He guided her gently toward the bathtub, his hand resting at the small of her back, unhurriedly, as if there was nowhere in the world he needed to be except here, with her. The water shone softly under the golden lights, steam rising in delicate waves that curled around her like warm breath. The moment Bella lowered herself into the tub, the heat wrapped around her body, seeping into her skin, loosening the stiffness in her shoulders and the hidden knots in her spine. She exhaled slowly, her lashes fluttering shut for a moment, feeling the day, the doubts, the noise of everything else dissolve into the hush of water and scented air.
