Spellbound

Original Edition: Thirty-Two

I took a sip of the wine and inhaled before saying, "Things aren't easy with my family. I'm sure you can relate to that after living with your brother for one hundred and fifty years."

He nodded.

My voice quivered with more unshed tears. "Well, I had convinced my parents I had closed the hotel for their visit. I just needed some time to get everything under control. It was going okay...minus my mother and aunt being bitchy, but what else is new? Then in the middle of dinner, Karen Roberts, the city manager, busted in the dining room uninvited and demanded to know when I'd be opening back up. That the hotel being closed two weeks was ruining the town."

"Oh no," Soren said, taking a sip of his wine.

"Yeah...it all came out and my mother completely degraded me, then my dad agreed with her...they—they are—they are making me..." I stuttered, but I couldn't finish the sentence. I broke down into fresh sobs, the horror of what I was about to say weighing on my soul. "I can't do this, Soren," I wailed, setting the glass of wine on the table next to the tub before I broke it too.

"We will figure something out."

"We won't. I don't have the money, and let's be real, I'm—I'm not made for this." I buried my face in my wet palms and wept. My entire body rattled with the force of my sobs that were now bordering on hyperventilating. The water sloshed around me and I was enveloped into strong arms.

I glanced up to find Soren fully clothed in the water with me, holding me through my pain. He ran his hands over the soaked ends of my hair and pulled me tightly to his drenched button-up shirt. I gripped the fabric as I rested my face on his chest and cried.

"That's it; let it all out," he said, rocking me back and forth.

I nuzzled closer into his chest and felt his heart beating against my skin. Its rhythm was steady, but quick, and I wondered what he thought of me right now. I probably looked pathetic, weeping naked in the bathtub, but then it occurred to me that pathetic might not be the right word. Instead, the word broken flashed through my head.

But within his arms, I felt like I was being glued back together, like there was at least one person who didn't think I was incapable, irresponsible, or idiotic.

Soren cared enough about me to crawl fully clothed into a tub full of water getting more frigid by the second, and for no gain of his own.

He just wanted to hold me.

I looked up at him, tears soaking my face but my vision clear. "Soren..." I didn't even know how to say what I wanted to say.

His hands moved to my cheeks and he stroked my hair back. He leaned in and kissed my forehead. "Shh. Let me get you a towel."

Holding my legs to my chest, I watched him stand and unbutton his shirt. My gaze swept over him as he tossed the soaked fabric in the sink before doing the same with his jeans. Stepping out of the tub, he kicked his shoes that I hadn't noticed him take off to the side and grabbed one of the two towels. He ran it over his lean muscular body before securing it around his hips and taking the second towel in hand. Holding it open, he turned his head to the side and closed his eyes.

I couldn't help but to smile at the small act of chivalry.

Getting carefully to my feet, I stepped out of the tub and wrapped myself in the towel he offered. When I had it tucked safely around my chest, I pushed my hair out of my face and said, "You can look now."

His eyes flicked to my bare collarbone for a millisecond before returning to my face. "Do you feel a little better at least?"

With a shiver, I nodded. "Yes, thanks to you. But I'm cold now," I admitted, wrapping my arms around each other and rubbing them with my palms.

One side of his mouth tilted up into that sly little smirk I was beginning to adore. "I can help dress you if you like, and I always seem to have a lot of body heat I'm willing to share. Just let me know." He stepped out of the way and gestured at the door in a sweeping motion.

The thought of Soren not only seeing me naked not covered by bubbles but also slipping clothes over my tingling skin had butterflies invading my stomach and my thighs squeezed tightly together.

"How about if I take you up on the second part?" I asked, walking out of the bathroom and to my room, beckoning him to follow me.

"I can do that," he said, stopping right outside my door.

"I'll be right back," I promised, walking to the dresser and rooting through the drawers for pajamas. I glanced out into the living room, where I had purposely left the door cracked. I stayed right where I was and let the towel drop to the floor, tossing the pajamas lazily on top of the dresser.

Soren was turned to the side with his arms crossed over his chest. His head jerked like he was struggling to keep it facing straight ahead, but ever so stealthy, it tilted just a bit and he glanced at me from the corner of his eyes. I'm not sure if he knew I caught him, but his gaze darted forward, and he ran his hand over his face. When he moved it, his cheeks were a warm rose.

I chuckled to myself and slipped on the pajamas—a silk tank top and shorts much like the ones I'd been wearing the night of the basement disaster. They were a couple years old and about two sizes too small, but I had a feeling it wouldn't be too bad of a fashion mistake. I grabbed something else from the drawer and opened the bedroom door.

"Okay, you can come in now." I held out a pair of plaid pajama pants. "These are my brother's; he left them here when we first moved in." I smirked. "I don't have any extra shirts, though. Sorry," I said with an exaggerated shrug as I sat down on my bed.

Soren took the pants and glanced around. He turned his back to me and dropped the towel followed by his wet boxer-briefs. I wasn't as calculated in my attempts to look him over as he pulled the flannel over his round ass. He gathered his wet underwear and disappeared in the bathroom for a few minutes. When he returned, his uncertainty was written all over his face. But was he unsure of what he wanted or if he should go after what he wanted? It was difficult to tell as he stood at the end of my bed, his hands in his pockets.

I scooted back against the headboard and patted the mattress next to me. "I was promised body heat." I paused, taking his uncertainty into consideration. "That's all I'm asking for. Unless...unless you want to give something else." My cheeks burned and I ran my hand through my hair. "I mean—I'm just letting you know that I'm open to possibilities," I whispered.

"Gemma..." He walked around the bed and sat, pulling me into his arms. He cleared his throat to conceal a laugh, and I glanced up at him with my brows furrowed. "I was just thinking—didn't you say...you wouldn't ask me to warm your bed if you were...what was it... 'sleeping on a goddamn glacier'?"

I rolled my eyes and shoved him playfully away from me, but he pulled me back against him with a kiss to my forehead. I rested my head on his chest and he situated us into the mattress until I had a leg over his thigh and my fingers drawing circles on his chest.

He whispered, "I wouldn't want you going against all the ways you have sworn me off in one night, so we will start with the body heat and slowly take it from there."