“Stone,” she said. “Did you hear me? I said I hope you don’t mind staying with me for a while.”
“Of course I do not mind,” he said stiffly. “Though I should not be here—I ought to be locked in a secure cell.”
“Why? Because of what we did on Bachanalius?” Cassie demanded.
He turned to look at her.
“Maybe you should say what was done to you. You certainly were not a willing participant.”
“What? What makes you say that?” Cassie demanded, frowning.
“Because you were tied up and helpless,” Stone shot back, his voice harsh. “And then you were drugged, making you unable to consent to what I did to you in any meaningful way.”
“What you did to me saved my life,” Cassie pointed out. “We both know that drug was the serum from the Amaryllis Fatalis plant that Dr. Sslwx told us about in the lab! If you hadn’t, uh, done what you did, I’d be dead right now!”
“I used you roughly.” Stone looked down at the fire again. “I bruised you, Cassandra. I hurt you.”
“You had to,” Cassie said gently. She patted the couch cushion beside her. “Look, Stone, won’t you come over here and sit so we can talk this out?”
He shook his head stiffly.
“There is nothing to say.”
“Yes, there is, damn it!” Cassie exclaimed. Forgetting her injuries, she tried to jump up to go shake some sense into him. But the bruising pain inside made her gasp and nearly stumble to her knees.
“Cassandra!” Stone was there in a flash, scooping her into his arms. “Don’t try to move!” he said earnestly. “You’re hurt inside—I know because I hurt you,” he added, his voice going low and miserable.
“Oh, Stone…” Cassie sighed and cupped her partner’s cheek. He was wearing his Kindred uniform—black trousers with a satiny pale blue shirt that made his pale eyes stand out gorgeously. But when she looked into those eyes, Cassie saw they were suspiciously bright.
The sight shook her. She had never seen Stone cry over anything or anybody. He was as stoic as they came. But now his pain over having hurt her seemed to have overcome his emotional barriers and he looked close to breaking down.
“Stone,” she said again and kissed him gently on the cheek. “How about if you help me take that bath, Dr. Liv ordered? She said it would help with the pain and soreness.”
“Of course.” Stone nodded at once. “I believe the fresher should be just through here.”
He carried her through a bedroom that had a perfectly enormous bed with a champagne-colored spread on it and into a bathroom with what looked like a small swimming pool set into the floor. Scented steam was rising from it and there were stacks of fresh towels and some soap and sponges beside it. Someone had even thoughtfully provided a bottle of chilled white wine and two slender wine glasses.
“Wow, this is nice,” Cassie exclaimed. “This whole apartment is set up like a honeymoon suite.”
“I believe the suites aboard the Mother Ship were built to please the human females we Kindred wished to Claim as mates,” Stone remarked. “So it is not surprising that you like it.”
It was on the tip of Cassie’s tongue to ask if Stone wanted to Claim her as his mate, but shyness stopped her. What if he said “no,” or looked at her like she was crazy? And anyway, right now, she had to work on convincing her partner that he was not to blame for her injuries.
“This bathtub-pool thing looks perfect,” she remarked. “Um, would you mind helping me in?”
“Of course not. Let us get you undressed,” Stone said.
It wasn’t hard to do, since she was only wearing a Med Center gown. After all the times he had seen her naked on Bachanalius, Cassie was no longer ashamed of her body around her partner. But she did feel bad when he winced in shame as he saw the finger-shaped bruises he had left on her hips and thighs.
“Stone,” she said softly, when he would have simply held her hand to help her into the water. “Would…would you mind coming in with me?”
He frowned. “You wouldn’t mind that? The two of us…naked together?”
“Of course not!” Cassie said, frowning. “Do you think I’m afraid you’re going to attack me or something? Give me some credit, Stone—I know you better than that.”
“I just thought after what happened…” He shook his head. “I just don’t know if it’s a good idea.”
“Doctor Liv said I shouldn’t be left alone at any time for any reason,” Cassie reminded him. “Besides…” She put a hand on his chest. “Do you remember the way you, uh, took care of me after we filmed Forbidden One?”
“Of course I do.” His eyes softened. “It was my pleasure to do so.”
“Then…would you do it again?” Cassie asked softly. “Please, Stone? I could really use some TLC right about now.”