Page 21 of My Three Mountain Men

“You don’t think your father felt the same?”

Anger abruptly colored her face. “He was a piece of shit.”

Startled, I fought to keep my face neutral. “If it’s any consolation, I can relate to that.”

Simone raised her head, equally surprised. “I doubt that your father was as bad as mine.”

“Oh… I don’t know about that,” I replied. “Did your father ever hire a hooker to ‘devirginize’ you because you were ‘a pussy’ and ‘needed to man up’?” Bitterness overcame me at the unexpected memory. “Did he ever bring a string of women half his age, some barely older than you, into the house to screw in front of you?”

I caught myself, hearing how the mere thought of Bryce Millan still sent floods of resentment through me.

“No. He sold me to his dealer. And I murdered the guy.”

My head whipped back so hard, my neck almost snapped, eyes bugging out of their sockets. Simone’s hand flew to her mouth, her own pupils overtaking her irises.

“Oh, fuck…” she breathed. “I-I don’t know why I just told you that.”

“Is it true?” I demanded, unable to keep my expression blank. Her hand fell away, and she nodded slowly. I sank back in the chair, my head whirling.

“It was self-defense!” she cried. “He… I wasn’t charged.”

Slowly, my breathing returned to normal, my head making sense of what she’d just said. She started to stand up, but I held up a hand to stop her.

“I’m sorry,” I told her quickly. “You caught me off guard. Don’t go.”

I also rose and moved closer, placing my hands gently on her shoulders. “It sounded like he deserved exactly what he got.” Uncertainly, Simone looked at me, and I nodded encouragingly. “You protected yourself, and what you did doesn’t make you a bad person. It makes you strong. I’m not upset that you told me.”

Biting on her lower lip, she shifted her eyes toward the floor. “I haven’t talked about it to anyone since I was emancipated and changed my name.”

“I’m glad you told me,” I promised her huskily, fingers moving toward her chin, drawing her face up toward me. “And I’m sorry you went through that. But you’re safe now. And you’re safe here. With us. I promise you that.”

Her eyes bored into mine, hope overtaking the worry that had initially set there, her head cocked back, and my breath stopped as I realized what was coming next.

But I didn’t stop it because her lips looked good at that moment, and honestly, I’d wanted to taste them from the second I’d known she was going to be okay.

CHAPTER10

Simone

My heart stopped entirely as he stared down at me, the moment freezing as I recognized what was about to happen.

I can’t kiss him. This is trauma bonding!

But was that so wrong? I couldn’t ignore the fact that every part of me was responding to Brooks and had been since my eyes had first fluttered open to see him at the bedside yesterday. I was attracted to him, and he was showing me a kindness in this weird darkness that no one else was.

I don’t know who made the first move, our lips combining, a soft sigh falling from my mouth in unison.

He was as gentle as I thought he would be, like he expected me to jerk away or throw him back or scream, but that was the last thing on my mind, heat rushing through me to take over any of my doubts now. My hands stretched up to encircle his neck, and it was a stretch, his body so much higher than mine, my back touching the dining table, breakfast now completely forgotten.

My sweaty palms cupped his neck, and I pulled him closer, half pulling back to look at him and give him an opportunity to change his mind.

“Is this a pity kiss?” I rasped.

He answered by crushing his mouth down on me harder, his strong arms grasping my waist and pulling another gasp from me as he set me on the table. The dishes rattled, but neither of us reacted, my palms falling off him to balance myself as he leaned into me.

Brooks’ mouth trailed off mine, exploring the spots around my cheeks and neck, his hands pulling at the too-large sweatpants. They fell to the ground below us without any effort, my oversized sweatshirt ripping over my head to leave me naked on the edge of the dining room table.

An electric jolt coursed through my entire being, and the world around us faded into a blur, leaving only the intoxicating sensation of his touch.

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