Page 38 of Knight’s Dominion

He grabbed the bottle of heavy-duty painkillers he had for when he was seriously injured and sat on the bathroom floor, cradling her to him. He gave her one. He usually took two or three, but he was a lot bigger than her and also immortal.

When he was satisfied she’d swallowed it, he stripped off her shirt and bra. Next her leather jeans. He was working them down her long legs when she whimpered. That sound of pain distressed him in a way he’d never experienced in his life. He sure as hell couldn’t bear to cause her more of it.

Sliding the knife free from his boot, he carefully cut the jeans from her body. The pants were already destroyed, so he didn’t think she’d care. He cut off her underwear as well, then realized he’d have to get in the water with her or she’d fucking drown.

He kicked off his boots and managed to get his shirt off while holding her. But his jeans, covered in demon blood and fuck knew what else, were a no-go. Reluctantly, he laid her on a towel, his gut clenching when she curled into a ball, shivering. She was pale, so delicate and fragile he couldn’t fucking take it.

Stripping quickly, he turned off the water, scooped her onto his arms, and climbed into the massive tub with her. He rested her between his legs, against his chest. She hissed when the water hit her wound, and he winced, feeling fucking ill that he was causing her pain but knowing there was no other choice. This was the best way to clean out the scratches, to warm her up.

She thrashed in his arms until the pain obviously eased. She was barely conscious, and still she shivered almost uncontrollably.

He sunk down lower in the water so she was submerged to the base of her throat, willing it to warm her. Chaos held her like that for a long time, until the shivers fucking finally subsided.

It wasn’t long after that she went rigid in his arms.

“Don’t freak out,” he said against her ear when he thought she was about to try and stand. “You lost a lot of blood, you were freezing and I needed to clean your wound.”

“And you needed to be n-naked for that?” she said, voice raspy, no doubt from her screams.

“We were both covered in blood and you couldn’t support your own weight.”

She was silent for several long seconds. “Right. Well, thanks…for this, then, b-but I need to…” One of her hands went to the edge of the tub, attempting to climb out, but she was still too weak.

He tugged her back against him, not ready to let her go, even though he knew he needed to. “For once stop fighting me and let me do my job.”

She tensed again. “What job is that?”

I’m your male, it’s my job to take care of you in every way I can. To fulfill all your needs, to provide your comfort. He ignored the words ringing through his skull and said instead, “I’m a knight. Looking after demi is what I was born to do.”

“And how many demi have you stripped naked and climbed into a tub with lately?” she said, her voice gaining strength and teeth no longer chattering.

He grinned. “Just the one.”

More silence, then, “Okay, I’m just gonna say it. There’s no point ignoring the elephant in the room…well, there’s no ignoring its”—she wriggled against him—“trunk anyway.”

He choked, then cringed. “Grace…”

“I’ve heard the rumors. The effect a knight’s er…female has on him, especially when they first meet.”

“Not sure what you’re talking about.”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about.”

Yeah, he did, and he was currently fighting it like hell. Not that fighting it seemed to be working. She’d obviously felt his raging hard-on against her back, it was impossible to miss. But he didn’t want her to think he was some creep or an animal that couldn’t control itself. “Ignore it.”

“Seriously?”

He cleared his throat. “We’re naked and wet in a tub together. Any male would be hard. You have nothing to fear from me. I am actually capable of controlling myself.”

More silence, and he noticed she didn’t try to pull away.

“Chaos…we need to talk about what happened out there,” she finally said.

“We will,” he agreed as he encouraged her to tilt her head back so he could wet her hair thoroughly. He ran his hands through the soft strands, then started lathering it with soap since the shampoo was in the shower and there was no way he was moving from this spot.

“What are you doing?” she asked, sounding confused and a little shocked.

“Washing your hair. There’s dirt in it from the alley.” And not touching her right then was an impossibility.