Page 88 of Blood and Bonbons

Face heating at my racing thoughts, I held out my hand.

“No. No problem.”

I took the bottle, and his gaze went to my barely-covered top half.

“My apologies. I should have allowed you to wash first.” A small, incredibly sexy smile tugged at his lips. “Unless, perhaps, you would care to join me. I could attempt to heal that burn for you.”

I swallowed hard.

“Thank you for the offer, but no. Could you step behind the curtain again? I’m going to need both hands for this.”

His gaze dipped to the hand holding up my bra, and his eyes gleamed black briefly before he snapped the curtain closed. I quickly fixed the pump so it faced the right direction and handed it back.

“Thank you, Everly,” he said. “I will only be a moment more.”

I fled the bathroom and almost ran into Vena.

“Stop waving those things around,” she said, gesturing to my boobs.

I held the girls while I glared at her. “I’m not waving anything around. I’m just trying not to get blood all over everything.”

She sighed as she glanced down at her own chest. “Come on, ladies. Let’s not be jealous. Remember, size doesn’t matter.” Vena lifted her gaze and smirked at me. “Well, not for some things. Did you get a look at our vampire in the flesh?”

I rolled my eyes and was about to head to my room when I heard the water turn off. A few moments later, the door opened.

A water droplet rolled from Cross’ toweled, damp hair. It slid down his firm chest muscles, down the swells of his tight abs, and stopped at the towel wrapped around his waist.

It took me a second to tear my gaze away from him.

“The shower is yours,” he said. “Is there something I can change into?”

“We’re washing your clothes,” Vena said when my tongue decided it was only interested in licking the droplets from his body. “Should be done in an hour or so.” She nudged me toward the bathroom.

I stepped around him and closed the door.

What was the matter with me? I’d seen naked men before. Cross was nothing new. Well, he was decidedly more attractive than any past men, but still.

As I scrubbed the blood off, I could feel his lips on my palm.

He was a vampire. Nothing could happen. Nothing should happen.

Once I had that firmly in my mind, I turned off the water and dried myself enough to return to my room and change.

I heard a thread of the conversation coming from the dining room as I left the bathroom. Vena and Cross were talking about the sheep scrotum. Apparently, the disgusting skin sack was of good quality and prized by the fae.

After a quick change, I walked out of my room to find both Vena and Cross nose-first in the skin.

“So, what do you think?” she asked as she straightened.

Cross gave the map one last look before he stood up as well. “I think you are both over your heads, and you’re lucky I rescued you. Anyone looking for this map is not out for treasure.”

“What do you mean?” Vena asked.

“I mean, stop looking into this before it’s too late. Information like this will get you killed.”

“We’ve heard that warning already,” I said.

“What about my brother?” Vena demanded. “He had this map when he went missing. He had it before someone sent him the coordinates to Juicy. They’re linked. I know it.”

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