The loneliness following her around since she'd first arrived hadn't disappeared completely, but here, wrapped in his arms, a smile tugging at his lips, Kagome didn't feel so alone.
"Mother and Shippou have been concerned about your well-being," he said, fingers drawing soothing circles on her back.
"They know I'm safe with you," she replied.
"Indeed."
She stretched, her body pressing against him. "I should probably bathe."
He nodded, raising an eyebrow when he went to remove his arm, but she rolled over, half draped across his chest.
"Care to join me?" She shivered at the look in his eyes, the sensation a delicious reprieve from the shadow that had been following her. "I think the lighting in the bathhouse will be better to count your stripes with."