Leo did not rush, not for a second. Every touch felt deliberate, every motion slow and patient, and Bella felt taken care of in a way she had never known before, as if he was intent on washing away every ounce of exhaustion she carried, every tense muscle, every shiver. It was strange and beautiful all at once, how a man who looked fierce enough to shatter steel could hold her so delicately that she felt like she might drift asleep in his arms.
When the bath was over and the warm water settled behind them like a sigh, Leo lifted Bella out with the same gentle care he had shown from the beginning. Her body was limp from exhaustion, her cheek resting against his shoulder as he wrapped her in a fluffy white towel. He dried her slowly, lovingly, absorbing every drop of water from her skin with patient strokes, making sure she did not feel a chill. Each time she blinked sleepily, he smiled as if the sight alone softened something inside him.
