Breaking Read Free Page B

you wore a
hat to protect your poor head from the sun?”
    He couldn’t help
but smile. Then he shivered as she slipped a hand up to stroke his smooth
scalp.
    He’d been
completely bald since he was in his early twenties, but he didn’t mind
anymore—especially since Lori seemed so fond of it.
    “Does it look
like I’m sunburned?”
    “No. It just
seems like something might be wrong.”
    He had to tell
her something. If he didn’t, she’d work herself into a worried tangle. So he
admitted as much of the truth as he possibly could. “I just sometimes get
reminded of…of my past. But it’s really no big deal. I’ll be just fine as soon
as I can get back to a normal schedule.”
    This
explanation seemed to relieve her. She turned him around in her arms and hugged
him tightly. He returned the hug, trying to take comfort in it without letting
it batter down his defenses.
    He couldn’t
quite manage it.
    She’d been a
virgin when she came to him. He’d had no idea that she would completely
transform his existence.
    He was happy
now. He had everything he needed. He could forget about everything else—all
that had hurt him over so many years of his life.
    None of it
mattered now. None of it should have power over him anymore.
    He was in
control of his life, and so he could keep control of himself.
    He might still
be on the edge of breaking, but he could keep that from happening.
    Lori deserved
him whole.

Two
     
    The next morning, Ander woke up
to discover that Lori had been watching him sleep.
    He turned his
head and saw that her face was turned toward him too. Her eyes were open,
resting on his face.
    He smiled at
her, not even fully awake.
    “Hi,” she said,
her face transforming with an answering grin.
    No one smiled
like Lori. Like something warmed glowed inside her that escaped with the curve
of her lips.
    “Hi,” he said,
his chest constricting slightly. “Do you feel okay?”
    “Why wouldn’t I
feel okay?”
    “After last
night, I mean. I was kind of rough.”
    She actually
laughed, reaching over so she could stroke his chest. “I had a pretty good time
last night.”
    “Good.”
    He’d known
she’d come. Obviously. More than once. But he also knew far too well that an
orgasm was only superficial, couldn’t begin to embody a person’s real self.
    He’d usually
climaxed with his clients, back when he was an escort, but—other than Lori—it
was never more than a physical response. It was never really him .
    “Although I
wouldn’t count on getting lucky this morning. I’m a little sore.” Her mouth was
still brimming with that smile.
    “Understood.”
    “Do you feel okay?”
    “Why wouldn’t
I?” he asked, using the same response she’d used earlier to stall as he figured
out a way to handle the questioning.
    He didn’t like
to lie to her. He almost never did. But he also couldn’t tell her the whole
truth—not if he was going to be the man she believed him to be.
    “Well, you
aren’t usually as…as intense as you were last night. And you look really tired
this morning.”
    “I am tired,” he admitted, speaking nothing but the truth.
    She perked up,
as if his confession had given her a way to help him. “You should take it easy
today. I’m supposed to go to this conference, but I’ll just skip the sessions
today. That way, we can hang out all day.”
    He shook his
head. In some ways, it sounded incredibly tempting, but he couldn’t lower his
defenses that far. “I’m supposed to take over a Sociocultural Anthropology class
for Hanover mid-semester. I’ve got to meet with her this morning. She wants me
to start next week.”
    Lori made an
indignant noise. “Why didn’t you tell me before?”
     “I just found
out myself. She’s got to have some sort of surgery. I set up the appointment
from the airport yesterday.”
      “Well, that’s
nice she asked you to do it. You better not be planning to work all weekend,
though.”
    “I won’t work
all weekend,” he