Page 62 of Pretty Little Scars

I lift an eyebrow. “Now you’re just trying to turn me on.”

Not that she even has totry. I’m permanently hard whenever she’s around.

She smirks as I hurry out of the room and quickly swing into the closet to grab some gym shorts for me and a T-shirt for her, and then rush down the hall to where my sister used to stay and find her spare blow-dryer, then back to my girl, only to find her falling asleep sitting up.

“Hold on, sweetheart. I’m going to blow your hair dry so you don’t have to sleep on it wet.”

“Wow, you should have asked me out five years ago. This is princess treatment right here.”

“First of all, this is the bare minimum. Second of all, yeah. I should have.”

She offers me a small smile when I flip the dryer on and get to work on her long dark hair. She watches me with droopy eyes as I work my fingers through the wet strands, the hot air swirling around us. Her strands are thick and feel like silk in my fingers, and when it’s finally dry, she’s so damn sleepy, she’s leaning her forehead against my chest.

For all I know, she might be asleep.

Setting the dryer aside, I lift Darby in my arms and set her on the edge of the bed, grab the T-shirt I tossed on it earlier, and quickly pull it over her head before discarding the damp towel.

“I don’t need panties,” she says as she lets me help her scoot under the covers, and I join her, keeping the shorts on, even though I usually sleep nude.

Yes, I want to fuck her. Being this close to her, in my bed, is not easy on my libido. But she’s exhausted, and we both need to sleep.

I grin when she threads her bare legs through mine, and then she tucks her hands under her chin, facing me, and blinks owlishly, watching me in the moonlight.

“Why do you have scars, Hotshot?”

“Do you want to talk about this now, or wait for tomorrow?”

“Now.” She scoots her bottom half closer to me. “They’re?—”

She bites her lip, and I reach up to tug it free with my thumb, then brush over the wet lip, enjoying the way she’s looking at me, so sleepy and curious and totally kissable.

I’ve never wanted anyone the way I want her.

“They’re bad,” I finish for her and she nods slowly. “When I was twenty, I was home from college for the summer. I went to Montana State on a full football scholarship. I even had pro scouts interested in me.”

Her eyebrows lift. “Xander isn’t the only athlete in the family.”

With a chuckle, I shake my head. “No, he isn’t, although he’s the most talented. I’ll deny it if you ever tell him that, though. His ego is big enough already.”

She hums, and I keep talking softly, with the quiet wrapped around us like a cocoon.

“Like Xander, sports were my life. I didn’t plan to go pro, though. I always knew that I wanted to come back here and take over the ranch from my father someday. I love it here. But when I was young, I loved football too.”

“What happened?” She moves her hand from under her chin and presses it against my chest.

“I was in a side-by-side, driving out to the herd where my father was. A horse had bucked him off, and we’d gotten word that he needed help. I was worried and driving way too fast. We came around a corner, and I rolled the vehicle.”

Darby presses her lips together, and her eyes fill with tears.

“Hey, I’m okay. I’m totally fine now, and I can’t stand to see you cry.”

She swallows thickly. “Tell me the rest.”

“I wasn’t wearing a seat belt, and I got jostled around until I was trapped under the frame. My stomach and right hip and leg were a mess. Miraculously, I didn’t sever a major artery, so I didn’t bleed out while help came. I broke my femur and my hip, my gut was cut up pretty bad, and that was the end of football.”

Darby burrows into me. She just moves right in, wrapping her arms around me and nuzzling her face into my neck.

“I’m so sorry, and I hate that you were hurt, but I’m so grateful that you’re okay now.”