Free Tempest by Cari Z. Page A

and soap and began to remove his clothes. “I’ll pour for you if you help pour for me,” he offered as he stripped, clearly expecting Colm to do the same.
    Logically Colm knew that there was nothing exceptional about being nude around another person. It was natural, something that family and friends and even perfect strangers did without hesitation when the situation demanded it. But Colm had never been in a situation where this was normal, and while the thought of seeing Nichol in the nude didn’t make him feel uncomfortable, the idea of his own body laid bare to another’s eyes was mortifying. Colm squeezed his eyes shut and tried desperately to push away his awkwardness, but his mind wouldn’t let him.
    â€œColm?” Nichol sounded a bit uncertain. “Would it be better if I left? I’m sorry, I didn’t think about—”
    â€œNo,” Colm said, sounding gratifyingly normal despite his terrible case of nerves. “It’s nothing. I’ve simply become unused to close quarters after so long on the road.” He opened his eyes and managed to keep them on Nichol’s face instead of wandering across that firm, beautifully muscled body as his heart wanted him to. “Give me just a moment.” Colm forcibly put aside his complicated discomfort and took off his clothes, hanging them next to Nichol’s on the wooden hooks lodged in the stone wall. He tried hard not to think about his nudity, about his fishbelly-pale flesh on knobby long limbs, and picked up the bucket. It was heavier than it looked. “Are you ready, then?”
    Nichol, bless him, seemed more than willing to let the moment pass them by. “Aye, ready to say good-bye to my manhood,” he said with a preemptive shiver. “Give it to me.” Colm poured a stream of water over the other man, and the gasp that escaped from Nichol’s lips made Colm’s own throat tighten in sympathy. “Gods, that’s cold,” he bit out, reaching for the soap and scrubbing himself down with ruthless efficiency. Once Nichol was lathered Colm helped him rinse, and then they repeated the process with Colm. The only thing Nichol said was, “Bend down, you great giant,” and that was just light enough that Colm could deal with it. He got dressed with a sense of profound relief, and then Nichol led the way back up to their room to get ready for the day.
    â€œI’m sorry about the mess,” Nichol said as he surveyed their shared quarters. “We can make more room for you, never fear.”
    â€œIt’s fine,” Colm assured him, not wanting to be any more bother. “Everything I own is in that pack, and I don’t need more than a place to sleep at night.”
    â€œAye, but you’re sleeping on the floor, mate,” Nichol pointed out as he shaved his dark stubble away with the help of a bowl of hot water the cook had left for them. “That’s not the sort of thing you should be forced to get used to.”
    â€œThere isn’t room for another cot in here, and I don’t mind,” Colm said. He watched Nichol shave and absently ran a hand over his own face. Silky smooth, as ever. Colm’s head of light brown hair was the darkest stuff that grew on him, and even that was so fine it looked like it might float away sometimes. His brows and lashes were nearly nonexistent, making him look unnatural, he thought. Nichol finished and offered Colm the straight blade, and Colm just shook his head.
    â€œAre you ready to face the day, then?” Nichol asked brightly. He wore dark leather trousers, a white linen shirt and had just pulled on a leather vest that laced together up the front. It molded to his form beautifully, setting his slender waist on display and making Colm’s blood heat again. He had never felt so affected by another person, not even another man, although he’d long been aware of his body’s own peculiar preferences.