Scars (Marked #2.5) Read Online Free PDF Page A

Tattoos from his father. The shop had been a godsend for me, an oasis from the fucked-up reality my world was. In my late teens and early twenties, it was where I felt safe. First place I was accepted in a long time.
    Surrounded by people who loved, and found, beauty in body modification as much as I did. No judgment. Acceptance and understanding was given without any questions. Well, everyone but Mrs. Cox. The old bat had always disliked me for some reason. Was it jealousy over her husband and son’s attention toward me?   Who knows, and I never gave a shit either.
    Her distaste toward me was, in a sense, familiar territory at first. With everyone else, I waited for the other shoe to drop, but with her, I always knew where I stood. Short and clipped greetings were normal—comforting in a sense, as sad as that sounded.
    I’d been hanging around for only a few weeks at the shop when he walked in.
    Tall—muscular, even then—handsome, and with the warmest eyes I’d ever seen. The first thing I noticed about him was that sexy boyish smile he wore while greeting everyone in the lobby. It reached his eyes, made them crinkle at the corners as he joked with the owner.
    An owner that took one look at me and made me feel like family. He would never know how much he changed my very sad existence. How I found my purpose in life at a time when all I wanted was an out. To end my own misery.
    “Cool ink,” the tatted cutie I’d been eyeing said before taking a seat across from me. Fuck, he smelled good. His scent infiltrated my every pore and made me tremble. What the fuck? “I’m Talan, by the way, that jerk over there’s son.”
    My eyes followed his toward the person he was pointing at and was shocked to be greeted by the owner’s smirk. Well, shit. “Thanks,” I managed to stammer out while doing something I’ve never done before…I blushed. “It’s all the jerk’s work.”
    This caused him to laugh, a rich sound that warmed me from the inside out. Made me feel alive.
    “Are you getting anything done today?” His lip curled up at the corner, a devilish fucking smile that disarmed me. It warned me of all the dangers this one man could represent if I fell for his charms. I swallowed hard. My palms were sweaty as the butterflies in my stomach fluttered wildly.
    Shaking my head, I let out a nervous giggle. “Nope, just hanging out until my friend finishes his last session. All that’s left is some coloring.”
    His eyes turned toward the man in his dad’s chair, and then he frowned. “Boyfriend or friend?” he hedged, and it was my turn to smirk cockily. Maybe he found me as attractive as I found him?
    “Nothing more than a friend, Talan.” I liked the way his name rolled off my tongue. “Why do you ask?”
    “No reason.” Standing up from his chair, Talan walked around the counter and retrieved a bottle of water from what I assumed was a small fridge. “You look like a cool chick,” he said before twisting the top off the bottle and taking a small sip. “I’m not in the mood to have ‘Bubba’ over there starting shit because I’m talking to his girl.”
    “Talking?” I cooed and fluttered my lashes in a ridiculous way. It did its job and broke the sudden tension between us.
    “Talking.” Talan laughed and tossed me a bottle of water, which I caught mid-air. Thank God for the distraction of the bottle. Being in the same space as this man was garnering reactions from me I wasn’t accustomed to.
    Mouth dry and hands fidgeting to reach out and pull him closer, the simple offering was the perfect diversion I needed and I used it, taking a long pull of water while trying to gather my thoughts and not make a fool out of myself.
    For the first time in a long time, I wanted something, and I’ll be damned if I lost him.
    No man had ever paid me so much attention before. It was always the same line:
    I love your tattoos.
    Damn, you’re sexy.
    Let me fuck you.
    Instead, Talan made me laugh that