Page 40 of Rehabilitated

A minute later, he shifts into drive, and I spend the rest of the ride home on his lap. His body heat makes me drowsy, and I drift off, waking when he carries me into the house.

The house is spotless. The blood has been cleaned up, and even the broken stair railing has been fixed. It looks like nothing happened. I’ll have to think of a way to thank Ansel.

We could help him find his mate, my bear suggests.

I smile. How do we do that?

I’m not sure. But he deserves his happily ever after too.

He does, I agree.

I can feel how tired my bear is. She went from hibernating for years to shifting, finding our fated mate, and killing two people all in the span of a few days.

I’ll work on getting my strength up, she promises.

I know. Thank you.

My bear rumbles and curls up inside me as Russo carries me upstairs and into the bathroom.

“Shower, then bed,” he says.

I let him take over, leaning against the vanity as he strips me and then himself. He turns on the shower, adjusting the water temperature, and urges me under the hot spray.

“Hmm.” I sigh. “That feels so good.”

Russo smiles as his hands roam over me. He massages my tense muscles, washing the dried blood and dirt from my skin. My mate frowns as the blood washes down the drain at our feet, and I reach out, squeezing his hand.

“I’m fine,” I promise.

He nods, lowering his head. I lean up on my tiptoes, meeting him halfway. Our lips connect, and I melt against him.

My body heats as I rub against him, my arms twining around his head. I try to deepen the kiss, my tongue licking against the seam of his lips, but he pulls back.

“You need rest, mate,” he says, even as I feel his cock harden between us.

I want to argue, but I know he’s right. We’ve been up for hours, almost a full day now.

Russo turns me around, shampooing and conditioning my hair. I lean against the shower wall once he’s done, watching him wash himself. My eyes are growing heavy again, and my mate smiles at me as he turns off the water and tugs me out of the shower.

He towels me off and slips one of his shirts over my head. I’m too tired to brush my teeth or anything else right now. I beeline for the bed, collapsing onto the soft blankets.

Russo slips into bed behind me and tucks my back to his chest. His lips nuzzle my neck, and I smile sleepily.

“What do you want to do now?” he asks quietly.

“Sleep for the next ten hours.”

“Same.” He laughs softly. “What about after that? What do you want to do now that you never have to worry about them again?”

I smile as I think about my answer. “I’m not sure. I’ve never been given the freedom to even dream about that life. But I’m ready to start making some big plans.”

“I can’t wait.”

I can’t either.

I smile wider as my eyes drift shut, and I sink into sleep.

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