Chapter Nine

Dio remained on the bed, showing no sign of wanting to get up. Skye pushed the cap down on the lotion and stood from her kneeling spot on the mattress. The session went much better now that Dio worked with her to get better.

"What are you doing?" he mumbled with his face in the comforter.

"Don't move." She slipped off the bed to get the extra bag she'd brought in earlier. "Is it okay if I shower before I take off?"

Her stomach fluttered. All the ideas she and Mariah came up with to gain Dio's attention seemed silly now that she had to go through with the plan.

They'd talked and talked, and finally resorted to making a list of possible things she could do to make Dio see her as a beautiful woman.

He grunted. Used to the non-verbal sounds bikers use, she took that as his permission to use his shower.

The house had two bathrooms, but she wanted the one attached to the bedroom. Out of his sight, she closed the door halfway and started the shower.

She was nervous. For how well she knew Dio, she had no idea if he would flip out if he saw her completely naked.

The plan was to leave her shampoo on the counter and then ask him to get it for her. Simple, easy to execute, and he would have to look at her naked body. If he wasn't going to think of her as all grown up, she needed to make him realize that she was a woman. And what easier way than by flaunting her body?

She stripped off her clothes, turned on the shower, and set her shampoo and conditioner on the counter. Then, she stepped under the spray of water. Goosebumps covered her skin. She rubbed her arms and turned in a full circle, getting her whole body wet.

Despite giving Dio a massage and relaxing him, he told her not to let him sleep. He needed to go to the clubhouse soon.

It took her several minutes to calm down and stop shaking in anticipation. By that time, steam rolled out of the shower, and she feared the glass doors would fog over and Dio wouldn't see her.

Knowing she had to act now or blow her chance, she inhaled deeply. "Dio?" She waited a couple more seconds. "I left my shampoo and conditioner on the counter. Can you hand me the bottles?"

Her heart pounded in anticipation. Despite the warm water, her nipples were hard and sending pulses throughout her body.

Mariah swore that Dio seeing her naked would give him ideas.

She wasn't so sure it would work. Dio was such a trusting person. He was caring, reliable, and a protector. It would take a miracle for her to break through the relationship they'd built throughout the years for him to see that she now had feelings for him that broke through the barriers of their friendship.

"Dio?" she called.

Maybe he couldn't get up. Maybe he fell asleep. Maybe he stood, and his back hurt too much for him to come to her. God, what was she doing?

She grabbed the handle of the glass shower door to go see if he was okay when Dio walked backward into the bathroom, grabbed the two bottles off the counter, and continued to the shower where he reached above the door to pass her the shampoo and condition—all with his back to her.

"Thanks." Defeated, she took the bottles from him.

All hope of succeeding left her. He'd outsmarted her. Dio was too honorable. Of course, he wouldn't stride into the bathroom and ogle her the way she wanted him to.

Desperate to recoup her one chance with him, she dropped the bottles and shrieked. Dio turned. She met his gaze, but that gaze wandered away from her before she could figure out her next step.

"Careful." He approached the shower.

She looked in the direction that had gained his attention. The top of one of the bottles had broken, and the conditioner was splattered in the tub around her feet.

Dio held her wrist, keeping her from moving, and grabbed the showerhead. As she stood, watching her expensive conditioner circle the drain, she shook from the cool air invading the bathroom.

His first concern was to spray away something that could cause her to fall. He wasn't even aware that her pussy was two feet away from his face. But that was the only thing on her mind. It would be easy to wind her fingers in his hair and pull his mouth to her, all she had to do was widen her feet and—

"There's shampoo and conditioner on the shelf if you need more." He put the showerhead back in the bracket. "Be careful. The floor of the tub could still be slick."

He turned and walked out of the bathroom.

Then, he shut the door.

She fisted her hands and turned toward the shower. Her foot slipped, and she hit her elbow on the shower door handle. She clutched her arm, rubbing her crazy bone. The stupid plan to get Dio to notice her failed to work.