Free Davenport Harbor (Six Degrees Book 3) by Mayra Statham Page B

happen. Not again. From the moment I ’ d met John I’d known he was a beast, a gentle one, but a beast nonetheless. A man like John Davenport would chew me up and spit me out without thinking twice.
    “ Breathe, honey. Look. I know that you went through something. I can see it in your eyes, the fear you try to hide. I saw the bruises, Anne. Davenport, he isn ’ t that kind of man. ” The kindness in her voice made me look at her.
    “ How do you know? ”
    “ I just do. ” She smiled sadly and then kept talking. “ When you grow up around people like that, people who play hide and seek with the beast they hide, it helps you see what is inside of someone else. He doesn ’ t have that. He ’ s his own kind of tortured, the way you have fear in your eyes, his are filled with sadness. ” Birdie told me, amazing me with her words and it makes me sad to know she knows this. Birdie’s a good person and didn’t deserve ugly in her life.
    “ I … You have a beautiful way with words, Birdie Morgan. ” She smiled at me, “ You should write a book, ” I told her, leaning my head on her shoulder, feeling calmer, the panic subsiding as I stared at John’s gift. I felt her body shake with laughter and her round face flushed pink.
    “ I ’ ve been told that a time or two. So, you okay? ”
    “ Yeah. ”
    “ Let ’ s get you dolled up, yeah? ”
    “ Okay, ” I agreed, smiling, feeling excited and hopeful.
     
    John
    Everyone started showing up suspiciously on time. Mike and Sabrina with their brood were the first, Nick had come with them, smiling like an asshole at me. Then Holly and Robert Montgomery showed up with their sons. Holly was Mike ’ s ex-fianc é e, who ’ d always been a better friend than spouse-to-be. Even now, how they managed to stay friends was beyond my ability to comprehend. Cara, Sabrina ’ s younger sister with her doctor husband Jerry, were the next to show.
    Everyone was having a good time talking and socializing as they drank and ate appetizers the catering company had set out. The kids were running around, and I was standing next to Mike as he was talking about Mark ’ s baseball game, but I was not paying attention. It was half past one and I had no idea where Anne was.
    Why did I kiss her? Maybe I scared her away? Or maybe having Bernadette pick up an outfit for her wasn ’ t a good idea. What the hell had I been thinking?
    Immersed in my own inner turmoil, I stopped paying attention to Mike or anyone around me. A breeze picked up, and I breathed in deeply, trying to calm my nerves. Her soft scent floated around me just as I felt a delicate hand on my shoulder. Turning around, my heart suddenly lodged in my throat.
    Anne was beautiful in her jeans and tees, but in the outfit I ’ d picked out for her, she was breathtaking. The dress fit as if it had been made for her and I tried but failed at not looking at her generous breasts. Looking at her amused glance, I noticed Bernadette behind her holding Zoey in her arms and talking to a very nosey Sabrina, who seemed to be watching us as if we were the next summer blockbuster.
    “ Sorry, we ’ re late. ” Another breeze blew, picking up her hair that she ’ d worn down, cascading down her back, and I smiled at her.
    “ Don ’ t worry. Everyone was early. ”
    “ Umm … Thank you, for the outfit, ” she told me, a blush on her face, and I nodded.
    “ You look beautiful, ” I told her, my hand skimming hers. Her eyes widened as they stared at me, her creamy cheeks turning a brighter pink. I was enjoying making her blush. “ I hope you liked it. ”
    “ It ’ s all very beautiful, if you give me the rec— ” Before she could finish her sentence, I put a finger at her lips and shook my head.
    “ It was a gift. ”
    “ For kissing you? ” She blurted, her eyes worried, and I shook my head, moving in close and leaning my head down until my lips were right by her ear to ensure this was only between the two of us.
    “ No. The