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shoulder. “No, I…”
    He didn’t want to pry, but
the cop in him was screaming for justice. No one should be allowed to walk the
streets after inflicting that kind of damage.
    “I’ve never shown those scars
to another person. I didn’t even go to a doctor when it happened,” she
whispered.
    He allowed the significance
of her words to sink in. “Was the prick who did this to you your lover?”
    The tears glided down her
cheeks, dropping on to the forearm he had wrapped around her. “I can’t talk
about this anymore. I’m sorry.”
    He pressed a kiss to her ear.
“You said you haven’t shown those scars to anyone. Does that mean you haven’t
been with anyone since it happened?”
    She sniffled. “It’s been almost
two years, and before that...” She brushed the tears away with the palm of her
hands. “There was no one else. He was the only man I’ve ever slept with.”
    He didn’t know what to say or
how to respond. He didn’t want her to think the scars made her any less
attractive to him. If anything, she was even more beautiful to him because she
hadn’t allowed that abusive bastard to steal her spirit. But he didn’t want to
push her too far out of her comfort zone tonight.
    She kissed his arm. “Thank
you for not pressing me about what happened.”
    “Just know that whenever
you’re ready to talk about it, I’m here to listen, sweetheart.”
    “Can we go inside now,
Tucker?”
    He didn’t want to assume that
meant she was ready to pick up where they’d left off earlier, but he was
silently praying that was the case. He wanted to protect her and make her feel
safe. If she was ready to make love to him, he would make sure it was
everything she needed, but if she just wanted someone to hold her, he could be that
guy too. “Yeah, let’s go, baby.”
    She turned into his arms and
tipped her head back to look him in the eye. “Do you still want to… I mean… are
you still interested after you saw…”
    He pressed his finger against
her lips. “I want you like I have never wanted another woman, Rachel. I can be
as gentle as you need me to be tonight, or we can wait until you’re ready.
Either way, the decision is yours.”
    She gave him a wobbly smile.
“I’m ready,” she whispered.

 
     
     
     
    Chapter Four
     
    Rachel couldn’t believe she’d
shown Tucker her scars. Part of the reason she’d avoided intimacy for so long
was because of her badge of shame. They screamed victim, and she didn’t want
anyone to know about her past.
    She glanced around the main
living area when they walked into the small foyer. She could see the family
room, dining room, and staircase from the foyer. The furnishings were large
scale, dark wood, with the requisite large screen TV and leather sofas she
expected to find in the family room. She could imagine him hosting Superbowl
parties for his buddies, backyard barbeques, and impromptu get-togethers to
watch the hockey game on Saturday night. He had strong roots in this community.
It had been his home forever, and from what she’d heard, people loved and
respected him.
    Rachel wished she could say
the same. She had never had a place to call home, no roots or family to speak
of growing up, aside from her mother and sister. Her father was a long-haul
truck driver whose life was cut short when he fell asleep at the wheel. That
left her mother alone to care for two small girls, which meant she’d had to
work two jobs to put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads. Rachel
and her older sister took care of each other while their mother was at work, but
whenever the ominous-looking eviction notice appeared on the door, they knew it
was time to pack up and move on to a new town. At least once a year there was a
new school, new friends, and a new story so no one would know that they often
went to school hungry. She didn’t blame her mother; she did the best she could
under tough circumstances. She was a strong lady, a survivor, and she