Free Finding Home by Bonnie Dee, Lauren Baker Page A

of truth in what he said? The difference was, while she might be sexually attracted, she wouldn’t act on it or demand anything of him as others had done.
    “I’m a fucking whore,” he continued. “The people I meet either want to fuck me or fuck me over. End of fucking story.”
    “So, if that’s really what you thought, then why did you come with me?”
    “Because I can handle this. And with you—well, it wouldn’t be a chore, you know?” His half-lidded eyes and predatory smile left Megan feeling like prey.
    She bit her lip—part of her reacting unthinkingly to what he said with a fresh wave of arousal, and the rest of her brain utterly appalled at the thought and at Sean’s matter-of-fact approach. He really had no illusions about anything.
    She rubbed her hands over her face. “Look, you might find this hard to believe, but I swear it was never my intention to even suggest I want anything from you. I really don’t. Talking to you over the past few weeks—it’s made me aware of the life you lead, it’s certainly opened my eyes in many respects, but it hasn’t made me want to have sex with you.”
    “So why did you want me to come with you?” He sounded skeptical, but he’d uncrossed his arms and resumed a less defensive, less sexual posture. One hand returned to his lap, the other toyed with his fork on the table.
    “Because I was worried about you. I
am
worried about you. You drop out of sight for a few days and come back looking like hell. What happened to you, anyhow?”
    “You’re worried about a fucking hustler so you invite him into your home? You don’t know me for shit. I could beat you up and steal all your stuff. You think you can trust me because we talked a couple of times?”
    Megan ignored the little shiver of apprehension crawling up her spine at his words—no, she knew he wouldn’t do that—and plowed on. “Look, I took a gamble. But no, I don’t think you’d beat me up and steal my stuff, and no, I haven’t brought you home to sleep with you. If you don’t believe it, fine. Leave. But if you stay, just deal with it, have some faith in me and stop being such an ass.”
    She took a deep breath. Her cheeks were flushed, showing her emotions as always. It would be nice to have Sean’s amazing self-possession. Then Megan remembered why he was so good at hiding everything and didn’t envy him anymore.
    “Okay,” he said, sounding almost defeated, as if it cost him to drop the aggression and the attitude. But he seemed to relax, too, just a tiny bit. Perhaps he’d been hoping for this all along, and had only confronted her to allay his own fears.
    Her own anger had gone away completely, leaving her feeling a little foolish at having reacted so violently to his offer of sex. He’d really hit a raw nerve, making her ashamed of wanting him and even more ashamed he’d noticed.
    “So, what did happen to you?” she asked again.
    Sean looked away. “Some kids beat me up. But that’s nothing. I was stupid and careless and I paid for it.” More than angry and bitter, he sounded desolate.
    “What do you mean?”
    His bruised jaw clenched. “I was tailed by some kids I got into trouble with. They trashed my place and got my cash then beat the shit out of me just for the hell of it.”
    Megan blinked. His money? That meant months of sucking off strangers because it was his ticket to a better life, his way out, wasted. Months of hell. She had no idea how much money Sean was talking about, but it had to be quite a lot, because his daily expenses weren’t much. “They got your money?” The beating did pale in comparison.
    He nodded, his mouth tight.
    She wanted to hug him, but knew it was out of the question. Without thinking, she extended her hand across the table toward his, then stopped herself. He was bound to misread that gesture, too. She fumbled and grabbed a paper napkin instead.
    “What are you going to do?” She twisted the napkin in her hands. “Try to earn it