Bought by the Puma (Studly Shifters Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

even getting a scratch from the ones who would want her dead left a nasty taste in Simon's mouth. His hands clenched. "I won't let it happen."
    And he wouldn't. Whitney wasn't going to be hurt on his watch.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 4: The Ex
     
    Whitney saw the lights of a car flash across the ceiling. Sitting up on the couch, she went over to the window and peered through the curtains. Simon's car had pulled up outside and he was climbing out.
    Whitney ducked away as Simon turned towards the cottage and ran up the stairs to the bedroom. She had been lying on the couch, hugging a cushion watching more trash TV and craving ice cream to try and make her feel better. Even changing into her favourite zebra-print pyjamas didn't improve her mood.
    The words Simon had directed at her before he left still hurt. Badly.
    She jumped into the bed and kept her back on the stairs, burrowing deep into the duvet. She heard the door open and close before footsteps came up the stairs. Whitney shut her eyes tight and tried not to move.
    "Whitney?"
    Whitney didn't move, hoping he would go away. She wasn't in the mood to talk.
    Her mother had told her once that the ones who should be arrested for being too handsome were the nastier ones. She had been referring to Whitney's father. And she was right with Simon.
    She felt the bed dip as Simon sat down.
    "I know you're not asleep. I saw you at the window just now." He sighed. "We need to talk."
    "There's nothing to talk about."
    "Whitney, please."
    Maybe it was the pain in his voice. Maybe it was the fact he said please. But Whitney found herself slowly rolling over and staring up at Simon. His face was half in the shadows but the expression in his eyes had Whitney's heart aching.
    Simon reached out and brushed a thumb delicately across her wet cheek.
    "I'm sorry, I made you cry."
    Whitney sniffed and swiped at her eyes.
    "I didn't cry." She lied.
    "Don't lie to me, sweetheart."
    The term of endearment had Whitney staring. Had someone kidnapped this man and replaced him with a clone? This one seemed to be different to the one who had left that morning.
    Simon dropped his hand away from her and looked away, closing his eyes.
    "I'm sorry, I said what I said. But my past is my business. I don't know why I even keep that picture. That's a chunk of my life I want to forget."
    Whitney sat up. She understood about wanting to forget things about what happened before today; there were plenty of things in her life she wanted to forget. She pulled the duvet to her breasts. Even dressed in her own pyjamas, she felt somewhat exposed to Simon.
    "Who was she?" She asked quietly.
    "My ex Natalya." Simon said bitterly. "We were together for three years. She said she loved me. I was ready to ask her to marry me." His jaw tightened. "Then, I caught her in bed with my best friend. So I cut both of them out of my life."
    Whitney wanted to reach out and lean on him, give him some comfort. But, she didn't know how Simon would react so she kept her distance.
    "So trust is a big issue for you."
    "It always has." Simon shook his head and rubbed a hand over his face. "I should've thrown that photo out a long time ago. It only brought me pain whenever I looked at it."
    Whitney understood that. Everyone clung onto something in the past even if it hurt them. She was always doing that.
    Her opinion of Simon changed. He hadn't done it with intentional malice. She touched his hand.
    "You can trust me, Simon." She said quietly. "I'm a very trustworthy person."
    Simon grunted and glanced up at her.
    "No disrespect to you, honey, but I don't trust people in the writing business. They're always after something. And, it's very hard to gain my trust at all."
    "I can imagine." Whitney grunted. She lifted her chin at him. "But I'm determined to get it."
    Simon stared at her. Whitney could see his thoughts going round and round in his head. His eyes glowed golden for a brief moment before disappearing.