Blue eyes slid shut as he hung his head. “I hate this.”
“Not more than me,” I shot back.
The long, golden hair that had fallen over his face lifted with his heavy sigh. “Let me help you.”
“You can’t.”
“I’m sure as hell gonna try.” Sasha’s head whipped up, his gaze a mix of desperation and determination. Standing, he glanced around the room. “Do you, by chance, have a heating pad?”
“No.”
He hummed. “Okay. We’ll have to improvise.” With that, he shrugged off his suit jacket and rolled up the sleeves of his white dress shirt. Turning on his heel, he disappeared into the bathroom.
The sound of running water reached my ears.
What was he doing?
He strode through the open door with purpose, his tone growing authoritative. “All right. Let’s get you up.”
“No,” I whined. “It hurts too much.”
His gaze softened as he sat on the edge of the bed, and he pressed a kiss to my forehead, breathing, “I know.”
A whimper flew past my lips when he gently maneuvered me until I was upright, seated on his lap.
Weakened by the pain, I lay limp in his arms as he pulled strands of my hair atop my head and secured them with an elastic tie. I shivered when his featherlight touch grazed myupper thigh as he gripped the hem of my sleep shirt, tugging it up and over my head, leaving me only in a pair of high-waisted, full-coverage panties.
Sasha’s fingers touched the waistband. “Are you good for me to take these off in here? Or do you need to be over the tile when I do? I’m not sure what kind of products you use.”
Products?
Oh, Jesus, he was asking if I was going to be gushing blood all over the place as soon as he took off my underwear. Could this get any more embarrassing?
And why was he taking off my clothes in the first place?
Instead of asking that question, I answered his. “Doesn’t matter where.”
I felt him nod against the top of my head. “Okay,” he whispered before easing the fabric down my thighs.
The next thing I knew, his arm slid beneath my knees, and he lifted me when he stood. I grimaced as he moved us across the room. Each step jostled me enough to have fresh spasms rippling through my already tender uterus.
Heat enveloped me as Sasha lowered me into the tub filled with hot water. He rolled a hand towel and placed it behind my neck before turning off the faucet.
“How’s that?” he asked, dropping to his knees beside me. “Too hot?”
Humming, I let my eyes slide closed. “It’s good.”
After a while, the pain lessened to a more manageable level, and my muscles unlocked. Stretching my legs out, I released a sigh.
When I opened my eyes, I found Sasha with a forearm perched along the side of the tub, his head resting atop it as he watched me.
“Why?” I asked.
His gaze grew searching. “Why what, baby?”
“Why are you still here? Why are you taking care of me?”
Huffing softly, he said, “Because you needed me.”
