Murphy kissed the scars on her shoulder before turning her toward the spray of water and rinsing the suds from her body. Afterward, he washed himself, going much faster as the water finally lost the last of its heat.
Nessa shivered, and he turned the shower off, opening the stall door and grabbing a towel from a hook on a nearby wall. He dried her off first, wringing the water from her hair before tending to himself.
Soon enough, they were in her bedroom, and she took his hand, leading him toward the bed.
“I usually don’t sleep naked,” Nessa told him, sending him a vulnerable look. “But I don’t want anything between us tonight. Is that alright?”
Murphy’s bear roared triumphantly, the sound echoing through his mind. He didn’t blame his counterpart in the slightest; he was just as excited to hold his mate against him all night long, his body flush with hers. He’d forgotten how much he’d neglected any physical contact over the years, and now he craved it. Hungered for it.
Now that she’d seen his scars, he had nothing more to hide. It was exhilarating, and a bit daunting, to feel this unburdened after so long.
He nodded, wondering if he looked as desperate for this as he felt. “I’d like that.”
Switching off the lamp on her nightstand, darkness descended upon them, only a streetlamp outside her window providing any light. Peeling back the covers, Nessa climbed into the bed, scooting over until she was in the middle. She patted the empty spot beside her, staring up at him expectantly.
Refusing to waste another second without her pressed against him, Murphy got into the bed, lying on his side, his body pivotedtoward her. Nessa turned onto her side, away from him, and provided him the perfect opportunity to curl himself around her smaller frame.
Splaying a hand on her belly, Murphy cradled her ass against his groin, his cock nestled against her as he buried his face in her hair, breathing her in. He ran hotter than she did, and her skin felt chilled, but after a few seconds, his warmth seeped into her.
Nessa relaxed into his hold, the delicate sound of her breathing nearly lulling him to sleep.
“When I was eleven,Loloended up in the hospital,” Nessa murmured quietly, the words so faint Murphy thought he’d imagined them. He didn’t move, didn’t do anything that might cause her to stop talking. “He fell walking home from work and broke his hip. He needed it replaced, but we didn’t have health insurance, and the hospital didn’t consider him a priority patient if he couldn’t pay.”
Murphy’s arm tightened around her in comfort, and he kissed the back of her shoulder, waiting for her to continue.
“He lost his job pretty soon after—his boss didn’t care that he’d worked there for over a decade, only that he’d missed a few shifts because he couldn’t walk. From there, I guessLoloburned through whatever money he’d saved up over the years, trying to keep us from getting evicted from our apartment.”
“That must have been so hard on you, Nes.” He brushed his lips over the back of her neck, wishing he could take away the pain. All he could do was console her, though, so he did.
“I was young and naïve back then,” she continued. “I didn’t realize how bad things were, you know? But Angelo did. He was seventeen, and he tried to find work, anything to help ourlolo, but no one would take a chance on a kid willing to drop out of high school.” She tensed around him. “That’s when he met Tony.”
Wrapped so protectively around Nessa, Murphy felt the exact moment a shudder went down her spine, quickly followed by the stench of her fear as it flooded the room. His bear flashed its fangs in a warning snarl, sensing the threat.
Tony.
Murphy grit his teeth, rage bubbling up inside him. This was the piece of shit who’d hurt his mate—he just knew it.
“Tony was a gang leader, and he saw value in Angelo, so he took him under his wing. Had him running odd jobs at first, nothing illegal. I guess it didn’t stay that way for long, though,” she added solemnly. “I had no idea what Angelo was doing—he andLolohad sheltered me so much from the crueler side of the world; the idea of my big brother doing anything illegal seemed so unfathomable.”
Holy fuck. Murphy had known Nessa was running from her past, but she’d escaped a gang? No wonder she’d changed her name and gone into hiding. The amount of courage that must have taken …
“What happened next?” Murphy asked.
“Suddenly, Angelo had enough money forLolo’ssurgery. He started taking care of everything whileLolorecovered, including me. I finally had clothes that weren’t thrifted. We got a flatscreen TV and a nicer apartment.” She laughed, but there was no humor in the sound. “I thought we were rich, and I didn’t even think to question where all of Angelo’s wealth was coming from. I was just happy that our lives were finally looking up. I was so stupid, Murphy.”
“You were a child, Nessa,” Murphy assured her. “You shouldn’t have to worry about something like that.”
“I know.” She turned toward him, resting her head on his arm. Her lashes were wet and spiky as she looked at him, her gaze growing haunted. “Over the next few years, my brother changed. He’d always been so sweet and understanding, and then oneday it was like he’d been reprogrammed. He became so cold. Distant.” Tears filled her eyes. “He treated me like I was some kind of contagious disease.”
She blinked, and a tear rolled down her cheek. “He didn’t treatLolomuch better. They argued a lot, especially when Angelo would disappear for days at a time without checking in, which happened more and more often. And afterLolodied …”
Nessa bit her lower lip as it trembled, as if the memories were too much to bear.
“You don’t have to tell me anything else, Nessa. Not right now.” Murphy hated seeing her so distraught, and while he was relieved that she was opening up to him, he didn’t want it to come at a cost to her wellbeing.
“No, it’s okay. If I don’t keep going, I’ll just hold it all in for another five years,” she joked, wiping another tear from her cheek. She took a deep breath, holding it for a few seconds and then releasing it slowly. “The day we held a wake forLolo, Angelo introduced me to Tony, my ex-fiancé.”
Chapter 29
