Total pages in book: 65
Estimated words: 61427 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 307(@200wpm)___ 246(@250wpm)___ 205(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 61427 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 307(@200wpm)___ 246(@250wpm)___ 205(@300wpm)
“I was accepted to the fine arts program at UCLA,” she confessed. “I’ve always loved art. Creating things.”
“I can tell,” he said, thinking about how passionately she’d thrown herself into making her house look beautiful. “So what happened?”
“My mom was admitted to the hospital.” Marley’s voice shook. “She was in so much pain. The cancer…it destroyed her inside and out, and I would sit by her side watching it, wishing I could do something to help her.”
She fell silent again. Caleb waited for her to continue, all the while trying to ignore the strange somersaults his heart was doing.
“I enrolled in nursing school the day after she died,” Marley finally said. “I couldn’t help my mom, but that way I could at least help other people.”
It suddenly became extremely hard to breathe. She had become a nurse because she hadn’t been able to help her mother in her dying hours. God, what a woman. Shame gripped his gut in a tight vise. And here he was, lying to her.
“How did your mom die?” Marley asked, her tone gentle.
“Overdose.” He’d been prepared to avoid the question, maybe even pretend to be asleep, so when that one word burst out of his mouth, he was overcome with shock. Why had he just told her that?
“And you were five?” she pressed, obviously remembering the meager details he’d provided.
“Yeah.” It became difficult to draw a breath. “I was watching TV in our bedroom—we only had one bedroom in the apartment—and I went out to the living room to ask about dinner and…she was just lying there on the carpet.” His chest went impossibly tight. “I remember shaking her, crying for her to wake up, but…she didn’t wake up. She was already dead.”
“Oh, Caleb,” Marley whispered. “That’s awful. I’m so sorry you had to go through that.”
He tried to shrug it off. “I got over it.”
There was a short silence, and then Marley released a small sigh. “I’m so sorry,” she said again, turning her head to press a tender kiss to his chest.
What was the matter with him? Why had he told her about his mother? He hadn’t even told Russ about that day, and Russ had been his best friend. His only friend.
He lay very still, trying to navigate the confusion clouding his brain. This wasn’t supposed to happen. He wasn’t supposed to sleep with her. To share his past with her.
Growing up, he’d been guided by a sense of justice, going into drug enforcement because it was the only way he knew to find some sort of vengeance for his mother’s death. He lived his life by a code of honor. There was a distinct line between right and wrong.
But Marley was blurring that line. His body ached at the feel of Marley snuggled up close to him. He listened to her breathing grow steady, felt her muscles loosen with slumber, and as he lay there beside her, he realized she was far more dangerous than he’d given her credit for.
CHAPTER 8
MARLEY WOKE UP the next morning with a smile on her face and a naked man in her bed. Caleb was sound asleep beside her, lying on his stomach with one strong arm flung over her belly. Her smile widened. God, he was breathtaking. His stubble-covered cheek rested against the pillow, his dark hair messy and falling onto his proud forehead. And his face lost all of its hard edges in slumber. He looked peaceful, younger.
Trying not to wake him, she moved his arm and slid out of bed. Then she walked into the washroom, heading for the small shower stall. A jolt of pain hit her big toe.
“Shoot,” she muttered, noticing that one of the tiles was loose. Good thing she was planning on retiling after she finished painting.
She opened the glass door of the shower stall, and as she turned the faucet and adjusted the temperature, she realized she was actually pretty sore. A slight ache between her legs, but one she was willing to overlook because last night had been totally worth it. She stepped into the shower and dunked her head under the hot spray, then turned to let the water slide down her body.
Her muscles sighed with relief as the water pounded against them. She was on her feet nearly every day of the week and did yoga regularly, but one night with the talented Caleb Ford had completely wiped her out. It had never been like that with anyone, not even Patrick.
The smile on her face faded as the memory of the last man she’d been with pushed its way into her head and the implication of what she’d done settled over her. Was she crazy? After what had happened with Patrick, she’d vowed to be more cautious, and yet she’d just slept with a man she’d known for less than a week.