nothing else you havenât told me about.â
She would have preferred to touch instead of just looking, but that would be a step too far. Cass found herself ignoring the scrapes and bruises and concentrating on the smooth contours of his shoulders and chest. Very nice. And, what was nicer still, he had the confidence to just sit there and meet her gaze without sucking in his stomach or trying to flex his shoulders. He was perfect, just as he was.
âFinished?â He raised an eyebrow.
âYeah. I think youâll do. Do you want me to dress your arm?â
âWeâll clean up first.â He gave her a bone-melting grin and stood up, picking his T-shirt up and throwing it over one shoulder. âStay there.â
He picked up the bag and disappeared around the corner, towards the showers. Then the sound of gushing water came from the only cubicle that contained a bath. He wouldnât. Would he? If he did, then she just might. Even thinking about it was sending shivers through her tired limbs.
âCome on.â He was back again, catching up two of the largest towels in one hand, and Cass followed him. When he opened the door of the cubicle a gorgeous smell hit her. Bath oil foamed in the steaming tub and there were candles propped on the window ledge and the vanity unit.
âYouâre not going to fall asleep in here, are you?â
She wondered what heâd say if she asked him to stick around and make sure. But heâd put one of the towels down on the rack and now he was halfway out of the door. It seemed he had no intention of staying.
âNo. Just keep talking.â
âRight you are.â He closed the door behind him and Cass heard the sound of the shower in the next door enclosure.
She turned her back on the partition wall between her and Jack before pulling her sweater off and unbuttoning her shirt. As she slipped off her jeans, she caught herself instinctively glancing behind her as if his gaze, or perhaps her own fantasies, had the power to dissolve the partition while she wasnât looking.
When she stepped into the steaming water, sinking beneath the bubbles, she felt the warmth seep into her bones. Cass lay back, rubbing the ache out of her shoulders. Bliss. This was pure bliss.
* * *
Okay, so heâd been tempted. Jack would admit to that. But it was worth needing to apply a little self-control to have seen her face when sheâd walked into the cubicle. When heâd found her slumped at the kitchen table, heâd known this was exactly what she needed.
âStill awake?â he called to her as the hot water drummed on to his shoulders, making the various scrapes heâd picked up over the last couple of days smart a little.
âYes. You?â Cassâs voice was clear, drifting through the gap between the top of the partition and the ceiling.
âYeah, Iâm awake.â Wide awake and trying not to think thoughts that he shouldnât. âIâm sorry about your house.â Heâd been meaning to say it for a while now, but Jack wasnât sure how to do it without hugging her. The partition between them rendered that now unlikely.
The sound of her moving in the water. âItâs okay. There are more important things.â
Yes, there were, and what had happened with Ben had underlined it. But that didnât mean that the loss of her house was nothing. Jack wondered when it was going to hit Cass, and renewed his promise to himself that heâd be there when it did.
âThanks for the candles.â Her mind seemed to have drifted somewhere else. âTheyâre a nice touch.â
Jack couldnât stop himself from smiling. There was so little he could do for her. âWish I could have done more.â
âCherubs? Or perhaps a few perfumed clouds hovering about...?â She laughed quietly.
âBoth. Every cherub needs a cloud.â
âAh. And a glass of champagne.â
âWhy