Page 79 of The Obvious Check
My hands curl at my sides, my nails digging into my palms as I stare at his door. Should I leave him alone? Does he need space to get himself under control?
But selfishly, I want to be the one who soothes him the way he’s soothed me. I want to make him feel the same way he made me feel. I want him to know how much I want him to.
I’m going to marry Cade. I have already decided that before all of this and if anything, this has only proven how far he’s willing to go for me.
Now I need him to know how far I’m willing to go for him.
And that’s when my legs move before my brain can stop them.
Chapter 19
One step. Then another.
My chest tightens as I walk toward his bedroom, my fingers twisting together as I build up the courage to go into his room.
Stanley shifts on the couch but doesn’t move from his spot. Good. He needs to stay out here because whatever is about to happen in that bathroom… is between me and Cade.
I slip inside his room, my hands trembling as I quietly shut the door. Then a slow exhale leaves my lips as I lock it.
The water is still running, and my legs feel weak, but I don’t stop, because I’m done running from him. I freeze on the spot when I get to the threshold of the bathroom.
The door’s open, and Cade’s there.
Completely naked.
Heat floods my face, but I can’t look away. His body is all hard angles and perfectly sculpted muscle. His broad back tapers into a lean waist, the deep grooves of his lower back flexing as he leans forward to check the water.
His ass is firm, tight, and absolutely bitable and clenches just a little when he sticks his hand under the stream.
“Yup. Instant boner killer,” he mutters, clearly unaware I’m standing behind him.
A strangled noise catches in my throat, my teeth sinking into my bottom lip as I force my gaze up.But my mind is already running wild. I’ve felt him through his jeans, imagined what he must look like beneath the fabric more times than I’d ever admit.
But to seehim? To know for certain?
Am I ready for that?
I could walk away now. Let him have his cold shower in peace. We could both pretend tonight didn’t happen… the club, the lap dance, the way he made me come undone with nothing but his words and his body under mine.I could ignore the marriage proposal, chalk it up to a moment of desperation, and never give him an answer.
But I don’t want to. Not after everything he did for me tonight.
“Cade?” My voice is quiet, but the sound of his name still breaks the silence between us. I take a step closer, my bare feet meeting the cool tile as the scent of his bodywash lingers in the space.
He stiffens, his shoulders rising slightly before he turns his head, and his green eyes meet mine, widening in surprise.
For a long, stretching moment, neither of us says anything. His gaze sweeps over me, lingering on the oversized jacket I’m still drowning in. I know I probably look like a wreck. My eyes are puffy from crying, my hair is wild and tangled from the night, but when he looks at me, reallylooks at me, it’s not with pity. It’s something that makes my heart pound so violently I feel it in every part of my soul. Something that makes me take another step forward.
“Haven’t you tortured me enough already today?” Cade mutters under his breath, and I doubt I was supposed to hear it. His voice comes louder this time. “I’m a little busy in here.”
I can practically hearthe frustration in his tone, but I don’t move. I should step back, leave him to his cold shower and the mess of emotions still crackling between us. Instead, I stay rooted to the spot, my pulse thrumming against my skin.
Cade grumbles something else, something I don’t catch, before finally turning and stepping into the shower. The moment he disappears behind the glass, my body moves on instinct.
I follow.
Steam doesn’t curl through the air like I imagined. It should be warm in here, hazy with heat, but it’s not. Instead, a sharp chill lingers, the cold tile pressing against my bare feet like ice, a stark contrast to the molten heat flooding my veins as I head to the shower.
I don’t step inside, but I’m right at the threshold, just outside the glass door. Close enough to feel the cold mist as the water cascades down his body.
