Beautifully Destroyed (Beautifully Broken)

Turning my hand around, I brush my thumb over the back of hers.

She’s so fucking soft.

“Is that what you need, Finlay? To know I won’t force myself on you?”

She nods, still staring at our hands.

“Look at me.” I wait for her gaze to slowly lift to mine. She looks vulnerable as fuck, and it makes one hell of an intense possessive feeling fill my chest. “I’d rather die than hurt you.”

She nods. “I know.”

My eyes capture hers, and pulling my hand free, I lift it to her face, gently cupping her cheek. “I don’t want anything you’re not willing to give to me out of your own free will. You wanting me? That’s a turn-on. Okay?”

Pressing her cheek harder into my palm, she nods. We stare for a moment, then she whispers, “It feels like you know exactly what I need. Like you can see inside me.”

Hoping it doesn’t freak her out or make me sound insane, I admit, “The week before you moved here, there was a night I couldn’t sleep. It felt like a loved one was in danger. The apprehension kept me up.” I shake my head. “I checked on my parents and Eli, but they were okay, so I thought it was nothing.”

Finlay’s eyes are locked on me, her lips parted and her slight frown marring her forehead. “Which night?”

I take a deep breath thinking back. “I think it was a Thursday.”

She sucks in a sharp breath, and it tells me that’s the night she was raped.

“I felt you,” I whisper, my voice hoarse from the deep ache in my heart, knowing her trauma was so horrible, I fucking sensed it from thousands of miles away before even laying eyes on her.

After a long moment, Finlay asks, “Do you believe in soul mates?”

“Not until I met you.” I let out a dry chuckle. “I always thought I was just a romantic, searching for the woman who would make me fall in love and hoping for the same relationship my parents have.” I brush my thumb over the swell of her cheek. “Then you climbed off the bus, and it felt like someone sucker punched me in the heart.” I let out another chuckle. “I didn’t stand a chance.”

“Do you think we’re soul mates?” she asks, her lips curving up.

I’ve been focused on Finlay since I met her. I’ve instinctively known what she needs and when she needs it.

The answer comes easily. “Yes.”

Her smile widens. “You’re definitely a romantic,” she teases me.

“And you? What do you think?”

I find myself holding my breath in the long seconds she takes to answer, “I think you’re right, and maybe that’s why I feel safe with you. Maybe that’s why the attraction is there?”

Like an idiot, I grin at her. “The attraction?”

A blush warms her other cheek, and I lower my hand to the side of her neck so I can see her face without my big hand obstructing the view.

Needing to know, I ask again, “Are you physically attracted to me, Finlay?”

Her eyes drift over my body, then she nods.

Tightening my hold on her neck, I pull her closer as I lean across the chair, pressing a tender kiss to her mouth. With our breaths mingling, I whisper, “Ditto, baby.”

Chapter 18

FINLAY

Walking Dad to the cab, it’s taking all my strength to be strong for him.

“Make sure you lock the windows and doors,” Dad reminds me once again, his voice strained with worry.

“I will.”

“If anything scares you, go to Ethan.”

I nod. “Okay.”

We stop by the cab, and the driver comes to load Dad’s luggage.

Dad pulls me into a hug. “Christ, Fin.”

I press my face against his sweater, taking a deep breath.

I don’t want you to go.

Having Dad at home and my relationship with Ethan going so well has made me forget. I’m scared the moment Dad leaves, it will come rushing back, but I force the words he needs to hear over my lips, “It’s okay, Dad. Work won’t wait forever.” The smile around my lips trembles, and I hope he doesn’t pick up on it. “I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”

He shakes his head. “How can I not worry about you? You’re my baby girl.”

“I’m not alone this time. I have Ethan and Quinn,” I try to reassure him. “Uncle Josh will be in and out of town as well.”

Dad stares at me, the worry not easing from his face. “Call me if anything happens. Don’t try to hide it from me.”

“Nothing’s going to happen.”

“Even if you have a nightmare. Call me, Finlay.”

I nod, even though we both know I won’t.

Dad engulfs me in another bear hug, and we cling to each other.

“I love you, Fin. So much.”

“Love you, too, Daddy,” I say as I take a deep breath of his aftershave, focusing on how safe I feel in this moment. “Be safe on the rig. Don’t take chances.”