Monster: Made & Broken (A Mafia Bad Boy Romance) Read Online Free PDF Page B

traces of his vulnerability.
    “ Sorry. Go back to sleep.”
    It was easy to see through his gruff tone—he had not meant for me to see him like this.
    But I had. And even though I’d known Marcus for less than twelve hours, I couldn’t bear the thought of him hurting.
    “ Do you want to talk about it?”
    “ No.”
    I rolled up over on one elbow and let my other hand rest against his chest. His heart was still beating much faster than it should. “Okay. It sounded like it was a really awful dream, though.”
    No answer.
    I bit the inside of my cheek. It was no surprise that Marcus Steel had issues expressing his emotions. A man didn’t develop the kind of terrifying presence he possessed by being all warm and open about what haunted him at night.
    “ Come here,” I said, and when he lowered his hands to look at me, I lay back down and opened my arms.
    To my surprise, he moved without objection, slipping into my embrace. The soft exhale of his breath as he rested his face on my shoulder blew across my right breast, raising the nipple.
    His response was to stroke the underside of that breast and let a thumb graze the erect nipple up top. I shuddered in response, well-used muscles clenching weakly. I suppressed a wince. Yeah, I wasn’t ready for that kind of comfort just yet.
    Instead, I remembered how my mother used to comfort me when I’d had a bad dream, and stroking his naked back, I began humming. It was an old nursery rhyme, and for a moment I felt a bit silly soothing a grown man like this—but Marcus simply sighed, muscles relaxing and his hand on my breast stilling. So when the first melody was done, I started a new one, this time singing along.
    I sang for what felt like the better part of half an hour until Marcus’ breathing turned deep and steady, his body going limp against mine.
    I looked down at the sleeping man in my arms as my voice died down. It wasn’t until then that I realized I’d lost my fear for him somewhere between orgasms last night. Instead of someone inherently dangerous, I saw a man who’d locked away all his emotions until they exploded like they had when I’d accidentally hurt him. The darkness in him wasn’t his—it was whatever he had locked up inside, whatever had made him withdraw into himself to the point he’d become completely unapproachable. Frightening in his solitude.
    But beneath the surface, beneath the iron locks, I could sense the real Marcus Steel. And what lay underneath was a man I could see myself falling for all too easily. There had only been glimmers, but right from the start my body had recognized what my mind was finally coming to accept.
    I wanted more of him than just one night. A lot more.
    I stroked my fingers through his black strands, relishing the pressure of his body against mine as I breathed in the scent of Marcus and our sex.
    Too bad I was here on a job, and that if and when he found out, I better hope he never saw me again.
    I had no idea what Marcus did for a living, but based on his luxurious flat and that he was in any way mixed up with Gerald Brigs, he was obviously very capable of inflicting pain if he needed to.
    And the thief who seduced him to steal from him…? I had a distinct sense I’d fall into the category of “ needed to.”
    Suppressing the ache in my heart, I eased out from underneath Marcus’ heavy body, doing my best not to wake him.
    He groaned in protest when I slipped free, and I gave his face a quick glance to ensure he wasn’t waking before I rolled all the way out of bed and let myself out of the bedroom.
    I walked naked through the apartment to fetch my purse from the kitchen counter and then went hunting for wherever he kept his safe.
    It didn’t take me long. The first door I opened turned out to be his office, and on the wall nearest his desk a safe was built into the concrete. It wasn’t even hidden behind a painting, as I’d somewhat expected it to be. Perhaps I watched too many detective shows.
    I