rest on the side of my neck. I shuddered when his thumb stroked down my throat.

“Aye. I watched ye shower and listed in mah head all the places on yer body I wannae put my tongue.”

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