Page 97 of Shutter and Sin
She stands and walks past me like a ghost. I follow, watching as she sheds her clothes until she sees her reflection in the mirror and pauses. Her hand drifts down, pressing against the flat of her stomach.
“Do you think I’m getting fat?” she asks quietly.
I walk up behind her, wrapping my arms around her waist and resting my chin on her shoulder so we’re both facing the glass. “I love every inch of you,Vedma. More of you to hold just means more of you to love.”
She makes a face at our reflection. “That’s just a nice way of saying yes.”
“That’s a way of saying I don’t care how you look. You already know you’re my type.”
She turns in my arms, looking up at me with those soft, searching eyes. “What exactly is your type?”
“You.”
“That’s cheating.”
“It’s the truth. You are the standard, my Aphrodite.”
Her expression softens, and she buries her face in my chest, her breath warm against my shirt. “You’re annoyingly sweet sometimes,” she mumbles.
“Only for you.” I kiss the top of her head. “Now get in before the water gets cold.”
She sinks into the tub with a long, trembling sigh. I sit on the edge, watching the tension slowly leave her shoulders as she soaks with her eyes closed. After a few minutes, she looks up at me. “Come join me.”
I don’t need to be asked twice. I strip down and climb in behind her, pulling her back against my chest so she’s nestled between my legs. I work the knots out of her shoulders, my hands eventually moving lower to cup her breasts, and she leans into my touch with a soft hum of approval.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” she says softly. “I’m just so tired and lethargic.”
“The first day wore you out,” I suggest, though a part of me wonders if it's more than that.
“Maybe.” She closes her eyes again. “Will you give me a massage?”
“Of course.”
We stay in the water until the heat begins to fade. I help her out, wrap her in a plush towel, and dry her off before we finally retreat to the bed. She collapses face-first into the pillows, her voice muffled. “I don’t think I can move.”
“Then don’t.” I climb in beside her and pull her shoulder. “Roll over.”
She rolls onto her back and lets me move down to her feet. I press my thumbs into her arches, and she lets out a long, low groan. “Don’t stop.”
I work through her feet, her calves, and her thighs until the rigidity in her muscles finally melts away. When I tell her to roll onto her stomach, she obeys without hesitation. I’m working my way down her spine when her phone starts buzzing on the nightstand.
“Ignore it,” I say.
It buzzes again, then starts ringing. She reaches for it with a sigh. “It’s Yelena.”
“Call her back tomorrow.”
The phone keeps ringing, persistently and loudly.
“Put it on speaker,” I say, my curiosity finally winning out.
She gives me a dry look but hits the button. “You’re on speaker. Alexei’s listening.”
“Hi Alexei!” Yelena’s voice bursts through, frantic and high-pitched. “You won’t believe what happened!”
“Yelena. What happened?”
“It’s Anya. She got caught again by Taras.”
