Page 7 of The Infinite Light of Dust

It was fucking wild that approval from her felt so intense and important when I’d spent my life not giving a fuck about what people thought about me outside of my ma and my sister.

I would be lying if I said the bathtub being in the center of the room hadn’t been influenced a bit by getting to know Karina. I had imagined her in the porcelain tub many times, lying in the bubbly water and letting the anxieties of her day melt away. Even during the uncertainty of what was going to happen with us, the idea of it had made me move a lot faster to get it done. Just in case.

“Maybe I do want to use it . . . do you know what a luxury it is to have a bathtub that a grown woman can fit in?” she told me, turning to face me.

“I do, actually. That’s why I put this here, so whoever buys it can have a place to relax and not be sitting in a shallow cube of a bathtub.”

“That’s pretty thoughtful.”

“What can I say, I’m a planner.”

“Do you think Austin is—” she began to ask me. Lifting my index finger to her lips, I pressed it against her mouth.

“He’s as okay as he can be. And I don’t have any alcohol in the house, so he’ll probably play Xbox again if he wakes up. There’s nothing you can do for him right now except take care of yourself.”

She sighed, acknowledging that I was right. “Should I at least text Elodie?” She pulled her cell phone out of the pocket of my hoodie.

I gently took it from her, shaking my head. “I’m going to charge this more, and you’re going to take a bath.”

She looked too tired to argue. When I came back from plugging her phone in by my bed, she was holding a copy of a book in her hand. Fuck me.

“What’s this?” Karina’s face had gotten some of its color back, and she grinned from ear to ear as she waved the novel in her hand at me.

My hand went to the back of my neck. “It’s . . . I wanted to see what you love about it so much, so I started reading it during my breaks while finishing up in here.” I pointed to the dust from construction in the corner; there wasn’t much left to do, but there was an open light fixture I was waiting to install, so wires were sticking out. Aside from that, it was damn near perfect.

“And?”

I shrugged, staring at the hands holding a a bright-red apple on the book cover. “I’m only five chapters in, so not sure yet. But when my schedule clears, I’ll read more.”

She looked so pleased. “Can I borrow it for the bath?”

I leaned across her and turned the faucets on, the water rushing out. I nodded and walked over to the vanity and opened a cabinet door. “Lavender or eucalyptus?” I held two bottles of bubble bath up and she laughed.

“Should I be worried that you have a fully stocked bathroom in a mostly empty place?” She cocked an eyebrow. “Who else has used this bathtub?” Her voice turned a bit serious, and I held my hands up.

“No one. I got these for you. See? They aren’t even open yet.” I twisted the caps off and showed her the silver stickers covering the tops of the bottles as proof.

“For me?” she repeated quietly, smug and clearly extremely pleased with my response. “Lavender, please.”

“You’re such a brat.” I laughed, pulled the sticker off, and squeezed the bottle over the tub. Bubbles instantly began to rise in the low water. “More?” I asked, and she nodded, watching the foamy bubbles grow.

“Yes, please.” Her hands went to the bottom of the hoodie and she pulled it over her head, along with her T-shirt. Her shorts dropped to the floor, then her panties, pooling at her feet. Stepping out of them, she dipped the tip of her fingers into the warm water, testing the temperature.

“Too hot? Too cold?” I asked, trying not to stare at her naked body but finding it impossible not to.

“It’s perfect,” she replied, climbing into the freestanding tub and sitting down.

The tub was only halfway full but with the bubbles, nearly her entire body was covered. I could see the slight outline of her breasts, her pink nipples poking through the white foam. Now wasn’t the time to be thinking of how soft her tits were in my mouth, how hard her nipples would be if I gently sucked and bit at them, but that was all I could think about.

“Does this luxury spa happen to have any candles?” Karina asked, distracting me for a few seconds.

“Yes, we do.” I opened the other vanity drawer and pulled out three candles. Fuck, I had it so bad. I had never in my life owned a candle until I met this woman.

“Let me go grab a lighter, stay put,” I told her, stealing one last glance at her perfect body as the bubbles and the water rose.

My cock was hard as I walked down the hallway to the kitchen to grab a lighter from the drawer. Fischer was passed out on the couch, his arm dangling over the edge. I grabbed the lighter and a glass of water, adjusting my pants before entering the bathroom again. Karina watched me as I lit the candles and placed one on the vanity counter and the other two on the windowsill behind her. I flicked the light off and looked at her, glowing in the soft candlelight. The water was now up to her shoulders, and the bubbles would have looked comically out of control if she didn’t look so striking, so magnetic. Every time I looked at this woman all the noise in my head went on mute.

I stood there, entranced by her, taking in the sense of calm she brought me and noticing the way her shoulders dropped away from her ears and her eyes relaxed, falling into a calm and curious stare. Despite all the times I’ve imagined her in my place, in my bed, in my kitchen talking at the table with her mouth full—and even though I had changed my bathroom renovation around in case she happened to come here sometime—the imaginary scenarios never fully felt real.

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