BENEATH BLOOD & STONE

TWELVE

"You can barely stand on your own." Gray frowned. "The last thing you need is to slip and fall in the shower."

Addison closed her eyes and groaned, knowing he was right. She let herself fall sideways onto the couch and grunted when her head hit the cushion. It was petulant, but she didn't care. She hated feeling grimy.

Gray let out a sigh and retreated. A closet door opened; the linen closet, if she had to guess. A few minutes of rustling and padded footsteps passed. Addison kept her eyes closed the entire time. No radio or television played, but a low electrical hum of a laptop was running nearby. Beyond that, the apartment was quiet.

She must have dozed off because a touch on her shoulder had her jolting awake. Her eyes flew open to find Gray standing in front of her again. They widened when she realized he no longer wore pants.

It took her a moment to respond. "Why are you in your underwear?" She forced her gaze to lift to his face rather than stay glued to his black boxer briefs. Or rather, the sizable bulge in them.

He quirked a brow. "Because I'm going to help you take a shower and I doubt you want me naked for it."

Heat filled her chest that had nothing to do with her vampire radar. "Really." It wasn't a question. She eyed him, both skeptical and curious. "And how is that going to work?"

"With this." The hand he lifted held a blue bandana.

Addison blinked. "A blindfold?"

"Unless you'd rather shower with clothes on."

She shook her head what little she could. That definitely wasn't an appealing idea.

"Didn't think so. I'd promise to keep my eyes closed, but I figured you'd rather have something more foolproof. Ergo," he lifted the bandana, "blindfold."

She stared at him, saying nothing, then tugged the blanket over her head and groaned, "Fuck my life."

Gray snorted. "It's either I help you now, or you wait for Naomi to come check on you tonight. Your choice."

Another groan. He was right. She could barely stand on her own. Trying to shower alone in her current state would be just plain stupid. She considered taking a bath instead, but she needed to get clean, not sit and brew in whatever filth came off her.

Did she want to wait another eight or more hours for Naomi to come back? Not particularly.

Was she completely against Gray's offer of help, blindfold included? Questionable.

It wasn't that she didn't trust him to behave himself. He'd already had the opportunity to take every advantage when he'd cleaned her up and changed her clothes the first night. As much as he flirted, she knew he wouldn't push or disrespect her like that. Gray was a man who respected women, and despite their roles, he extended that respect to her. He wouldn't hesitate to kill her if necessary, but that was just part of his job. She wouldn't fault him for it.

Addison's hesitance laid solely in her own mind. The idea of being naked and having Gray touch her, even in a purely innocent capacity, seemed far too vulnerable a scenario.

Vulnerable, but also—if she was being honest—intriguing.

She sighed through her nose. "This is a bad idea," she mumbled. When Gray didn't respond, she dragged the blanket from her face. "Fine. Let's just get this over with."

Sitting up was a challenge. Her limbs were heavy and everything ached. She shoved the blanket away and allowed Gray to pull her to her feet. When they reached the bathroom, he propped her against the sink before pulling bath towels from a cabinet, along with three washcloths.

She frowned. "I'm not that dirty."

Gray chuckled low as he hung one of the washcloths in the shower. "One for you, two for me." He started the shower and adjusted the dial. He turned back. "I don't have any rubber gloves, so these will have to do."

It took a moment for that to sink in. "You're going to use them to cover your hands?"

"They'll give me a better grip in case you slip." He lifted the folded bandana to his eyes and tied the ends behind his head. A teasing smirk tilted the corner of his mouth. "Slippery soap and all that."

Addison couldn't help the snort that came out. "You think of everything."

His smirk grew into a grin. "I try. Do you need help undressing or can you manage?"

"Let's find out," she mumbled.

Seeing his blindfold was firmly in place, she proceeded to painstakingly remove the shirt she wore. It took her a few tries to pull her arms through the sleeves. Getting the fabric over her head was a little easier, but not by much. Taking her hair down was the hardest part. Her arms seemed to weigh fifty pounds each, and untangling the hair tie proved a challenge. The boxer briefs came off without issue, thanks to gravity.

Finally naked, she took a deep breath. "Okay. Ready."

With a washcloth covering each hand, Gray steadied her as they stepped into the shower together.

The spray of hot water made Addison almost moan. She stood there for a minute just letting the soothing heat wash over her. Water streamed over her face when she leaned her head back to soak her hair. She swayed a little but Gray's hold was solid.

"Naomi brought shampoo and stuff for you," he said, pulling her from her revelry. "It's on the shelf next to you."

Sure enough, there sat Addison's preferred brand of shampoo and conditioner, along with face scrub and body wash.

"God, I love that woman," she said with a grateful sigh. Her roommate hadn't missed a beat.

She washed her face first, scrubbing away the sweat, dirt, and dead skin that had built up over the past couple of days. While the task had taken little effort, applying the body wash was a different story. Her arms quickly grew tired with the exertion, and she concluded she was incapable of bending to wash her legs. Her balance was currently shit and dizziness would have her taking a nosedive if she tried.

"Shit," she cursed under her breath. Even then a slight wave of lightheadedness had her grabbing Gray's arms for support.

"What's wrong?"

She sighed, knowing what would come next. "I can't bend down."

Gray stilled for a beat. "Would you like help?"

Addison's knee-jerk reaction was to tell him no, she could do it her damn self. But she knew she couldn't. So, she tamped down on the urge and gave herself a mental slap. That morning she had decided to tone down the hostility. It seemed she might need an occasional reminder.

"I would appreciate it," she managed, then amended with, "if you don't mind."

The corner of his mouth twitched. "Not at all." He lifted one of his cloth-covered hands from her waist and held it palm up. "Soap?"

She squeezed some body wash onto the cloth he held. When she set the bottle down, he tapped the built-in ledge at hip level.

"One hand here, the other on my shoulder." When she was situated the way he wanted, he said, "Let me know if you're feeling faint."

She nodded, but then remembered he couldn't see her. "Okay."

Gray removed his other hand from her waist and brought the two washcloths he held together, massaging the soap into both pieces until a rich lather built.

Without another word, he lowered to his knees.