Second Time Lucky (Club Decadence Book 5) Read Online Free PDF Page A

in.”
    She glanced up at him, appearing flustered and let out the nickname she’d given him with a shuddering breath. “Lucky.”
    Seeing her face crumple, he pulled the rest of the items from her arms and tossed them on a nearby chair, then gathered her close. “What’s wrong?”
    “There was a drive by shooting at my apartment building this afternoon.”
    “Shit! Why didn’t you call me? I would have come and gotten you.”
    “You wouldn’t have been able to get through. There were emergency vehicles everywhere. I saw a bunch of ATF and FBI agents in bullet proof vests, too. I was scared to death. After they interviewed me, I packed my stuff and hightailed it out of there. If walking four blocks with three heavy bags before flagging down a cab counts for hightailing it, that is.” She buried her face in his chest. “It reminded me so much of—”
    “Of what, Mara?”
    “Oh, nothing.”
    “We’ve discussed this. You know how I feel about hiding things.”
    Without meeting his gaze, she nodded. After a brief pause, she explained. “It reminded me of where I grew up, okay? It was not a nice place. I thought my apartment was a rung or two up the ladder from West—um, Westland. Either I misjudged it or it’s in a rapid decline.”
    As he held her, he didn’t mention her little slip, she was about to say something other than Westland. This woman, his woman, when it came to her family and her past was like an M2 Bradley armored vehicle, impenetrable. Other than the fact that she didn’t know her father and her mother was an alcoholic who struggled to put food on the table, she told him she didn’t want to talk about it because it was too painful. Seeing how upset she got when he brought it up, he had honored her request, but things kept coming to the surface making him wonder exactly how bad it was. If her apartment building with its drive by shooting was a rung or two up the ladder, he shuddered to think what her childhood home had been like.
    “Let’s get you something to drink and you can keep me company in the kitchen while I finish up dinner. Afterwards, we’ll get you unpacked and settled into my room. You are not going back to Hyattsville tonight, or ever. You’re moving in with me.”
    “Sean.”
    His hands slid along the sides of her neck while his thumbs slid beneath her chin, angling it up to him. “Don’t argue, nightingale, it’s happening. I’m not sending you home to a ghetto apartment with bullets flying everywhere and god knows what other crimes going on next door. I’ve fallen for you, Mara Westbrook, which means you’re mine and I take care of what’s mine.”
    Clearly stunned, she stared at him silently a moment. “Am I yours, Sean? We’ve never—”
    He knew what she was going to say. They hadn’t had sex yet. After six weeks of dating, he’d gotten to second base, though hadn’t pushed beyond. Partly because his leg was still healing and he didn’t want to come off like an inept putz when he finally made his move. The other part was because she seemed cautious. When he’d asked, she admitted to some bad experiences with men. She wanted to go slow, seeing intimacy as an important step and she wanted to be sure.
    “Even without sex, I feel closer to you than any woman I’ve ever been with. The physical side will come soon enough. For now, I need to know you’re safe.”
    Her lids dipped, shielding both her thoughts and her emotions. He wasn’t having any of that, which she’d learn soon enough. “Mara, look at me.”
    He waited until he saw her beautiful green eyes gazing up at him. In them, he read a mix of emotions: anxiety and desire, but most of all fear, whether from the shooting or the important step he was asking her to take, he wasn’t sure.
    “Trust me to take care of you, baby. When I say you’re mine, I’m not being an arrogant ass. Remember how I told you I have this need to be in charge, to protect and defend? That wasn’t me blowing smoke;