“Thanks for catching me.”
Taking his cue from her, Frank turned off the bathroom light and climbed under the covers too. He wondered if he should sleep above the sheets, but he needed to touch her—to hold a corner of her shirt while she slept so that she couldn’t slip away. He reached for the light and flicked the room into darkness. “Of course.”
Her smell surrounded him, invaded his senses. Frank could feel the warmth of her body like a beacon under the covers. “Kuri, I should have done this a long time ago.” He sighed. “I’m sorry I didn’t ask you before.” He held still, listening for a change in her breathing to signal she’d heard him.
After a long while, Kuri said, “Why didn’t you?”
Frank froze in place, afraid of saying the wrong thing. He settled for the truth. “I was scared. I thought I’d make it worse.” He pictured Ana, terrified and bloody in her bindings, desperate to get away. He could never have dealt with making Kuri that way too.
Kuri yawned. “S’okay.” She jostled under the covers, easing her backside closer to his hip. Whether it was intentional or not, Frank didn’t know. “It always got better after you worked on me, for a while at least.”
Unable to resist the draw of her softness, Frank rolled onto his side and let her ass settle into his lap. There was no backing out now. No blaming his actions on her glitch , or her demands, or even protecting her. He curled an arm around her waist, pulling her closer.
She stiffened, and Frank held his breath. “Is this okay?” He hoped it was, because Frank didn’t want to let go.
In a tiny voice, Kuri said, “Yeah.” Then, with heart-stopping gentleness she added, “It’s nice.”
So Frank laid his head on the pillow next to her, the tendrils of hair at her nape teasing him with their flowery fragrance. He wove his fingers through hers, and willed Kuri to rest safe.
* * * * *
Something buzzed, but it wasn’t Kuri’s alarm clock. She rubbed her eyes and peered around the darkened hotel room. For a few moments, she didn’t know where she was, but to Kuri’s surprise she wasn’t scared. There was a man at her back and his leg pressed against hers under the covers. Even that didn’t bother her—it felt oddly right.
She’d just started wondering why she felt so calm, when Frank lifted his head from his pillow. “Damn, I set that alarm early.” He rocked out of bed and padded to where he’d set the duffel bag on a counter. Frank dug his phone out of the bag and shut off the noise.
“What time is it?” Kuri stretched her arms over her head. Then, not wanting to wake up quite yet, she burrowed farther under the blankets. It was so nice and warm in bed, and the sheets smelled fantastic.
Thin light from the street permeated the blinds and revealed Frank’s body. He was tall and strong, with shoulders that spanned a yard and a developed chest that narrowed enticingly to where his loose cotton boxers hung off his hipbones. He reached up to scrub at his hair and Kuri bit her lip as she watched the flex of his muscles.
“It’s five-thirty.” Frank settled next to her, yawning. His leg brushed hers, his hairs scratching her even through her pajama pants.
Her body responded to Frank’s nearness, warming and swelling. Something told Kuri the sex they’d had must have been good. “Frank?”
He stilled under the blankets, as if he were scared to hear something he didn’t want to know. “Yeah?”
Kuri wanted to ask him about it, but she changed her mind. She didn’t want the delicious feeling of having Frank near ruined by some kind of embarrassment. So she simply said, “Thanks.”
Frank wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her into a hug. “You’re welcome, kid.” A current passed between them—a spark of heat.
They held still, not letting go. Kuri moved her head an inch, so that her lips were only a centimeter from Frank’s. His breath didn’t smell sour, but male and