Page 6 of The Billionaire's Caress

What happened?

And all those wouldn’t compare to the question he didn’t ask aloud, the question that would burn in his deep blue eyes.

He’s not just an ex, is he?

I stepped in the shower and pulled the glass door shut behind me, like I was closing the rest of the world outside. Pressing the pause button long enough to take a shower and get my head on right. Memories, then and now, just pounded me like the water pounded my flesh. Wave after wave of pictures of me, young and naive. Young, naive and-

“In love?” I said aloud. Drenched in all the incredulity I could put in the two words. I didn’t even know what that word meant back then. I was just beginning, just exploring the world. Some hot, muscled, tattooed guy swooping in like Superman to save the day? I didn’t stand a chance.

But this? Where I was, physically and emotionally, even with all the drama and distance with Jacob? This was real. This was love.

Corbin was just a youthful indiscretion. A pothole on the road to something meaningful.

I stepped beneath the spray of water, the suds from the shampoo washing away my day. Washing away my worries.

I knew what to say and the more energy I put behind this thing, the more power I gave it. He was an ex, nothing more. All the rest of it was irrelevant.

He was irrelevant.

If that’s true, why can’t you get rid of the ache in the pit of your stomach? Why do you feel like you’re the one that’s keeping secrets?

I gripped the knob, ready to unload this weight before it brought both of us down. Spit out my fears and flex my fists. I’d let them get their rest and think about dinner. Sometime between the first course and dessert, I’d just share that I ran into someone I used to know. No biggie. No need to be alarmed. No need to give Corbin Wolfe or the past any hold or power over me.

“Mind if I join you?”

I blinked through the water, Jacob standing in the doorway, wearing nothing but golden skin and an expression filled with remorse.

My body was alive with his presence, pores tingling like flowers being stroked by the sun. Arousal radiating from between my thighs, pebbling my nipples as Jacob moved closer.

I almost forgot about everything. The argument. Corbin.

Almost.

I scrubbed a hand over my face and pulled the sides of my mouth as far as they would go. I wanted to talk and get this over with. I could almost hear my mother’s voice in the back of my mind, a fount of wisdom, usually when I was in no mood for it.

Ask and ye shall receive.

“C’mon in,” I said with a wiggle of my brow. Hoping that I’d still be in a playful mood once the water stopped. “The water’s fine.”

IF YOU WOULD HAVE ASKED me a few hours ago, me, Jacob, and nakedness would have been just what the doctor ordered. Not to mention, the two of us being naked and wet was a strategic move on my part. It was impossible to be angry when we were rocking our birthday suits.

Impossible to do anything but make the most of our nude state.

Unfortunately, even the sight of my naked-as-the-day-is-very-long husband wasn’t enough to make my dive headfirst into what needed to be done. I shuffled to the side, crossing my hands across my chest before I dropped them because I looked ridiculous.

“So, u-uh, where’s Hope?”

He strode into the shower like a soldier marching into battle. His mission? To slay me with his...

I glanced down and saw that his body wasn’t the only thing that was rock hard. When my eyes shot back up, I expected to see some hint of mischief in the blue. Instead, I found the unaffected look of a seasoned poker player. The look of someone that was just doing what came natural.

And this was natural. It wasn’t our first time showering together. The first time we’d been all slick and wet and hard in this chamber of marble and chrome. But I couldn’t help but awkwardly pass him a loofah, like we were two strangers who happened to accidentally schedule a shower at the same time.

It was the fight.

It was Corbin.

I wished I was capable of just sticking that all on the back burner and diving back into the delicious naughtiness that was Jacob, but I was all thumbs. I needed him to tell me it was all gonna be okay before I dropped another bomb.

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