Elena’s POV
The hot shower felt like heaven.
Steam curled around Dennis’s tiny bathroom as water poured over me, washing away the cold of the rain. I braced my hands on the tiled wall, eyes closing, willing my body to forget the way I shook when Ash called me disposable.
Disposable. The word echoed. I wanted to scream.
By the time I stepped out, wrapped in a towel Dennis had handed me, I almost felt human again. My clothes were tumbling in his dryer. He’d even left out one of his clean hoodies and a pair of sweatpants for me. Too big, but soft.
Safe.
I tugged the hoodie over my head, inhaling the faint scent of detergent and cedarwood. When I padded out into the living room, Dennis was waiting on the couch, hair still damp from the rain, a mug of tea in his hands.
“F
