WickedSeduction by Tina Donahue Page A

you’re
cautious. Anyone would be. Has his family given you trouble?”
    Marnie eased back to see his face. “What do you mean?”
    “You said he was the baby and everyone catered to him. Did
they blame you for his death? Have they been threatening you all these years?”
    Marnie finally realized where his questions had been
heading. He probably thought she’d been afraid to pose for the portrait, had so
many locks on the door and kept the blinds closed because of her relatives. She
should tell him about Ethan but couldn’t. Sometimes, Marnie was more like her
mom than she realized, hoping bad stuff would disappear if she simply stopped
remembering what had happened—what her father’s violence had led her to long
after he’d died.
    “They’re in Miami,” she said at last. “Mamá didn’t stay in
touch with them after the accident. Whatever you find odd about me isn’t their
fault.”
    “Oh hey.” He smiled softly. “I don’t think you’re doing
anything odd. I’m trying to understand your caution.”
    “I’ve been this way for as long as I can remember,” she
said, hedging slightly. “What I lived isn’t easy to forget. His treatment of my
mother colors a lot of how I see things today, though I am trying to change.
I’m going to be a badass mujer .”
    Tor smiled. “An in-your-face woman, huh?”
    “Only in yours tonight.”
    “What?”
    Marnie answered by slanting her mouth over his.
    She felt his hesitation and then his smile against her lips,
giving him one in return. They made out like teens with nowhere private to go
when she had a comfortable bed waiting no more than five feet away.
    More than anything, Marnie wanted Tor with her tonight. She
needed to feel safe, pretty, desired. She had to chase away the specter of the
past during the next hours.
    She kissed him hard one last time and then pulled her mouth
free. “Even if we can’t make love, there’s plenty we can do until next time
when you do remember to bring condoms.”
    “Oh yeah? Like what?”
    Marnie rested her forehead against his. “Bad boy that you
are, you need instructions? Seriously?”
    Tor eased back and searched her face, his expression
surprisingly somber. “You’re sure?”
    “I want you. Have from the moment I saw you in the window at
the parlor. Days and days before you finally noticed me.”
    Surprise crossed his face. “I didn’t know you were there…I
should have.”
    “You were busy smiling at your fans. Totally understandable.
And to answer your question—yeah, I’m sure about tonight. Let’s go to bed.”
     
    Marnie got to her feet before Tor could stop her. After
closing the blinds, she faced him and pulled off her top, hesitating only
slightly when she uncovered her scars. He smiled to let her know she was
perfect. On a happy grin, she twirled the garment above her head and finally
let the thing fly.
    Definitely badass.
    “You want more?” she asked, leaning down to him, wiggling
her boobs, sending a wave of her fragrance his way.
    His cock went from semi-hard to rigid in three seconds flat.
He stared at her bra, the fabric shiny and pink, tiny rosebuds gracing the
curve of the cups that barely trapped the swell of her breasts.
    He stood. A few minutes ago, Tor had thought Marnie might
need time to digest what she’d told him, to calm down, shake off the past.
Clearly, she’d had more practice than he at moving on from bad stuff.
    Not that she’d told him everything. He sensed she’d held
back on part of the story. Why, Tor couldn’t imagine, except the last piece of
the puzzle that made her who she was must be really bad.
    The fact she’d survived her father’s brutality was a
miracle. Despite what the man had forced her to endure, Marnie wasn’t bitter or
angry. If anything, she’d seemed weary when she’d been speaking of her father’s
attack. Now, Tor figured she wanted something good to make her forget.
     
    Wearing a suggestive smile, she backed away, hands on the
front clasp