Quinn (The Beck Brothers 3)

“Quinn! Mon dieu! I am so sorry!” Margot cried.

Quinn squeezed his eyes shut. Christ. He felt like a fool. He heard her feet hit the floor in front of him as she climbed off the bed. He couldn’t believe he just freaked out like that. He was so embarrassed. He thought that since she was able to touch his shoulders and head that he was doing okay. He was wrong. So wrong! The last time he had such a strong reaction was back when he was in high school on the baseball team. One of his teammates gave his ass a pat after he got a home run. Quinn turned around and socked the kid in the face, kicked off the team for that.

“Quinn?” Margot murmured quietly. He could hear the anguish in her voice and he hated it. “It was too much, non? I am sorry. I feel horrible,” she whispered.

Quinn swallowed hard and lifted his head. Margot crouched down in front of him with tears streaming down her rosy cheeks, her hazel eyes filled with sorrow, shame, and guilt. It broke his heart to see her so upset over something that she had no control over. He knew she didn’t mean to do it, that she was just acting in the heat of the moment. Just as he had no control over how he reacted.

“It wasn’t your fault, Margot. Don’t cry,” Quinn rasped as he reached out with one hand to brush the tears off her cheeks. She turned her face against his hand so that she could kiss his palm.

Quinn sighed. “Maybe we shouldn’t do this anymore, Margot.”

Margot frowned. “Quinn...” she started to argue but Quinn cut her off.

“Margot, I’m just too screwed up for this. It’s better just to let it go now,” he muttered, letting his hand and eyes drop from her face.

Margot shook her head. “I do not believe that,” she said tightly.

“It doesn’t matter what you believe.” He snorted softly. “Just leave me alone, okay?”

Quinn thunked his head back against the wall and shut his eyes. He didn’t want to see the hurt in her eyes. He was so humiliated and pissed off at himself. He was just starting to think he might have found a woman worth pursuing further, and then he went and fucked it up. He was going to be alone forever. No woman would want to be with a man they couldn’t touch for fuck’s sake. He was a fucking mess. He wished he could just go the hell home.

Quinn sagged in relief when he heard the hotel room door open and snick shut. Margot was giving him the space he desperately needed. It was odd how she always seemed to know exactly what he needed. It was a shame that he couldn’t be with her anymore. He was really starting to like her, as crazy as that sounded.

Quinn opened his eyes and glanced around the room. What a fucking nightmare. He shut his eyes again and his cousin’s face flashed through his mind, along with the searing pain that Quinn associated with him. Dammit. He shoved the heels of his palms into his eyes and took a couple of deep breaths. He felt like his ten-year-old self all of a sudden, frightened and panicked, with no one to turn to. Fuck! Quinn got up off the floor and grabbed a pillow off the bed, and lay down on the floor. There will be no sleeping in the bed with Margot tonight; he needed plenty of space, and he certainly couldn’t handle any more touching right now.

Chapter 4

Margot gave Quinn an hour to calm down and collect himself. She hung out in the lobby and called her mother before heading back up to the room. She still had so many emotions running through her. She was convinced now that Quinn was abused in some way when he was a child. The way he freaked out when she touched his rear end made her think it was sexual. It was going to kill her when she found out for sure. No one should ever have to go through something like that, and definitely not a child.

When Margot walked into the room, it was dark. She felt her way over to the lamp on the dresser and turned it on. She became instantly furious to see Quinn curled up on his side with a pillow on the floor next to the bed, with no blanket or sheet. Margot marched over to him and shoved her hands onto her hips.

“Quinn!” she barked and kicked the bottom of his foot.

Quinn jolted awake. His head lifted from the pillow and he squinted against the light to look at her. “What?” he asked, disgruntled.

“Get your derrière on that bed right now! I will not have you sleeping on the floor!” Margot said angrily, glaring down at him.