Free Bared by Stacey Kennedy

chest out. “I would if you asked me a direct question.”
    Liar .
    Not that she’d call him that. Pissing off a Dom she’d see in the dungeon later wasn’t on her to-do list. Aidan shared nothing of himself. Everything she’d learned about him had comefrom others. His past, and even about the death of Lily, had never come from his mouth.
    That was exactly why her desire for more had to stay a secret—until he opened up to her, she couldn’t push. She had tried in the first year they played together to go deeper and build a relationship, but he’d shut her down every time. Then she would see darkness spread across his features.
    While some women would think that meant he wasn’t that into her, Cora knew better. His touch couldn’t lie. The man Aidan was in a scene was unguarded and loved her. Out of a scene, she didn’t even recognize him. Sometimes she wished she’d known Aidan before Lily; what kind of man would he have been?
    Probably the man Cora wanted.
    Though, fair was fair.
    If he didn’t share, why in the hell should she?
    She might support him. She might understand his pain. She might even wait for him to move on from Lily. But she would certainly not be a doormat. She’d made her choices, but that had been on her terms. If that ever changed, things between them would have to change, too.
    Aidan might be shadowed in misery, but he’d always been good to her in Club Sin. He respected her. He cared for her. As a Dom, she couldn’t ask for anything more. As a man, he needed to sort some stuff out.
    No one was perfect, and she certainly wasn’t.
    Cora watched him standing solidly at the ready. Hell, she was ready, too. “What if I said I have some things in my past, but it’s not a big deal and I don’t want to talk about it?” Yeah, that worked .
    “I’d say that’s your right,” he said, voice flat.
    Perfect . A little hope, after all. “Okay, then, I don’t want to talk about it.”
    The sun beamed through the big bay window and lit up the side of his face, detailing the scrumptious curves. He placed his hands in his pockets with a downcast expression. “Fine. We don’t have to talk about it.”
    She curled her finger in her hair. “You’ll leave this alone, then?”
    “I can’t forget what I saw.”
    Thirty seconds away from her pushing him out of the house and locking the door behind his sexy ass. She scowled. “Try harder.”
    “Impossible.” He rocked back on his heels and his facial features sagged. “I care about you.”
    Her heart skipped a beat at the latter. While she could allow herself a smidgen of excitement that he seemed desperate to know more of her, she wouldn’t allow that hurt she once felt with Aidan to return. Until he fully opened up to her, she couldn’t, either. It was too dangerous. “Might I remind you that our D/s relationship doesn’t involve talking about personal problems that extend outside of the dungeon?”
    “Things have changed, haven’t they?”
    No, not enough , her head said.
    But maybe , her heart whispered.
    His gaze softened, voice equally so. “What I saw last night concerns me. The fact that you’re not talking about it makes me incredibly worried. Not only as your friend, but as your Dom, I cannot ignore that pain. I don’t know how much clearer I can make myself. For things to be okay , you need to explain this.”
    I can’t. You’re not ready .
    Cora took a sip of her water, glancing down to her lap. This conversation needed to go away. Pronto. He needed an explanation. Then it could be put to bed. Going with the only thing she could think of, she lifted her head. “Do you still talk to Porter?”
    Aidan frowned. “Your ex-boyfriend, Porter Marshall?”
    Cora had always thought it was weird that Aidan knew her ex-boyfriend, considering she had never met Aidan before she joined Club Sin. But all the Club Sin Masters had been members of Chains for years, and Porter had known them from there. Considering Aidan had eight years