Free Perfectly Broken by Maegan Abel Page A

door. As he placed his hand on the small of my back to guide me through, his fingers grazed along the edge of my tattoo. I made a face as it reminded me just how sensitive the skin of my right side was.
    "Did I hurt you?" he asked. The concern in his eyes was adorable. I shook my head and peered around the diner. Seeing that my favorite booth in the corner wasn't occupied , I led him toward it .
    "No. I got a tattoo this afternoon. Well, actually, I got the color added to a tattoo," I explained as I slid in with my back to the wall so I could see the entire room.
    Jordan cocked his head to the side as he took the seat across from me. "How many tattoos do you have?"
    I pursed my lips as I did a mental count. "Six, I think."
    He laughed, pulling a menu from behind the napkin dispenser to look it over. "How do you not know?" His question didn't surprise me in the slightest . My tattoos were all very personal to me and it took a lot to keep my discomfort in talking about this with him from showing in my expression.
    "It just depends on how I'm counting them. Some of them are in multiple places , but to me they still count as one," I tried to explain but I knew I was probably confusing him further. He didn't say anything else about the tattoos as we ordered our food . As soon as the server left our table, his eyes began to roam my forearms.
    Jordan gestured to the swirling lines of script. "I was going to ask about the quote. It took me a while to piece together what it said. Is there a reason behind the placement?"
    I crossed my arms over my chest in a gesture I used all too often. I was a naturally defensive person and given my small size, I was often perceived as weak. Therefore, I spent a lot of time proving the opposite. With my arms crossed this way, the tattoo lined up perfectly along the outer edge of my forearms.
    "Shakespeare. A Midsummer Night's Dream , specifically," I explained, uncrossing my arms as I reached for the coffee mug our server just placed on the table .
    "Is that the one about the fairies?" Jordan asked, seeming confused as he added creamer to his own coffee before glancing up at me.
    "Yeah. It's a long story that involves my roommate and a nickname he started," I said, flipping my wrist to make a gesture that it wasn't important.
    "What's the nickname?" Jordan leaned forward, his arms resting on the edge of the table as his eyebrows raised.
    "Uh, no. He's the only one that can get away with calling me that and it's only because I've tried to stop him and it's impossible. Zane is relentless."  
    "Fair enough. I'm guessing this is the same Zane you were talking about last night?" he asked.
    I leaned back in the booth, making a face at the mention of another moment I couldn't recall. "That depends. What did I say about him?" I asked hesitantly. Given the way my emotions were all over the place when I left Lust, I couldn't imagine what I might have said. I reached behind me and tugged on my ponytail with both hands, nervously tightening the elastic band.
    "You were just complaining about him and his wife or something," Jordan said with a shrug.
    I looked up as our food arrived, my appetite suppressed by the lump in my throat that felt about the size of a softball.
    "His ex-wife. And , yeah, that would be him," I said in a tone I hoped he would understand meant I was done discussing this. I took a bite of my pancakes and Jordan stayed quiet for a few minutes before returning to our previous conversation.
    "So , what about the new tattoo on your side? Is there a story behind it?" he asked finally. I gave him a wry smile.
    "All my tattoos have a story," I answered as I flagged down our server for more coffee. "The one on my side is tiger lilies , my favorite flower. They symbolize feminine strength."
    "I'm sensing a pattern here," Jordan said, laughing as he slid his empty plate to the edge of the table.
    "Possibly," I conceded, leaning back in the booth as the server cleared our plates and refilled our