Free A Love Worth Living by Skylar Kade Page A

hadn’t talked to him either. Aaron’s rejection still burned, but not as much as David’s own failings as a brother—and psychologist-in-training—did.
    He should have been more aware of what was going on, but by the time he was ready to take a more active role in Aaron’s health, it was too late. David had come home for Christmas after his first semester of grad school, when Aaron committed suicide. The day David returned to campus for the spring semester, he changed his focus from family therapy to PTSD treatment.
    He unclenched his hand when they got to the Metro, and his palm throbbed where his nails had dug into his skin.
    He guided Carrie towards the ticket machines with a hand on her shoulder. She jumped at the contact, and her back tightened. Fine. He removed his hand and forged ahead, assuming she’d follow him.
    He purchased a reloadable Metro card for Carrie and added enough credit to get them around DC. He handed it to her then grabbed his own card from his wallet.
    “I could have bought—”
    In no mood to argue, he put a hand up to stop her. “I talked you into this day, so I’ll pay. At least let me do that much.”
    She bit her lip and nodded.
    She had no idea what that did to him. He ached to bite her lip, to see that same acquiescence on her face in the bedroom when she was caught under his body.
    Willing his body back under control, he shifted on to a safer topic. “When’s the last time you rode the Metro?” He led them to the turnstiles and swiped his card.
    “Never,” she said from the gate next to him. “This is the first time I’ve gone into the city, aside from the occasional forensics conference, and even then I stayed in the hotel and didn’t explore beyond walking distance. I always had other things to do. Besides, I’m not much for voluntarily going underground. Makes me claustrophobic.”
    “Are you going to be okay on the Metro?”
    She shrugged. “I make it through every underground tomb I explore. I don’t imagine a well-lit train car will be any different.”
    He’d keep an eye on her anyway. “If you insist.” Her firm nod didn’t quite convince him, but he let it go. “I’m glad you’re finally getting the chance to explore downtown, or a slice of it anyway.”
    She tilted her face up at him and the sunlight caught her skin. “Me too.”
    Dumbstruck by her beauty, David shook his head to clear away the distracting erotic visions he conjured up. The motion shook hair into his eyes, which he shoved back in place.
    He’d need to get it cut soon, though he wasn’t eager to do so. At its shorter length, Carrie couldn’t grab it—and he had come to love those rare moments when she lost herself enough to cling to him during a kiss.
    They stopped on the platform to wait for the next train. The board flashed with the time until its arrival—three long minutes of forced conversation.
    Instead of fighting to find a topic, David snagged a spot on one of the stone benches and waited. Carrie followed and sat next to him. Across the way, a young couple waited for a train going away from DC. The woman snuggled up to her man, and he nuzzled her hair.
    What had Carrie so tied up in knots that she couldn’t let go? He knew finding out was the key to getting her to open up. Question was, would she let him? Or rather, could he convince her to trust him enough to expose her shadows?
    Beside him, Carrie fiddled with her phone.
    “You’d better not be checking e-mails. Dr. G had them forwarded to Dr. Stevens, remember?”
    She grimaced under his scrutiny. “I just wanted to make sure I didn’t miss anything.”
    “Dr. Stevens is a perfectly competent anthropologist. He’s got a handle on anything that might have come up in the twelve hours since you were gone, and if it’s something earth-shattering, Gunnerson will call.”
    She slipped the phone back into her purse without another word.
    If he looked at a write-up of her behavior, he’d guess she was a teenager lashing