She stayed in for fifteen minutes. He guessed she hadn’t had a bath for a while and had layers of dirt to scrub off, and it probably felt wonderful.
Mack wiped a hand down his face and looked at Jace. “What the hell are we going to do?”
“We’re going to take care of her right now, and then we’ll deal with things as they come along.”
Mack nodded. That’s the only thing he could think of to do too.
Chapter Four
Kaylin closed her eyes and let the water cascade down her body. She’d cleaned every part of her body and hair three times to ensure she was finally clean. She was dismayed that she’d never felt cleaner in her life. The bathroom at home that she and her parents had shared was rusted and usually dirty, so she never felt one hundred percent clean. She tried to clean the bathroom, but the scum was stuck everywhere. She’d gone from an old worn bathroom to nothing at all on the street. It hadn’t been a big deal then.
She ignored the knot in her stomach. She knew some was from hunger, but the majority was grief that she’d been trying to hold in. She tried to keep her mind occupied, hoping she’d make it until she was alone.
She turned off the shower, pulled a towel from the shelves next to it, and wrapped it around her. She grabbed another and squeezed as much water out of it before she wrapped her hair in a towel. It would take forever to comb through and dry, but she didn’t care. The feeling of being clean surpassed any discouragement. Kaylin found a comb and started to work from the bottom up. She couldn’t remember the last time she brushed her hair, so it was snarled and in knots even though she kept it braided.
The shirt they’d gotten for her was on the counter, so she pulled it on. It made her feel a bit more secure than being naked in a stranger’s house. Her body jerked when someone knocked on the door.
“Baby, how is everything?”
“Good.”
“Are you dressed?”
“Yes.”
“Is it okay if we come in?”
Kaylin looked at herself in the mirror to make sure she was covered. “Yes.”
The men stepped into the room and stopped and stared.
After a minute, she started to feel uncomfortable. “What are you guys looking at?”
“Your hair,” Jace said.
“I know. It’s snarled, but I can work through it.”
“We didn’t realize it was so long and light,” Mack said.
She self-consciously looked at her hair. “It’s okay, isn’t it?”
Mack cleared his throat. “Yes. We’re sorry. It just surprised us. Can I help with your hair?”
“How?”
“I’ll comb it and help dry it. I can see how tired you are, baby.”
“No one’s ever combed my hair,” she said.
He smiled at her. “I’m glad I’m going to be the first. I have a feeling you won’t have many chances to brush it because we’ll want to do it for you.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Your hair is beautiful. I can’t see why any man wouldn’t want to have their hands in it.”
She didn’t know how to feel about that.
Mack came up behind her, took the comb out of her hands, and started working through it. Within a short amount of time, he had it untangled and flowing down her back. It would have taken her a lot longer, so she enjoyed it immensely and wondered if that was normal.