“Did I mention you were gone six days?” He dropped his trousers.
“You nearly went crazy,” she murmured, eying the bulge in his underwear.
“Exactly. I can face the devil if I have to, but I can’t face living without you.” He yanked off his underwear.
Jia bit her lip, catching a glimpse of his aroused state before he cannonballed into the sunken tub. She sat up to avoid having a tsunami go over her head.
He reached for her, then blinked when she set a bar of soap and a washcloth in his hands. “What’s this?”
“It’s called a bath, cowboy. Wash yourself. And turn around so I can scrub your back.”
“Then I can’t see you,” he muttered, but he turned around and started soaping himself up.
“You can feel me.” She lathered up her hands, then rubbed them up and down the sculpted contours of his back. “Do you know you’re beautiful?”
He snorted. “Are you stealing my lines?”
“It’s true.” She leaned forward till her breasts brushed against his back, then kissed the back of his neck.
“Okay.” He tossed his bar of soap across the room. “I’m clean enough.” He turned around and grabbed her. “Did I tell you how much I missed you?”
“Yes.”
He dragged a finger across her lips. “I’m not sure you grasp the full extent of how much I suffered.”
“Oh. Poor baby.”
“I thought I’d never see your beautiful face again.” He planted kisses across her cheeks and nose.
“I thought I’d never kiss these lips again.” He molded his mouth against hers and slipped his tongue inside.
With a moan, she stroked his tongue with her own.
He nuzzled her neck. “Meow.”
She grinned. “What was that?”
“I’ve decided to learn tiger language. Did you understand me?”
“Hmm.” She ran her hands through his wet hair. “I believe you said that you missed me. And nearly went crazy.”
“Exactly. See how well I’m learning your language?” He flicked his tongue over her ear and whispered, “Rawr.”
She giggled.
“Did you understand that?”
“I believe so.” She slid her hand down his abdomen until she encountered his erection. “Ah, I was correct.”
He moaned when she curled her hand around him and squeezed. “Good God, we communicate well.”
“Mmm.” She gave him a tug.
“I have something to show you.”
“I’ve already found it.”
He chuckled. “Not here.”
Everything went black, and then she found herself in a dark place. Dark but familiar. The bat cave.
She smiled when he set her on the bed. “Now I really feel like I’m home.”
He stretched out beside her and cupped her breast with his hand. “I love you, Jia.”
She wrapped her arms around him. “Make love to me.”
He scoffed. “Like I need to be told.”
She swatted him, then gasped with pleasure as he drew her nipple into his mouth. Desire flooded her, and her core ached for him.
When he reached between her legs, she groaned, pressing herself against his hand. “Take me.”
“Patience.” He stroked her harder and faster till she was writhing against him. “Did I tell you how much I missed you?”
“Yes!” Tension mounted inside her till she thought she would scream. “You—you nearly went . . . crazy!” Her climax hit hard.
While she was still throbbing, he moved between her legs and plunged inside her.
“You’re mine, Jia.” He moved inside her. “My princess. My tigress. My love.” With a shout, he climaxed and triggered another one for her.
They lay together in the dark while their hearts and breathing slowly returned to normal.
“I was going to show you something.” He rose from the bed, and soon an oil lamp illuminated the cave.
She sat up in bed and noticed her bracelets on the table. He must have removed them from her backpack. “You took my cuffs out.”
“Yes.” He touched one of them. “They reminded me of you. I even talked to them like you were here.” He picked up a small box and brought it back to the bed. “This is for you. Well, us.”
She opened the box and found three rings. Two plain golden bands and one golden one embedded with small diamonds and topped with a big one. Her mouth dropped open.
“If you don’t like them, I can take them back. Let you pick them out.”
“Th-they’re beautiful.” They must have cost him a fortune. She wondered briefly how he could afford it, but then he knelt beside the bed.
“Will you marry me?”
For a few seconds, she considered telling him that she didn’t need fancy things, she needed only him. She closed the box.
His face grew pale.
Oh, no, she was scaring him. “Will you put my ring on?” she asked.
A grin burst across his face. “Of course.” He opened the box and pulled out the engagement ring. “Then you’re saying yes?”
“Of course.” Her heart thudded as he slid the ring onto her left hand. She was getting married. To Russell.
He sat on the bed beside her. “After you went to the bathhouse, I talked to Rajiv. He agreed to sell me some land just east of Tiger Town. We can build a house there, and you’ll never be far from your family and friends.”