JENNIE

The man behind the desk gives Lisa the key to our room with a smile that Lisa does not return. I try my best to offer one to make up for it, but it comes off as forced and awkward, and the desk clerk looks away quickly.

In silence, we walk through the lobby to find the room. The hallway is long and narrow; religious paintings line the cream-colored walls, a handsome angel kneeling before a maiden in one, two lovers embracing in another. I shudder when my eyes drag across the last painting, meeting the black eyes of Lucifer himself right outside of our assigned room. I'm stuck staring into the empty eyes as I hurry behind Lisa into the room and flip the light switch, illuminating the dark space. She tosses my bag onto a wingback chair that sits in a corner and drops the suitcase by the door next to where I'm standing.

"I'm taking a shower," she says quietly. Without looking back, she walks into the bathroom and closes the door behind her.

I want to follow her, but I'm conflicted. I don't want to push her or upset her any more than she already is, but at the same time I want to make sure she's okay and I don't want her to wallow in this—not alone, at least.

I pull my shoes off, then my jeans and Lisa's shirt, and follow her into the small bathroom, completely naked. When I push the door open, she doesn't turn around. Steam has already begun to billow through the small space, filling it, covering Lisa's naked body with a cloud of vapor. Her tattoos peek through, the black ink visible through the steam, drawing me toward her.

I step over the pile of her discarded clothes and stand behind her, keeping more than a foot of distance between us.

"I don't need you to—" Lisa begins, her voice flat.

"I know," I interrupt her. I know she's angry, hurt, and she's beginning to slip back behind the wall that I've fought so hard to demolish. She's been controlling her anger so well that I could kill Chit and Christian both for making her lose it that way.

Surprised by the dark direction my thoughts have taken, I shake them away.

Without another word, she draws back the shower curtain and steps into the cascading water. I take a breath, summoning every ounce of confidence I can muster, and step into the shower behind her. The water is scalding, barely tolerable, and I hide behind Lisa to avoid it. She must notice my discomfort, because she adjusts the water temperature.

I grab the small complimentary bottle of soap and squeeze it onto a cloth and carefully bring it to Lisa's back. She finches and tries to move forward, but I follow her, stepping closer.

"You don't have to talk to me, but I know you need me to be here right now." My voice is almost a whisper, lost between Lisa's deep breaths and the falling water.

Silent and still, she doesn't move as I brush the cloth across the letters etched into her skin. My tattoo.

Lisa turns to face me, allowing me to clean her chest now, her eyes studying every stroke of the cloth. I feel the anger radiating from of her, mixing with the clouds of hot vapor, and her eyes are burning into me. She looks as if she's going to explode. Before I can blink, both of her hands are pressed against my jaw, cupping my neck on either side. Her mouth desperately collides against mine, and my lips part involuntarily under the rough contact. There is nothing gentle, nothing soft about her touch. My tongue meets her, and I pull her bottom lip between my teeth, gently tugging, avoiding her wound. She groans and presses me against the wet tile.

I hear myself whimper when she pulls her mouth from mine, but she quickly reestablishes contact and peppers rough kisses down the column of my neck and across my chest, then cups my breasts, rolling them beneath her busted and bruised hands while her mouth works back and forth, licking, sucking, biting. I roll my head back against the tile and bury my fingers in her hair, tugging the way I know she loves.

Without warning, she lowers her body even further, resting on her knees under the spraying water, and for a fleeting moment I'm reminded of something vague. But then she touches me again, and I just can't remember what it is.