All I knew was that Nicco was on the ground, motionless, and my Drey was making his way to me.
“Drey!” I reached for him, and he skidded to my side.
“You okay? God, please tell me you’re okay.”
“Not hurt. Not really okay, but not hurt.” I yanked him to me.
I heard Marshal talking in the background, but I let it all fade away. Finally, I gave in to the cold and closed my eyes. I could, now that Drey was here. Nothing else mattered. Even if Nicco wasn’t dead, he was down. And that meant captured. That was what truly mattered.
“I got you, girl. I got you,” Drey whispered.
I felt my body rise, and I nuzzled against a warm body. The shaking inside me settled a little. Drey’s presence chased away the chill, but most importantly, chased away my fear.
I was safe. We were together. The rest of the world be damned.
Chapter Fifty-One
Drey
“Yousureyoudon’twant a hospital?” I asked, drawing a bath while Sarah shivered beside me.
“No.” Her teeth chattered. “I’m fine.”
Thank God. I’d almost lost her to that Nicco. But now he was in custody, and that guy he sent to the gas station with the phone was, too. This was almost over.
First, I needed to take care of my wife.
“Here.” I swished the water. Thankfully this hotel room had a big whirlpool tub. Angelina insisted on putting us up for a few days at her hotel. And I was totally fine with that, considering my apartment was pretty much gone. “This is ready.”
I’d held Sarah the entire drive back down to the city, but she was still chilled to the bone. She peeled off her clothes and slid in with a sigh. “I’m starting to rethink my liking snow.”
“Once you warm up, for real warm up, it’ll be fine.” I cupped some water over her hair. “Lie back.”
With the warm water still trickling into the tub, I went to work washing her hair. She might have fallen asleep a couple times but that was fine by me. She was safe. She was with me. And she was alive. Nothing else mattered at the moment.
The center of my world was right here, soaking in this tub. I pushed some wet hair back. Such a fighter.
“I know another way to warm up,” she whispered, taking hold of my hand. Kissing the inside of my wrist her eyes cracked open slightly. “Come in here.”
“You should rest. You almost froze to death.” The tub was big, but notthatbig.
“Body heat does the trick the best.” She grinned. At least her teeth weren’t chattering, but that sexy smile sure cranked my body into gear. “Skin on skin, right? I think I read that somewhere.”
“God, Sarah.” I cupped her face and kissed her hard. “You’re really okay? He didn’t touch you, did he?”
“No. He didn’t touch me other than kiss my face a few times. I wouldn’t have let him take me, Drey. Never.”
“I know.” And I did. This woman was strong enough to take her own life. I saw it in the way she lived. She’d do anything to never be a slave again.
When I’d seen her sleeping with her back propped against the wall at my place when I woke up after being stabbed at work, I’d wondered how she could sleep like that. It all made sense once I learned about her life. But that determination, that would have been what made her take her own life before going back to slavery.
I had to respect that. I grabbed the fluffy towel off the hook beside the tub and held it open. “I think I did read something about skin to skin being the best way to warm up, too.”
She stood, baring not only her soul to me but her sexy body. Her eyes swept over me. Not a stitch of fear. Or hesitation. Only love. Only respect. I bundled her up and hoisted her up. She wrapped her arms around my neck and tackled my lips.
Hell yeah, this was a great way to warm up for sure.
I set her on the bed and made quick work of my clothes before joining her under the covers.