Page 19 of Harbor (The Wanderers 3)

She chuckled as she tipped her head back farther to see his face. “Are you blushing?”

“Absolutely.”

“Work your magic, big guy. You promised me a scalp massage.”

“Bossy. Bossy.” Seconds later, his hands were in her hair, his fingers rubbing her scalp, and she was moaning again.

There was no way to avoid her reaction. She gripped the arms of the wheelchair, totally ignoring her throbbing leg, and concentrated on how damn good it felt to have her head massaged.

Advic didn’t hurry. He took his time. Running his hands through her hair over and over, but always coming back to her scalp. He even lifted her head and worked out the kinks in her neck for a while. It was erotic, and there was no denying she felt flutters in her stomach that had been dormant for many many years.

She was grateful for the blanket tucked around her. It hid the fact that she was squeezing her thighs together. The covers were in her lap though. There was no way to hide the hard points of her nipples against the thin material of her gown.

“I could keep doing this all day, Maya,” Advic said in a gravelly voice, “but I know you’re losing strength. I don’t want you to overdo it.”

“I’m not the one doing the work,” she pointed out.

“Hmm. You’re gripping the arms of the chair so tight it’s a wonder the metal doesn’t bend,” he joked. “Your arms are going to be tired.” He dipped her head back and ran water over her hair, washing out all of the shampoo, taking his time.

When he poured something else in his palm and worked that into her scalp next, she moaned again. Conditioner was a luxury. It had been a long time since she’d had access to such a product. Apparently, Advic had some.

By the time he’d rinsed a second time, she was exhausted. She started swaying to one side and the other as he squeezed the water out of her hair into a towel. Leaving it wrapped around her locks, he came to one side, bent down, and scooped her up into his arms.

She whimpered as she wrapped her closest arm around his shoulders. “Advic,” she protested lamely.

He leaned his nose against her forehead, inhaled, and padded from the bathroom, carrying her back into her room. Seconds later, he’d deposited her carefully back in bed, arranged her gown, and covered her with a blanket.

She was breathing heavily as if she’d run two miles in record time.

He tapped her nose. “You were out of energy. I didn’t want to argue.”

She wiggled her hand free of the covers and grabbed his. “Thank you,” she murmured, holding his gaze. “That felt amazing.”

He leaned down and kissed her forehead. “Which part? The part where I massaged your scalp or the part where I carried you back to bed?”

She grinned, but didn’t answer.

“Rest. I’m going to comb out your hair. I’ll take my time so I don’t tug too hard.” He propped her head on a few pillows, gathered her hair off the end of the bed, and started working through the tangles.

She fought against the urge to moan the entire time. No one had washed her hair for her since she was a small child. And they certainly hadn’t combed it.

Advic was so damn careful that she never once winced. It took a while, but eventually, the comb ran freely down her thick locks. “Gorgeous. There are ten shades of blond. Who knew blond hair could have so many natural highlights?”

“Obviously not someone with dark brown hair,” she joked. “And a man at that.” She turned her head to the side to meet his gaze as he rounded. “That bathtub was awfully inviting. What do I have to do to get permission to take a bath?”

She wasn’t the sort of person to toss around sexual innuendo. At least she hadn’t been before she’d met Advic. She’d come incredibly close to asking who she needed to sleep with to get to use the tub. Luckily, she managed to stop herself from being quite that blatant.

“Depends.” His eyes were dancing.

“On what?” She grinned in return, shocked by her playfulness.

“On whether you want to take a bath alone or have one of us wash you. If you want me to give you a bath myself, I can probably make that happen tomorrow. If you want to do it alone, you’ll have to wait several more days. I’m not going to risk you slipping under the water and drowning.”

She chuckled. “I don’t think I’m quite that weak. Maybe you could limit how many inches of water I’m permitted to use,” she teased. “That way if I slide down into the tub, my face won’t go under.”

He laughed. “My warrior woman is funny.”

She didn’t even flinch at the possessive way he called her his woman. It felt kind of nice. Freaked her out too.

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