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shower for her. “The faucet’s temperamental,” he explained. “I’m going to shower in the other bathroom. Don’t worry about running out of hot water. We’ve got a big heater, so take your time. I’ll meet you in the kitchen when you’re done.”
    She nodded and anxiously watched him walk away. She may have come to save his life, but Ryan was the only thing familiar to her in this world. As he walked down the hall, she had to force herself not to call him back.
    She showered quickly—an experience she vowed to savor next time—and dressed in the jeans and shirt Ryan had given her, wincing as her sore muscles protested. It felt very intimate, wearing his clothes . . . feeling the brush of them against her skin. It worried her, how much she liked it. Carefully she tucked the penny key chain into her pocket. It might not have been intended as a gift, but she could pretend.
    The bathroom mirror bounced back a steamy reflection of a young woman with dark hair and pale skin. A fringe of black lashes framed blue eyes, making the color seem brilliant. Bangs brushed her brows.
    It was hard to evaluate herself, but Ryan couldn’t keep his eyes off her. That had to be a good thing. It would certainly make it easier to win him over.
    She hurried back to his room and waited for him to return. No way was she up to facing Ruby on her own. Ryan stepped in a few minutes later, stopping abruptly when he saw her perched on his bed. He wore a towel at his hips and nothing else. For a moment Sabelle could only gape. Fully clothed in the trappings of civilization, Ryan Love made her heart stutter and skip, but half naked and dripping wet he took her breath away.
    Water made a slow and lazy trail from his wet hair to his shoulders, meandering through the light dusting of hair on his bare chest, down to the point where the towel was cinched. She stared with fascination at the play of light on his flesh, the smooth contours and intriguing slope of muscle and bone. An ugly bruise spread up from his ribs. Nicks and cuts and a few burns marred his arms and shoulders, but it was the trail of brown hair that led from his flat belly to beneath the towel that caught her attention for a long, drawn-out moment.
    She jerked her gaze back up to find him watching her with those incredible green eyes. The message she read in them sparked another chain reaction she couldn’t control.
    He came closer, tossed his dirty clothes on top of the pile she’d made with hers in the corner, and opened his pack. He pulled out the pair of dark blue briefs she’d stuffed in it and faced Sabelle.
    â€œWhy don’t you have tattoos?” she blurted. “Other men do.”
    â€œI’m not other men.”
    Obviously. “You just seem like the kind of man who would.”
    â€œWhy is that?”
    She shrugged, as if all that bare skin didn’t affect her at all. “You like to fight. You seem . . . dangerous,” she said, feeling her face heat up.
    He snorted. “Guess you got me all figured out, don’t you?”
    â€œYou think I’m wrong?”
    â€œI wouldn’t dare.”
    She narrowed her eyes at him as she tried to see through the layers of that comment.
    â€œI’m going to need to get dressed,” he said.
    She nodded.
    â€œDoes that mean you want to watch?”
    His question sank below her dazed senses and blossomed into something as combustible as the explosions they’d barely escaped. She jumped to her feet only to find herself standing too close to Ryan. He smelled clean and warm and male. She took a deep breath. Very male. Her gaze traveled up to his chin and the intriguing shadow that covered it. She curled her fingers into her palms as she imagined touching it. Tasting it.
    â€œWhat are you doing, Sabelle?” he asked in that deep, honeyed voice.
    Her gaze shifted to his mouth and the full lips that had formed the words.