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  She worried the edge of her sleeves. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you. Nightmares.”

  “Stop apologizing. I’m asking if you are doing okay. I didn’t mention it to elicit an apology from you.” He took a deep breath and she was momentarily distracted by his chest and the memories she had of being curled up against it. “Shelly Marie?”

  “Huh?”

  “Is there something I can do to help you sleep better?”

  I never had a problem sleeping after we spent hours in bed together. You flat out wore me out. Not trusting her ability to keep those words inside, she kept her mouth clamped shut and merely shook her head.

  “You know you can always come talk to me if you think that will help you get through the nightmare.”

  “I’m not going to wake you up because I have issues.”

  His eyes darkened. “You don’t have issues, Pix. You have nightmares, they happen. Stop putting yourself down. This isn’t anything you did to yourself.” He gripped her arm, not hurting but firm enough she couldn’t pull away. “You need to start believing that.”

  I can’t, it is my fault. I’m the one who married him. She gave him a tremulous smile. “I’ll be okay,” she lied through her teeth. “Besides, I don’t want to wake you if you’re sleeping. One of us should get some rest. Especially since I’m counting on you to keep me safe.”

  His touch changed even though he didn’t move. Suddenly, she swore heat poured from his palm to her arm. He dipped his head closer to her.

  “I will keep you safe, Pix. The only way that fucker will get to you is by getting through me. And I’m not as soft and cuddly as my reputation says.”

  She snorted, unable to stop it. “I’ve never heard a single person call you soft or cuddly, Adam. You’re the hardest of the brothers.”

  “Come eat,” his mother called out.

  He never lowered his gaze from where it’d locked onto hers. “Exactly. He ain’t getting to you.”

  A few inches closer and she had to force herself not to push up on her toes and press their mouths back together. Lord, she’d missed his kisses. They made her feel like she was the only person on earth. Or at least in his world.

  “Understood,” she whispered.

  “Good.” Humor snuck back in and swirled with heated, blatant passion. “Although, I have zero issue with you coming into my bedroom at any time of the day or night to wake me. So come on over, I’m just up the hall. I promise I’ll give you something else to think about for the night.” He kissed her lightly on the lips. “Or day. Let’s eat before Mom sends out a search party for us.” He strode off, leaving her there.

  Christ, she wanted to bend at the waist, place her hands on her thighs and pant as if she’d just run a marathon. Wicked. That was the only word that popped into her mind. She wanted to take him up on that, so much. She had no doubt he’d make her feel beautiful again and desirable. Something since the attack she’d not remotely felt. But, the mere prospect of undressing in front of him with all her scars freaked her out. What if he found her repulsive?

  I have got to stop being so damn shallow. Adam stopped and looked back at her. She stored his suggestion in a box—not one in the depths of her mind but up close where she could access it quickly—and went to join them in the kitchen.

  By the afternoon, she watched Wild and his wife leave for a concert Alyse wanted to attend. So they’d dropped off her nephew for Adam to watch. Surprised Adam agreed to watch him, she’d thought perhaps Rhodi and Karen would have done so first, and she wondered what the afternoon was going to bring.

  “So, let’s talk about this project you have to do for school, Ricki.”

  “We’re making a volcano. Dad said he would help but I need to practice before I get back home so I know what I’m doing. Don’t tell him but I don’t know how much help he’s going to be.”

  Adam smiled and crouched before him. “I happen to know someone who can help you out with this dilemma.”

  Her heart clenched at the look on the boy’s face. Her hand drifted down to her belly and sorrow filled her. No children for me. Bastard took that from me, too. She pushed the memory away and stayed in the here and now.

  “Who?”

  Adam pointed at her. “Shelly Marie. She knows all about chemistry. And I bet if you ask her really nice, she’d help you out with your volcano.” Adam captured her gaze. “She’s the smartest person I know. I’m sure it’s been a while since she’s made something blow up in a kitchen.”

  She accepted what he was doing had a dual purpose. Helping out his nephew and her at the same time. Now the babysitting gig made sense.

  Ricki walked to her. “Ms. Shelly Marie?”

  She smiled at him. “Yes, Ricki? What can I do for you?”

  “Uncle Adam said you might help me make a volcano.”

  More nails in the palms of her hands to keep from reaching out and stroking his black hair, she nodded. “I would love to. Let’s go mess up your uncle’s clean kitchen.”

  His smile had her eyes burning with tears. Tears she refused to shed.

  αβ

  Adam propped one shoulder against the oak frame of the kitchen’s entryway. A small grin lifted the corner of his mouth while he observed the goings on within his once pristine kitchen. Despite the long sleeves covering her scars, her smile was as real as he’d seen since she’d arrived back in his life. Which made it well worth the mess.

  Her mass of red curls sat piled on her head, the haphazard knot not a concern at all. Her complete focus was on Ricki and the third volcano they were erupting. How she’d made them so quickly he couldn’t even begin to explain.

  One had been orangey-red, one a bluish purple and the third…well, he wasn’t sure yet. He was anxious to find out though. Their heads were together and she handed Ricki a cylindrical object.

  “Really?” he asked, doubt on his face. “All that from this little thing?”

  She nodded. “Drop it in there. You’ll see.”

  Now Adam was really intrigued. He stayed there aware this wasn’t a time he should interfere. No matter how much he wanted to be part of it all. Adam found himself leaning forward slightly in anticipation. He flicked his gaze from the volcano to Shelly Marie. Her green eyes burned with a fire he recalled from when she spoke about her work. There was the passion he’d missed.

  How the hell has she not been in this field? She loves it.

  A wave of determination hit him and he swore to himself she’d be able to come from the shadows and get back to her lab. The volcano rumbled and he looked at it in time to see the lave shoot up. This time it changed colors in five second intervals. For the thirty seconds it flashed through six colors.

  Damn.

  “You’re the best, Ms. Shelly Marie. Thank you. Can I do that one at school? No one else will be able to have this one. I want to do this one. Can I? Please?”

  “I’ll only give you this one if you can explain it to your class which means to me beforehand.”

  Ricki pursed his lips, eyes moving to the trio of volcanoes. “Deal. I’ll go get the stuff so we can study.” He scampered off only to stop and run back to her. Without a moment’s hesitation, he wrapped his arms around her, hugging tight.

  Adam met her gaze and noticed the sheen from the tears she fought to keep from slipping free. Ricki released her and dashed by him with a grin wider than the Grand Canyon.

  Striding up to her, he cupped her face with one hand. “Crying doesn’t mean you’re weak, Pix.”

  The first tear leaked over and he swiped it away with his thumb.

  “I know, but I also don’t need to burden a young boy with my issues. He’s happy, I’d rather keep him that way.”

  She was hiding something. Reaching to the knot on her head, he released the hair then put it back up. He loved touching her silken waves.

  Love having them on my pillow or chest as well. Not so bad on my thighs as she’s—

  He cleared his throat. “Well, he’s showing a hell of a lot m
ore interest in chemistry than I ever did.” He gave her a heated onceover. “Of course, if my teacher looked like you do, I’dda paid a lot more attention.”

  While still sad, her laugh escaped. “No. you wouldn’t have. You’d try to find a girl to flirt with and cheat off of.”

  He grinned. “That worked as well.” He leaned closer. “Would you let me flirt with you to get my homework done?”

  “You wouldn’t have looked at me twice in school. Big glasses and braces. I wasn’t what the jocks wanted to be seen with.”

  He backed her up until the counter prevented her from going anywhere else. Bracing his arms on either side of her, he dipped his head and flicked his tongue along the whorl of her ear. “I don’t know, I bet we’d have a lot of fun in the library, sitting in a dark corner.”

  Her tiny body trembled slightly and a whimper escaped. He nipped her ear before laving the bite away.

  “I’ve missed you in my arms, Pix. And in my bed.”

  She didn’t drop her gaze or look away. “I’ve missed you too, Adam. But we have a young boy here that doesn’t need that kind of education.”

  His cock thickened at her words. “Later then.”

  She dragged her index finger along the seam of his lips. “Definitely.”

  Ricki bounded back in the room and Adam reluctantly stepped away from the woman he wanted to have his way with more than anything.

  His body burned by the time Wild and Alyse came to pick Ricki up. Wild stood beside him as Ricki, Alyse, and Shelly Marie spoke over by the table.

  “Thanks for allowing him to hang out today, Wild.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “It did her a lot of good to have a reason to work on some chemistry things. Even if it was for an elementary school project.”

  “I’m never going to turn down alone time with my wife,” his brother retorted. “How is she doing?”

  “It’s not easy for her. I ran some things while she and Ricki were working earlier. There are a few people in town who I need checked out if you can do that for me. I’ll send their names to your phone. There’s something else, I’m not sure what it is though. Watching her with Ricki, I thought perhaps they had a child together.”

  “And?” Wild prodded.

  “Nothing listed that I can see. Nothing about an adoption either. Not around the areas she gave me that she’d been over these few years. Just odd, she’s almost hesitant to touch him and has tears in her eyes when he hugs her.”

  “Maybe a child died and he would be closer to Ricki in age.”

  He shrugged. Farewells were sent and as he shut the door behind his family, he took a deep breath then turned. Shelly Marie stood right behind him.

  “Pix,” he said.

  “You know I have scars, are you sure you want to do this?”

  “Am I sure I want to sink my cock into your pussy? Hell, yes. I want to fuck you. I’m trying to be more of a gentlemen here, but I’d love to lift you up and take you against the nearest wall.”

  She didn’t say anything else, just went to work at her pants. When the sound of the lowering zipper hit him, he groaned and attacked his own jeans. He kicked off his shoes and shoved his jeans down, followed by his boxers.

  Her gaze dropped to his hard cock, out and thick. He swore he heard a whimper from her. When she met his again, the blatant need swirling in her eyes did him in. Adam had her up in his arms and back against the door he’d just closed on his brother and sister-in-law. Grabbing his cock in one hand, he lined the head up with her pussy and sank in with one sure thrust.

  “Oh, God,” Shelly Marie cried out as the heated walls surrounded him.

  “Fuck.” He took a moment, fully within her, trying to allow her to get used to his size. She was so tight.

  His good intentions puffed like smoke when she pulled on his hair and dug her nails in the back of his head.

  “Hold on, Pix.”

  He fucked her.

  This wasn’t a gentle, relearning of their bodies. This was rough, hard, and what used to happen between them when he first got back from deployment. Despite the years they’d been apart, they flowed together in perfect tandem.

  He woke wrapped in blankets on the floor of his bedroom, she was pressed tight against him. The setting sun streamed in the window, offsetting the gloom which had been present for most of the day with the snow. He moved the covering a bit and stared at her while she slept in his arms.

  Anger grew in him at the marks he found on her body. This was a sick fuck who needed to be removed from the face of the planet. She’d not taken off her clothing until later on and whenever he’d tried, she’d distracted him. Either with her pussy or with her mouth.

  Now that his initial need had been sated, he took the time to look. Keeping his touch gentle, he traced a few of them.

  “Ugly aren’t they?”

  “No,” he replied instantly. “They can’t possibly be ugly, Pix. They’re part of you. They don’t define you, they help make you who you are.”

  She snorted and tried to cover herself back up. He refused to let her. Instead, pushing her so she lay on her back in the mess of blankets. He moved over her, keeping her there.

  “Listen to me.” She closed her eyes and he took her left hand putting it on the scar nearest her. A long gash on his thigh. “Does this make me ugly? Do any of my scars?”

  “No, but it’s different.”

  “No, open your eyes and tell me. Don’t hide.”

  She listened. “It’s not the same. You got yours in war.”

  “So did you. This man has declared war on you and is trying his best to win. You can’t let him do that. We’re not going to let him. First and foremost, stop thinking you’re ugly. Because you’re far from it.” He allowed his gaze to travel along her naked body. “Far from it.”

  Chapter Five

  Body sore in the most pleasant of ways, she ambled up the aisle of the store, looking for some more clothing. Adam said it would be good for her to get out. She’d taken his vehicle and his credit card.

  Much like it had been when they were together, despite her easily making triple his salary. Well, back then, looks like now he made an extremely good living. Not that money had been an issue for her, it hadn’t. She’d grown up with less than nothing but had gone into her fields for the love of them not for money.

  Adam just felt the need to take care of her. It was his nature. Always had been and from the looks of things, always would be. A small smile cracked her lips and she closed her eyes briefly, recalling his touch this morning in bed before he finally allowed her to climb out and shower.

  She’d gone with him to D.A.R.K. Cover, Inc. where he’d begun looking up some more information and discussing it with some of his brothers. Shelly Marie slid her hands into her front jean pockets and continued along the shelves as she pondered how she had gotten back to this point. Or rather why he’d let her come out alone. Then again, knowing Adam, I’m not.

  She pulled some items and stuck them in the crook of her arm. Before too long she stood at the register.

  “Mr. Wilder called and said you were coming in with his card, ma’am, so it’s not going to be a problem.”

  “He did?” she asked, although totally unsure as why that shocked her.

  “Yes, ma’am. I don’t have to ask for he described you to a tee.”

  “Thank you.” She appreciated not having to give her name. Handing over the card, she waited while he swiped it before putting it back in her pocket.

  “You’re all set, ma’am.”

  “Appreciate it.” She walked out with her bag of clothing and went to the back of the SUV. He’d wanted her to have that as opposed to the sedan. Spying a small bakery, she went there after and stomped the snow off her boots as the heat began to sink in her cold bones. Pulling off her gloves, she made her way to a small table and sat.

  “Be right with you, hon,” a heavyset woman with pure white hair said with a smile.

  “No problem.” She shrugged out of her jac
ket and hung it over the back of the chair beside her.

  Soon, she stared down at a large éclair and a piping hot cup of coffee. She worried her lower lip and stirred sugar into the java.

  “Something wrong with the food, hon? You’re staring at that plate as if it’s about to bite you instead of you taking a bite out of it.”

  “Just got lost in thought, it looks delicious.”

  “Okay, just checking. Oh, I forgot. A man dropped this off for you.” She dropped the folded note beside the plate and walked away.

  Guess Adam found me after all, not that I feel he hadn’t lost me. She grabbed the note with her right and used her left to bring the mug to her lips. The moment the hot liquid touched her mouth her world faded to a black tunnel.

  PEEK-A-BOO

  Nausea churned and her hand trembled so bad she sloshed some coffee over the rim to splash on her skin. The pain didn’t register her fear so great. She scanned the shop, looking for him but he wasn’t there. Nor was anyone she recognized as working for him. The patrons in the bakery were mostly older couples sharing a late morning snack, a few eating breakfast, and most important, totally ignoring her.

  Her breathing went haywire and her heart thundered so hard, she wouldn’t be surprised to learn it had broken some ribs. Try as she might, she couldn’t unfurl her fingers from the handle of the mug, nor let go of the note.

  A figure blurred before her as someone sat down. Panic thick and heavy clutched around her heart as the walls began closing in around her. He’d found her, she had to get away.

  “Shelly Marie?”

  That wasn’t her ex’s voice. It was familiar but she wasn’t sure from where. It said her name again and a large hand covered hers and took the cup away before dabbing at her skin where the coffee had spilled.

  “You okay, Shelly Marie?”

  The voice—masculine, but again not the one that struck fear in her—finally penetrated through her wall of fear. Marshalling herself, she focused on the hand over hers, offering a small modicum of safety. That alone told her it wasn’t Adam, plus there was no need to crawl within him at a single touch.