Page 54 of This Thing of Ours

Her arms wrapped him up tight, and she rested her head on his chest just under his chin. “I accept your apology, but if I were you, I’d sleep with one eye open for a good long while.”

Marco grunted. No doubt, that was probably a good idea.

Minutes passed, and he was losing the fight with his heavy lids when he heard her whisper in the stillness of the room, “Hands scare me now.”

His lids popped back open, and his body stiffened, on high alert.

“Men’s hands,” she clarified, still whispering.

He stretched an arm out to click on the bedside lamp to see her features clearly, but her next words stopped him.

“Please don’t. I like the darkness. I’m not sure I could face this in the light.”

He returned his arm to the bed, making sure to keep his hand off to the side and out of her line of vision.

“You know, Dr. Greene didn’t do anything wrong, really. He just reached for me. It triggered something. Took me back to that cold room.”

His hand on the bed balled into a fist, while his other one moved carefully from Gabriella’s shoulder to her back where he started rubbing soothing circles—his hands a portrayal of emotional contrast.

“His name was Peter. And he had really large hands that he liked to use to cover my mouth to keep me from screaming.”

“Gabriella…” He trailed off, unsure what he wanted to say, only knew he had to stop her words. He’d never considered himself a pussy, but right then, in that moment, he knew that he was.

Because he wasn’t sure he could handle whatever else she had to say.

Lifting her head off his chest, she propped herself up on an elbow to look at him. Dark shadows muted her features but a stray beam of light, highlighted her eyes, making them shine. “I thought about it while you were gone—what happened to me.”

Fuck he was an asshole. He should have never left her. “Cara mia—” Fingertips landed on his lips, silencing him.

“Let me finish first. If I don’t say this now, I might never say it.”

He took a breath, mentally preparing himself for what he was about to hear. If she was strong enough to live through it, then fuck him if he wasn’t brave enough to listen to it, even if each word would cut him like a blade.

And then she talked.

Until her voice grew weary.

And his heart was broken.

Chapter Twenty

After applying acoat of lip gloss, Gabby studied herself in the mirror. She was getting ready for date number two with Marco. He was taking her to the movies. Said he hadn’t been in years and that she could pick what they went to see. The only request he’d made was she didn’t choose a chick-flick and seeing as Gabby wasn’t a chick-flick kind of gal, that hadn’t been a hardship. They’d see the latest superhero movie. She didn’t mind spending a couple of hours watching the newest Hollywood hottie encased in a tight rubber suit. She had a feeling Marco might have another opinion on that, though.

She wondered how the date would end. Even though she was apprehensive about getting naked with Marco because she had no idea what she was doing, she still hoped it would be a replay of the night before—minus the part where Marco stormed off.

Checking her phone, she noticed they needed to leave within fifteen minutes if they were going to make it on time. Dressed in a pair of skinny jeans, a cream cable-knit sweater, and knee-high leather boots, she was all set for the chilly December evening and even colder movie theater. She grabbed the strap of her purse and threw it over her shoulder before heading downstairs.

She found Marco on the couch, zoning out to some sports talk show on the TV. He clutched a remote in one hand while the other absently stroked Fred who lay curled at his side.

She stopped at the end of the couch. “I’m ready whenever you are.”

His head swung around, his eyes taking her in from top to bottom. A smile pulled his lips and lightened his eyes. “You look beautiful.”

Gabby had heard that phrase a few times in her lifetime, but the way Marco said it, and the look he gave her while saying it, it was hard to deny he really meant it.

Gabby smiled back, returning the compliment, really meaning it, too. “And you look unbelievably handsome.”

And he did. He was dressed more casual than usual, meaning he was still wearing slacks but he’d ditched the tie and jacket.

---