Page 50 of Demise

“I never agreed to like the guy; I just want him dead a little less.”

I do my best to hold back my smirk. It’s a start.

The room is pretty bare, but it is huge. Two nightstands, two matching dressers, and a four poster king-sized bed takes up the space. Vincent keeps moving, walking us into what looks like the ensuite.

“How do you know where everything is? You just got here,” I say as he sets me down on my feet.

He doesn’t look at me as he turns on the shower while he speaks.

“If you think I’m letting anyone take you anywhere without knowing every detail of the layout, entry points, escape routes and nearest resources, then I’m afraid you haven’t been paying attention, Siren.”

I can’t help but smirk at that, stepping up behind him and wrapping my arms around his waist. His movements freeze before he sinks into my touch and lets out a heavy exhale that I’m sure he’s been holding for longer than he’d ever let on.

“Vincent Griggs,” I say as I smile against his back. My hands trail up, resting just over his heart as I continue. “Forever my protector.”

His hand covers my own, and he squeezes it gently.

“In this life and the next,” he promises, his words hitting me square in the chest.

He’s so passionate, so devoted. He’s completely off his rocker crazy, but I think that’s one of the things I love about him most.

I let out a small sigh of contentment and press a kiss to the back of his shirt before he turns to face me. His hands come to the hem of my shirt before pulling it all the way off me. My shoes and pants are the next to go. He takes such care with me, every touch, every move. It’s so thought out, so methodical. Like he’s doing his best to be as gentle as he can. Like he doesn’t know how to be gentle, but he tries for me.

He pulls off his own clothes before stepping into the shower, dragging me in with him. The water pours down his tattoos, creating an almost glassy like display of them. God, I’ll never get over how gorgeous they are.

Vincent reaches for the shampoo bottle on the side of the shower, squirting a large amount into his hand before he forces me to turn away from the spray. I do as he directs before his fingers dive into my hair, massaging my scalp. A satisfied groanleaves my mouth as his fingers work their magic. I don’t know how long I stand there for, limp and pliable, as he kneads every inch of my head, neck, and shoulders.

Finally, he finishes, pulling the shower head off the wall and bringing it over to rinse the soap out. Somehow, this feels even better than the rubbing part. Once my hair is rinsed, he lathers it with conditioner before grabbing the body wash. He hangs the shower head back up before covering both his hands with the soap and running them up down my body. Vincent Griggs is nothing if not extremely thorough.

As his hands move and glide against my skin, I can’t help but sink further and further into his touch. The gesture isn’t sexual or suggestive. He isn’t doing this in hopes I’ll get him off, I don’t even think he’s trying to get me off. This is care in its most basic form. A human taking care of another in the most selfless and simplest of ways, and I love him so fucking much for it.

“I love you,” I say softly as he washes between my thighs.

He’s crouched down in front of me, his eyes coming to my own as his hands keep working.

“I love you, Siren, eternally.”

I smile at that as he stands, wrapping my arms around him and holding him tight to me as the warm water pours over us both.

After our shower, Ronan was nice enough to bring up Vincent and my bags. We both got changed into some comfy clothes and made our way into the kitchen to find Wesley rifling through the cabinets, typical.

“Find anything good?” I tease.

Wesley looks over his shoulder at me and shakes his head.

“Nothing. I get that it’s a rental property, but c’mon. Not even crackers?”

Vincent lets out a derisive snort but doesn’t say anything as he begins doing something on his phone. Wesley leans over the giant kitchen island, resting his elbows against the counter as he smiles at me.

“Any chance you want to come to town with me? Stock up for the week?”

“Sure,” I smile as my eyes roam around the house. “We should get some Christmas decorations too! I’d love to find a tree,” I say as I look at the perfect empty space beside the fire.

“Fuck yes!” Liam cheers as Asher groans.

“Skyla, you haven’t had the pleasure of seeing Liam during Christmas time. May I introduce to you, Father Christmas.”

“Fuck off,” Liam laughs. “Who doesn’t want to get into the holiday spirit? Caroling and Christmas baking, lights, movies. It’s magic!”

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