He had to get out of here before he did something really stupid like undress her and join her in the tub. The thing was big enough to easily hold them both. The image of her soapy, wet body sliding over his wasn’t helping his erection one damn bit.
“Rabb.”
He stopped and glanced over his shoulder. She looked so small and lost standing there by herself. “What, honey?”
“Thank you.”
His chest tightened and his eyes stung. “No problem.” He could barely get the words past his lips. His voice was rougher than usual. “I’ll be back,” he promised.
Rabb closed the door behind him and leaned against the wooden panel. It hurt him to image Eliza all on her own, living day-to-day in the city, trying to survive. He rubbed his chest, but the ache remained. No more. She’d spent her last day on the street. She was staying with him.
That settled, at least in his own mind, Rabb hurried to the kitchen and started pulling ingredients out of the refrigerator. He eyed a hunk of cheddar cheese. He had some crackers too. She could snack while she soaked in the tub.
Eliza stared at the closed door and then back at the rapidly filling tub. She swallowed hard, knowing if she started crying she might never stop. Kindness had been in short supply in her life as of late.
The water beckoned. Steam rose, making the air moist. It had been months since she’d had more than a hurried shower in a shelter. Mostly she made do with a sink of warm water and rough paper towels.
She eased her jacket from her shoulders and laid it on the floor. By the time she pulled off her sweater, T-shirt, undershirt and bra, she was exhausted. She turned off the water and sat on the edge of the tub, trailing her fingers through it. The heat sank into her bones.
Bending down to unlace her sneakers made her lightheaded and she had to rest a moment. Then she stood and undid her jeans, skimming them down her legs. Underwear and socks were next.
When she was naked, she stepped into the tub. She made sure not to look at herself in the mirror. Call her a coward, but she really didn’t want to see herself right now.
She sank down and almost cried at how good it felt. The water flowed around her, embracing her like a blanket of warmth. She eased lower until her entire body and head was immersed. It was quiet here and all her problems were gone, at least for this moment.
She’d gotten good at simply enjoying moments of pleasure and happiness where she found them.
When she couldn’t hold her breath any longer, she sat up and slicked her hair back. A bar of soap sat on a ledge and she reached for it. She held it to her nose and inhaled the woodsy scent. It smelled like Rabb.
Her body tingled, heating in places it hadn’t for a long, long time. Bemused, she worked up a lather between her hands and began to scrub her hair. She wished it was shampoo, but beggars weren’t choosers. Her arms began to shake before long and she sank back into the water, working the suds from her hair. When she sat up, she slicked her hair back once again.
The facecloth was on the floor beside the tub and she reached down and snagged it. The material was soft and thick. She wet and soaped it and then began the task of washing herself.
She was so tired and her energy levels were much lower than she’d thought they were. The stress of coming here had probably drained her reserves. She checked out the scars on her stomach. They were thin pinkish lines now, much different from the puckered red ones they’d been when she was first released from hospital.
She ran her hand over one and then another. There were three in total. One of them was worse than the others, and the skin was rough rather than smooth. Her hand automatically went to the one that ran down the edge of her hairline on the right.
Blood. There’d been so much blood that day. Her stomach roiled at the memory and she shoved it aside. “You’re safe and warm right now and that’s all that matters.” She breathed slow and deep until she’d calmed back down.
She was just about to lie back when the door opened and Rabb walked in.
Water sloshed perilously close to the edge of the tub as she pulled her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them to cover herself. “What are you doing? Get out.”
“Thought you might like a snack to hold you over until I got your omelet ready.” He set a plate filled with crackers and cheese on the edge of the tub. Beside it, he placed a glass of orange juice. “Figured you’d rather juice than wine.”
How could he be so nonchalant when she was naked? Maybe having a naked woman in his tub was no big deal for Rabb. And why that notion made her angry she had no idea. He wasn’t her boyfriend or significant other. He was a friend. Or rather, she’d believed him to be her friend. She had no idea what to think now.
But right or wrong, the thought of him having another woman naked in his tub brought out a possessive side she hadn’t realized she’d even possessed.
“You can’t just barge in here.” Her words didn’t have as much punch as she’d like, but it was hard to sound tough when she was breathless and naked. Completely naked.
“Sure I can.” He crouched down and popped a piece of cheese on top of a thin wheat cracker and held it to her lips. “Just a taste.”
Her stomach rumbled. She hadn’t had cheese, good cheese, in so long, and it was a particular weakness of hers. She parted her lips and let him feed her. The flavor of the cheese exploded in her mouth. She leaned her head back, resting it against the edge of the tub, and simply enjoyed the pleasure of eating. The cracker had a crunch that she particularly liked.
Lost in the moment, she almost forgot Rabb was there. Almost.
It was impossible to totally forget. Rabb’s presence filled the room. He was so big, so masculine. It was all she could not to stare at him and sigh. He’d removed his vest and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt to expose strong forearms and thick wrists. A tuft of chest hair was visible at the top of the shirt.
From the moment he’d come to work at Bruno’s, she’d been drawn to him. There was something so solid and stable about him. But underneath it was an undercurrent promising so much more, a wilder, untamed side.
She’d wanted to be the woman to touch that part of him.
She almost snorted. Yeah, that had worked out well. Not.
Rabb was staring at her and she shivered. Gone was the cajoling man of moments ago. Now he appeared angry. No, not angry, furious.
The cracker went from ambrosia to sawdust in the blink of an eye. She struggled to swallow it, but managed. “What?” she asked. Naked and vulnerable, she curled her arms tighter around her legs and returned his stare.
Rabb reached out and touched the scar that ran down her hairline. Oh crap. She’d forgotten about that. With her hair slicked back, there was no way for him to miss it.
“How the fuck did this happen?”
Chapter Three
It was taking all Rabb’s control not to drag Eliza out of the tub and carry her off to his bed. The way he was feeling right now, they probably wouldn’t even make it that far. Eliza wasn’t a tall woman, but she wasn’t too short. Her body was average at best, and now thin, almost to the point of gaunt. But his body reacted to her as if she were the hottest woman on the planet.
Her green eyes were filled with shadows that hadn’t been there when he’d first met her. There were secrets and pain hidden there, things that he didn’t know about her life and what had happened to her.
Her red hair was slicked back from her face, framing its heart-shaped delicate beauty. He’d often fantasized about her lush lips wrapped around his cock. Yeah, that wasn’t helping him to calm down.
Her nose was straight, her cheekbones high.
Rabb froze when he reached her forehead and everything inside him went into denial. He reached out and gently ran his finger along a scar that ran down her hairline. It had to be at least four inches long.
“How the fuck did this happen?”
She pulled in tighter, as if she could hide from him.
“Eliza?” She stared
back at him, almost defiant.
“It’s nothing.”
No way he was letting her get away with such a lame explanation. “If it’s nothing, you won’t mind telling me how you got it, will you?”
“I’d like to get out of the tub now.” She nibbled on her lower lip. Her arms were trembling. Shit, he was an idiot. She was probably getting chilled sitting there in the cooling water.
“Sure, honey.” He grabbed the towel and stood, holding it open. “Get on out.”
The look she shot him should have singed his hair. “Not with you standing there.”
“I’ll close my eyes,” he promised. “I’m worried about you getting out on your own. You look shaky to me.” And that was nothing less than the truth. She looked as though a good wind would sweep her off her feet.
“Promise?” She nibbled on her lip again and he shut his eyes for his own peace of mind.
“Promise.”
Water splashed and he imagined the droplets cascading down her skin as she stood. He swallowed hard and concentrated on standing perfectly still. She might think she was tough, and she wouldn’t be wrong. She’d have to be tough to survive what she had. But right now, she was very fragile. And Rabb wanted to take care of her.
He knew the second she stepped out of the tub. It wasn’t so much the sounds that alerted him, but her presence. He could feel her next to him. She started to take the towel from him, but he wrapped it around her and hugged her. Eliza sighed and rested her head against his chest, her damp hair wetting his shirt.
“I’ve got this.” She eased away from him, taking the towel with her. Rabb opened his eyes and struggled not to feel cheated. He wanted to see every inch of her. Sure part of it was sexual, but the other part was a deep-seated need to make sure she wasn’t keeping any other injury—past or present—from him.
“You sure? I don’t mind helping.” He cleared his throat and held his hands out by his side.
Eliza shook her head. “Thanks, but no.”
“You don’t know what you’re missing.” He waggled his eyebrows and drew a small laugh from her. The sound went straight to his dick.
She glanced down at the front of his pants. “I think I’ll pass.”
The fact that she was feeling a little sassy steadied him. No matter what had happened, she was here now with him and she was safe. “Dry your hair and come out to the kitchen when you’re ready. You can wear my robe.” He indicated the brown terry-cloth bathrobe hanging on a hook on the back of the door.
Every instinct inside him was screaming at him to take her into his arms and never let her go. But he’d been burned before, mostly his own fault he now realized, but he wasn’t too eager to put his heart on the line again. He’d fallen head over heels for Eliza. Too fast. Maybe that was why it had been so easy for Jason to convince him it wasn’t real and she’d been cheating on him. He hadn’t trusted himself or his feelings for her.
“Rabb?”
He realized he was still standing there like an idiot staring at her. “Yeah, I’ll be in the kitchen.” He turned and left her alone. Stalking to the kitchen, he finished pulling out the ingredients he needed.
He stopped and stared around his sleek kitchen. Stainless appliances, granite countertop, custom cabinets. It was his home, one he’d designed for his own comfort. And now Eliza was here. With him.
He sucked in a breath and dragged his hand through his hair. “Omelet,” he reminded himself.
Rabb cracked eggs into a bowl and whipped them until they were frothy. He chopped green onion, mushrooms and sweet red peppers, adding them to the eggs. A splash of milk and some salt and pepper and he was ready to start cooking.
A swish of fabric alerted him to her presence. He swiveled his head to find her standing at the end of the hallway wrapped in his robe. The garment fell to his knees but was almost ankle-length on Eliza. She had the top pulled tight around her neck. Her fingers gripped the plate of cheese and crackers so hard her knuckles were white.
He also noted she hadn’t eaten any of them other than what he’d fed her while she was in the tub. The glass of juice was in the other.
“I brought this out.” She held the plate out to him.
“Sit.” He indicated one of the high stools that sat on the opposite side of the kitchen counter. “It won’t take me long to cook this.”
Eliza padded over the hardwood floor and set the glass and plate on the counter before hoisting herself onto a stool. “You really don’t have to do that. This is fine.” She indicated the plate in front of her.
“It’s no problem,” he assured her. The pan was heating on the stove. He dropped in a dollop of butter and it sizzled, indicating the readiness of the pan. Rabb dumped in the omelet mixture and shook the pan until it was settled evenly.
“I didn’t know you cooked.” Eliza rested her elbows on the counter. The opening of the robe gaped apart, showing him a swatch of pale skin.
“I do okay with the basics. I can cook a mean steak, fry pork chops and the like. It doesn’t take a lot of skill to clean and bake potatoes or open a can of vegetables.”
“A man of many talents.”
“You know it.” He eased a spatula under the omelet and quickly flipped. It mostly worked.
Her hair was still damp and the overhead pendant lights picked up the glint of red. He loved her hair. It was so vibrant, so Eliza.
The pan sizzled and Eliza sipped her juice. Rabb concentrated on finishing the omelet and then slid it onto a plate and set it in front of her. He placed a fork and knife alongside her. He knew he was making her nervous watching her, so he made himself turn away and start cleaning up the kitchen. “Eat,” he told her.
He turned his back to her on purpose and was gratified when he heard her utensils clink against the plate. It doubled when she groaned and muttered, “This is so good.”
When there was nothing left in the kitchen for him to clean, he turned back to her. Her plate was half empty and she was chewing slowly, as if enjoying every bite.
Sensing his scrutiny, she raised her head and then carefully placed her fork on the edge of her plate. Rabb sighed.
He went around the edge of the counter and joined Eliza on her side, sliding onto the stool next to hers. He brushed aside her hair and studied the scar. It was a fairly recent injury. The scar was still pink in a few spots. “Tell me what happened,” he ordered.
Eliza wished she hadn’t eaten as much of the omelet Rabb had made for her. But it was so tasty and she was hungry. Still, having him stare at her so intently was making it heave around in her stomach.
“Eliza?” The way he said her name made her toes curl. She loved being wrapped in his robe. It was almost as good as having his arms around her. Almost. It made her feel safe.
And she, better than anyone, knew safety was nothing more than an illusion that could be shattered at any time.
“I’d been moving around for months.” She’d lost count of the number of times she’d packed up her belongings and fled in the past year. A blur of cheap pay-by-the-week apartments and motels, each worse than the last as her savings dwindled to nothing. “It was harder to hold a job.”
“Jason found you.” It wasn’t a question, but she nodded.
“Yes, he found me.” Sighing, she ran her finger along the edge of the smooth granite countertop. “It didn’t matter where I moved. I probably should have left the city immediately.” That had been a huge mistake on her part. She’d had enough savings to make a clean start somewhere else, but she’d stayed where she had friends, in a place she knew.
“Then what happened?” Rabb took her hands in his, infusing his strength and warmth into her. She had to remind herself it was only an illusion. Like the rest of her friends, Rabb had disappeared on her too, leaving her to face the monster alone.
It was difficult to talk about. “Jason spread lies about me. How I was mentally unstable and accusing him off horrible things. He was so calm and acted so compassionate, as if he was genuinely conce
rned for me, that people bought it. They felt sorry for him and didn’t believe me.”
“Son of a bitch,” Rabb swore.
Eliza gave a sad laugh. “Yeah, that about sums it up.”
“So he isolated you from your friends?”
She nodded. “Yes. Not that they were true friends in the end, but yes, he separated me from everyone I knew, everything familiar.” She’d truly felt adrift and alone in life. And the world was a scary place to be by herself.
“There was one cop who believed me and told me to get a restraining order against Jason.” She’d done what she’d thought was right and had paid dearly for it.
“I take it Jason didn’t respond well.”
Eliza met Rabb’s gaze and nodded. “You’re right about that.” She took a deep breath. It was time to finish this. Whether she stayed or left after this, she was glad to see Rabb again, glad to know at least he believed her. Too bad he hadn’t trusted her enough a year ago to come to her with Jason’s accusations. But better late than never, she supposed.
“He was waiting for me in the alley where I was working. I was washing dishes in a diner in Brooklyn.” Rabb’s grip tightened and his entire body tensed.
“Jason did that to you.” He indicated the scar on her forehead.
“Yes. By the time I got out of the hospital, I’d missed my rent payment on my place. It wasn’t much, but it was something. The landlord had confiscated and sold my stuff and all I had was my purse. Most of my clothes were too damaged to wear, but a nice nurse gave me some clothes and a list of shelters.”
Rabb jumped from the stool and began to pace. “Why didn’t you come to me sooner?” he demanded.
“Why would I?” she countered. “I thought there was something special between us, but you left without a word.” Eliza clamped her mouth shut, wishing she could call back her words. She didn’t want Rabb to know how much his leaving had hurt her. In many ways, it was even worse than what she’d gone through with Jason. He’d hurt her physically. Rabb had broken her heart.
But she couldn’t really blame him for that. They’d dated and talked, shared some hot, mind-blowing kisses, but they hadn’t even slept together. A fact she’d often regretted.
WildLoving Page 3
