Alex is struggling with his hoodie when I get upstairs, swearing under his breath. I close the door with a quiet click and turn the lock.

“Need some help?”

“I should be able to undress my damn self.” He’s managed to get one arm out, but he can’t get it over his head.

I walk to the bed and pat the mattress. “Come sit, baby.”

He huffs, but does as I ask. I tap his knees, and he parts them so I can get in between. I unsnap his sling and ease the collar over his head, careful of the stitches and bruises on his face. The bruising on his injured arm is mottled and so purple it’s almost black in some areas.

I skim the side of his neck. “Do you want that bath now?”

Alex looks up, his gaze stopping briefly at my chest before meeting my eyes. “That’d be nice.”

“Do you want me to join you?”

“Please.”

“Okay, let me warm the water.”

“’Kay. I won’t fall asleep this time.”

I lean down and kiss him softly. “I’ll be right back.”

I run to the bathroom and check the water temperature. It’s barely tepid. I drain the tub and start over, dumping in new Epsom salts and lavender, since it’s calming.

I strip out of my clothes, toss them in the hamper, freshen up my beaver real quick, and peek around the jamb.

Alex is lying down again. But his entire body isn’t on the bed, which is a good sign. I hope. His feet are still planted on the floor, the upper half of his body prone on the mattress. When I approach, his eyes open, and he slowly turns his head.

He groans. It sounds like a word, but I can’t be sure.

“Do you need some Tylenol? Or an anti-inflammatory?”

“No. Not the kind of anti-inflammatory you get in a pill, anyway.”

I round the bed and realize my anxiety is unnecessary. Alex’s sweats are tented at the waist. I smile, glad my boobs have their desired effect. “Lift your bum,” I order.

Alex cocks a brow, but does what I ask. I hook my fingers on either side and pull the waistband down. Super MC pops out. He’s massive. And his purple head peeks out of the turtleneck. “Looks like someone needs some attention.”

He nods somberly.

Alex has an intense sex drive. It’s been several days since he’s had any relief. I skim the slit with my fingertip; it comes away wet.

He moans. I’d go ahead and lick my finger, because I’m sure it’d drive him crazy, but he hasn’t had a bath or a shower since he went into the hospital other than me sponging him down. I’m not all that interested in knowing what his dirty dick pre-cum tastes like.

Later, after it’s been soaped up, I’m all for loving on it with whatever he wants me to. I’m not sure sex will be on the table, considering all his broken parts, but a beaver can dream.

“Come on, let’s get you cleaned up so I can do naughty things to your dick.”

I don’t have to ask twice. Alex sits up with a wince. He has to take a few shallow breaths before he can do anything else. I gently run my hands over his thick shoulders, careful to avoid the bruises on the right one. Alex is built. I’ve never really been into the alpha guy. Before him, I always dated guys who focused more on intellectual pursuits than physical fitness. Being with Alex means I get both.

My boobs are right in his face, which was the whole point of getting in close. He only has the use of one hand, and his face is beat up, so he turns his head and presses his cheek against one boob while he kisses the swell of the other. He closes his eyes and sighs. I let him do the nuzzle thing for another minute, until his breathing is as regular as it’s going to get. He’s also started kneading my ass.

“I’m ready to be your naked nurse, if you’re ready for bath time.”

9

Sponge Baths

ALEX

I don’t care how much my shoulder aches, my balls ache more. I could probably take care of the situation on my own, but I don’t want to. I want Violet to take care of things for me. And she’s so naked. So perfectly, gorgeously naked.

She holds out a hand, and I take it. It still hurts to move, but I shuffle along behind her, watching her ass jiggle. Except it’s not quite as jiggly as it used to be. I let go of her hand and grab her ass. It’s definitely firmed up in the past few months.

She squeals and holds her bum. “What are you doing?”

“You been working out?”

“Sunny’s been making me do yoga when you guys are away. It’s a lot harder than I thought it would be. It’s not all humming and saying Namaste and pretending to be a tree.”

“Is that right?” My sister’s a yoga instructor, among other things. “Well, your ass is looking good.”

“Don’t get any ideas about my ass.”

“I was just noticing it looked good. That doesn’t mean I want to violate it.”

“Liar.” She holds her bum cheeks.

She’s right. I’m lying. I’ve never cared about ass sex until I started dating Violet and she made it clear it would be off-limits forever. She calls her ass Area 51. So now I’ve taken to joking about getting in there, except I’m not always joking anymore. I’m sure she can sense my infatuation.

But it’s not like she has anything to worry about. I barely have the energy to get my ass to the bathroom, let alone try anything on hers. Especially anything like that.

I sit down on the edge of the tub and lift one leg over, then the other. Not having use of one arm makes it tough to stay balanced, and I’m banged up enough as it is. I don’t need additional broken parts.