“Yeah,” he says, putting soap on his hands and rubbing my body to clean me. It’s so natural and intimate. For some reason, jealousy shoots through me at the thought of him doing this with someone else. “What’s the face for, babe?”

“Nothing,” I lie, not wanting to tell him what I’m thinking.

He leans down and places a kiss below my ear. “Don’t do that. Don’t put those walls up,” he says.

“Do you have a lot of women in here?” I finally bring myself to say. I want to do this, and I know if I do, I need to be open, say what I’m thinking and not hide or act like I don’t care when I really do.

That smile spreads on his face. “I’ll smack you,” I tell him.

I raise my eyebrows at him, but then his face grows serious. He leans down, cupping my face in his big hands.

“No,” he says simply, and I can see the truth on his face. “I’ve never been serious with someone before. For a while I thought something might be wrong with me. I didn’t have an interest in women, or even men, for that matter. I felt nothing. But then you walked into my life, and I knew. I just hadn’t found my woman yet. I found the one who challenges me and makes me feel things I’ve never felt.”

I lean up and kiss him. It’s slow and soft, and before I know it, I’m in his arms, wrapping myself around him again. I’m lost when his lips touch mine, and it’s like drowning in a pool of love. I’ve never experienced anything so safe and free.

It takes us thirty minutes to finally pull ourselves from the shower, and when we do, my fingers and toes are wrinkled like raisins.

“You’re not wearing that,” Royce says.

I glance over at him. He’s dressed in dark jeans and a tight gray shirt that molds to his body. He’s got a gym bag slung over his shoulder, and he’s glaring at me.

“Well, this is all I’ve got, unless you want to run by my place,” I say, walking toward him. “Besides, I wear whatever I want.” I walk right past him and don’t stop as I walk out the front door. I know he’s going to follow me, because I feel him behind me. I didn’t have much choice in what to wear, but I can’t say I don’t like poking the bear.

I have my jean shorts on and one of Royce’s white undershirts. My black bra is easily seen through the white material. Luckily I had some boots in my car, because I wasn’t going to wear flip-flops to a bar fight. Or whatever this is called. This isn’t something I would normally wear, but I’ll tough it out. I’m showing off more skin than I want to, but it will be fine. Plus, when I saw Royce’s eyes heat up as he looked me over, it only solidified my view on this outfit. I like it even more now that I know how he feels about it.