Free Damaged by Indigo Sin

her room was. They stepped down into a room with a fireplace and a big flat screen television. A plush leather couch and several recliners filled the space. It was dark, masculine, and smelled like Seth.
    “Make yourself at home,” he said, pushing the door shut behind them. Being closed in with him was oddly comforting, as much as she hated to admit it. She was beginning to find trust in Seth, and it was terrifying.
    Monica curled onto the couch, tucking her legs under her bottom while she waited nervously for him to sit. She was intrigued by what he had to say, so when he began to speak, she was all ears.
    “I grew up on the streets,” he started, sinking into the couch next to her. “I was abandoned by my mother when I was four, and spent many years in and out of orphanages and shelters. I took the wrong path, befriended the wrong people, and ended up in a lot of trouble.” Seth ran a hand through his hair and shook his head. “I started stealing at a young age. From stores, people, it didn’t matter. I took what I could get my hands on so I could trade it for things in the orphanage.”
    Monica chewed her bottom lip as she listened. His story was heartbreaking—not much different from her own. “What things did you trade for?”
    Seth shrugged. “Food, toys, candies…anything I wanted, I guess. But when I hit the streets alone at seventeen, the things I stole were bigger, riskier. I got caught one night breaking into a car and spent thirty days in juvie for it. It sounds fucked up, but I was actually relieved. In the detention center I didn’t have to worry about where I was sleeping that night, or if I would get to eat. I had stability for once.”
    Tears stung at her eyes as she nodded. “I know how that goes,” she said softly. “It sucks.”
    Seth turned his he ad, his expression solemn. “In the end, I met a man, Samuel, who took me under his wing, taught me to work on cars and gave me a job in his body shop. I eventually saved up enough to take some classes, and then enrolled in college. I came out of the academy with high marks. Had a job at the station within a week of graduating.”
    The realization that he truly did understand what she had been through chipped away at her distrust for him. “That’s amazing, Seth. You were very lucky to be given a second chance.”
    Seth nodded before reaching across the couch to pull her into his lap. Without hesitation, Monica let him cradle her. He was so big, so warm…so safe. “When I saw you on the streets, I had to take a chance. There was something about you that pulled at me.” His breath was warm against her forehead , and the way he stroked the exposed skin over her jeans where her shirt had ridden up sent tingles throughout her body. “I’m rambling,” he chuckled. The sound was a low rumble in her ear, amplified by the way she pressed against his chest.
    “No you’re not,” she assured him, raising her head to meet his gaze. “What you did for me and the kids shows what kind of a person you are. You’ve lived, you’ve made mistakes, and through it all, you didn’t let it destroy you. You’ve got it all now. A big house on a beautiful farm, vehicles, a paycheck. I’m envious.”
    Monica’s heart stuttered as his gaze dropped to her lips. With the pad of his thumb, he tracked the line of her lower lip, and heat coiled in her belly.
    “I don’t have it all. I have no one to share it with,” he said, his voice raspy. There was nothing more to say. Monica’s eyes fluttered closed as he cupped her cheek and lowered his head. Their lips met, and liquid fire surged through her veins. Seth broke the kiss, and looked her in the eye. “I want you, Monica. I want you so much I can barely breathe.”

Chapter Eight
    She went still, staring back at him like he’d grown a second head. “You don’t want me, Seth. You deserve someone much better. I don’t have a damn thing to offer you,” she whispered, looking down at her hands in her