Page 23 of Raggedy Dan
Dan’s voice came low, rough from everything they’d done.“I haven’t really let anyone see my face for any length of time in five years.”
She tilted her head to look at him.“Not even the club?”
“Not like this.Not uncovered.Not for longer than a moment or two.”He swallowed.“After the blast, the docs kept telling me it would get better.That scars faded with time.Therapy.Grafts.Nothing they claimed actually came to fruition.People stared.Kids cried.Women were the worst.They’d try to be kind, but I could see it.The flinch followed immediately by the pity.Life became easier when I decided to cover up.Let ‘em see the mask instead of the monster.”
“You’re not a monster,” she said quietly.
He gave a small, bitter laugh.“You haven’t seen it in daylight yet.”
“I have too.You know I have.And I’ve seen it tonight.I’ve touched it.Kissed it.”She propped herself on one elbow and stared down at him.“And I’m still here.”
His hand came up, thumb brushing her cheek.“You’re not scared of much, are you?”
“Plenty.Just not you.”
Silence stretched, soft and safe.
Finally he spoke again, voice barely above a whisper.“Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For seeing me.”He pulled her down, kissed her slow, lips lingering together.“For staying.”
Riley settled back against him, leg thrown over his hip.“Get used to it, Raggedy Dan.I don’t scare easy.”
Outside the window, the soft wind whispered against the bars.
Inside, for the first time in years, neither of them felt alone.
Chapter Seven
Riley
Riley woke to the smell of coffee and the low rumble of male voices downstairs.For a second, she forgot where she was, then the night crashed back in glorious, aching detail.Dan’s mouth on hers, scarred hands gentle as they peeled away her defenses, the way he’d groaned her name like a prayer when she traced every ridge of damaged skin with her tongue.As for the rest of their shared night, well, the man had stamina that should’ve been illegal.
She stretched, deliciously tender in places she hadn’t been sore in years, and grinned at the ceiling like an idiot.
