She let out a half-laugh, half-snort. “I just don’t.”

I wanted to push for what she didn’t say, because I was sure she was keeping something to herself, but for now, I let it slide. This whole day was surreal, especially this moment as she stood naked in my arms, staring at a bathtub as if it would jump out and drown her.

And that’s when it hit me. Water.

I kept forgetting. I knew she couldn’t swim, and I remembered how fucking terrified she’d been when Zach had pushed her into the pool when she was younger, but I’d had no idea her fear extended to a simple tub of water.

Then again, she’d found her mother dead in a bathtub.

Maybe I had known all of this. Maybe I’d even used it against her. I’d definitely played on her fears by holding her captive on the island.

“You’re safe here. You don’t have to use the tub. There’s a shower over there.” I pointed around the corner, not sure how I knew, but I did.

We shuffled past the tub and turned, and sure enough, the nook opened into a shower stall. Alex crossed the threshold and turned on the water, but she didn’t step into the spray.

“Do you wanna be alone?” I didn’t want to leave her, but if she needed space, time on her own to process and let it out, I’d give it to her. Besides, I was itching to strangle answers from Jax. He needed to start talking, and people armed with booze tended to have loose lips.

“I don’t want you to go.” Her naked vulnerability gutted me.

Everyone coped with trauma in their own way—I knew that better than anyone. My psyche had chosen to block it from my mind. But shit, I wanted to be her rock, the one she clung to for support and safety. I wanted to puzzle over her pieces until I found where they fit.

Fuck, Jax could wait.

“Tell me what you need, baby.”

“I just need you.”

18. Only Yours - Alex

18. ONLY YOURS - ALEX

The spray of the shower sluiced over my skin. I closed my eyes, feeling his intense stare on my body, and let the water run over my head in hot rivulets, but nothing could wash away the blood. It clung to my mind, just like the musty scent of that tunnel burrowed several layers beneath my skin.

I slid to the tile, and my arms snaked around my knees. I couldn’t bring myself to look at him. I wanted him to take the lead, to come inside and take me the way he should have in that fucking cell. I wanted him to take away the pain. I clawed my arms, chewed my lip, squeezed my eyes shut.