N. Walters - Alexandra's Legacy

Dutifully, she went to the door, locking it behind him. She moved to the window and peeked out from between the curtains, but couldn’t see him. He was already gone. The room seemed much larger and emptier without Joshua in it.

Restless energy filled her as she roamed around the room, checking it out. Turning back one corner of the sheets, she sighed with relief when she saw they were threadbare but clean. Leaving that, she headed toward the bathroom. It was small, with a shower stall, a sink and a toilet. All the comforts of home. Okay, not quite, but still it was better than nothing.

Alex suddenly felt sticky and uncomfortable. She really wanted a shower and what better time than when Joshua was gone. She wasn’t sure she’d be comfortable taking a shower with him in the other room. For some reason it seemed like a very intimate thing to do. She knew she should keep watch, but really, no one knew where they were. She’d take her weapons with her and lock the bathroom door. It was perfectly safe.

There were several large towels hanging over a rod tempting her. She yanked back the shower curtain and found a bar of soap still covered in its paper wrapper. She bit her lower lip, weighing being clean against Joshua’s anger with her when he got back and realized she’d made herself vulnerable while he was gone. There was no contest. No one knew where they were and the beckoning call of the shower was too great to ignore.

Going back into the main room, she removed her leather jacket and hung it on one of the three wire hangers that were soldered to the rod in the closet. She extracted her knives from her boots and the gun from the pocket of her jacket. Sitting on the side of the bed, she lay them beside her as she unlaced her short boots, sliding them off her feet. She wished she had clean clothes, but there was no help for it she supposed. Still, it would be better to be clean beneath them.

Grabbing her weapons, she went into the bathroom, shutting and locking the door behind her. Setting them on the edge of the sink, she began to strip off her clothing. Her sweatshirt came first. She held it up by two fingers, disgusted with the smell. She’d sweat a lot walking in the heat all day and at the club tonight, not to mention she’d been through a few filthy alleyways and hidden in a dirty abandoned building. Her bra followed and she hung it carefully over the doorknob. Unfastening her jeans, she shimmied out of them and her underwear. Yanking off her socks, she tossed them aside before turning on the taps.

She made quick work of unwrapping the soap as she waited for the water to heat. Once it was at a comfortable level, she stepped into the shower stall. Who knew how long the hot water would last?

The spray hit her body and she sighed with pleasure as she ducked her head beneath the water. What she really wanted was a long soak in her clawfoot bathtub at home. It was an antique she’d found in a consignment store. She’d refinished the chipped enamel and installed it with her father’s help. The tub was deep and she loved to slide into its depths when it was filled with bubbles and relax after a hard day’s work. It was one of the few luxuries she allowed herself.

Picking up the plain bar of white soap, she ran it over her arms and legs, but was unable to work up more than a few small bubbles. Her breasts ached and her core throbbed, but she ignored the discomfort. As tempting as it was to touch her body, she refrained. That would give her temporary relief, but would make her hornier in the long run.

For some reason, when Joshua had touched her it had felt different, had quieted some of the hormones raging through her system. At least temporarily.

Sighing, she scrubbed the soap over her torso, gritting her teeth when she washed her breasts. Her nipples were tight and red, begging to be stroked. Washing between her legs was a special kind of torture. The folds of her sex were hot and slick before the water even touched them. She groaned as her inner muscles tightened. Swaying, she groped for the wall, steadying herself as the wave of longing passed over her.

Alex pushed away from the wall and finished washing. Her feet were red, with several raw patches at her ankles and on the sides. Her boots weren’t made for walking long distances like she had today, but there was nothing to be done about it.

She stepped out from under the spray long enough to rub the soap over her scalp. It took a while to get any kind of lather, but she persevered, rubbing her scalp vigorously. When she felt clean, she stepped beneath the quickly cooling spray, letting it wash all the soap from her hair and her body.

Knowing she shouldn’t linger, she turned off both taps and grabbed one of the towels. She dried her body before wrapping it around herself and tucking the end over her breasts. Seeing no help for it, she reluctantly tugged her socks back on, being careful not to hit the sore spots. They might be dirty, but they were better than walking barefoot on the carpet.

She debated washing her underwear, but decided against it. If they had to make a run for it in the dead of night she wanted her underwear. Stupid as it sounded, she felt more vulnerable without them. Grabbing her panties, she tugged them on. She scooped up the rest of her clothing in one hand, her weapons in the other, and opened the bathroom door.

The steam followed her into the bedroom. She was still tired, but at least she felt better.

A metallic sound reached her ears just as she noticed the handle of the outside door begin to turn. Someone was at the door.

Dropping her clothing and the knives, she gripped the gun in both hands, aiming straight for the door. Her heart pounded, but her hands were steady as she faced the latest threat.

The lock clicked and the door began to move inward. Alex’s finger tightened on the trigger. The door opened wider. Alex bit her bottom lip and waited. She’d only get one good shot.

A flat, square box came into her line of vision before the man did. Joshua looked as stunned as she was sure she must, freezing just inside the door. “Alex?”

She shuddered, lowering the gun. He shoved the door closed with his foot as he set a bag and the pizza box on the table. Calmly, he locked the door. How dare he be nonchalant about this. “I could have shot you!”

Joshua shrugged, his massive shoulders moving slowly up and down. “I knocked and called out. I just assumed you’d heard me.”

“I was in the bathroom.”

“So I see.” He narrowed his eyes as he scanned her bare shoulders, his gaze dipping down between her breasts where the towel was anchored. His gaze continued downward over her torso and across her bare legs, all the way to her sock-clad feet. She was perfectly covered, but somehow his stare left her feeling as if she were naked before him. She felt slightly breathless and achy. Her panties were getting damper by the second and it had nothing to do with the moisture left over by her shower.

“I was perfectly all right.” Even to her own ears, her voice sounded breathy, almost flirty. She cleared her throat. “I had the gun next to me the whole time.”

“Nothing to be done about it now.” He turned away and opened the bag. Perversely, the fact that he wasn’t outwardly annoyed with her made her angry. She felt as if she’d let him down in some way. She’d much rather deal with his anger than have him disappointed with her.

“Look, I wasn’t stupid about it. I took precautions.” Great, now she sounded like a belligerent child when what she wanted to sound like was the mature, sensible woman she was.

“I would have preferred you’d waited, Alex. Or if I’d known you wanted a shower that badly, I could have gotten our food afterwards. I just don’t like the idea of you being that vulnerable is all.”