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“Please,” she whispered. With a tender touch, she nudged his chest until he was also lying. He faced her, propping up on one hand. Her long auburn hair spilled down her back and over her shoulder, beckoning him to touch. If he was about to crack his soul wide open and lay it bare before Chloe, not touching her no longer seemed an option. Hair was safe. Hair was non-sexual. He fingered a lock, lifting it and letting it sift through his fingers. All at once a powerful image of all that red silk wrapped around his fist as he fucked her popped into his head.
So much for non-sexual.
Chloe seemed as eager to touch him. She inched closer, then closer still until only inches remained between their mouths, and her legs were able to tangle with his. “You’ve made this easy since you’re totally naked,” she said.
Rocket groaned. “And you’re only wearing fucking panties.”
She chuckled. “Yep.” Once again, she grew serious. “Please give it to me.”
Jesus, if that wasn’t a phrase to be misinterpreted, nothing was. Chloe had given him so much of herself. She’d walked miles out of her safety zone and trusted he wouldn’t hurt her. He could give her this—he owed it to her.
Still playing with her hair, he stared straight into her eyes. The patience and understanding he saw shining back at him allowed him to speak. “Discovering the details of my last mission was a fluke. For almost two years, I took the jobs they assigned me without question. Without looking beyond the surface. Esposito knew that. Probably used it to his advantage.”
“You trusted him. Trusted the company.”
Like a fool. “Yes.”
Chloe shifted her thigh. Her buttery soft skin whispered across the head of his cock. Rocket bit back a shouted curse.
“Sorry.”
He huffed out a laugh. “I’ll take any touch from you I can get. Even if it kills me.”
“Keep going. I think I know what you’re going to say, but you need to say it, Logan. You need to purge it.”
The only light was the dim glow shining from a nightlight in the hallway. Rocket always kept some form of light in the halls for security purposes. Never know when he might need a quick getaway.
Old habits died pretty damned hard.
A troubling thought popped into his head. “You never got a chance to purge your demons, did you? Because we asked you not to speak to anyone about what happened.”
She gave him a half smile. “And see what happens when you let things fester? You develop really risky behavior like picking up strange men at the bar.”
Risky wasn’t tame enough a word. Fucking idiotic fit better.
Chloe poked his side. “Logan, I was kidding. It was a joke.”
“Someday I want you to tell me. All the details, no matter how ugly.”
“Okay,” she said softly. “But today we’re working on unburdening your soul. Tomorrow we can do mine.”
Rocket inhaled until his lungs were at capacity. He held it, then said the words he’d never dared to utter. “How many innocent people have I killed because I was too damn complacent to question my missions?”
Silence met the question until he almost begged her to say something. Anything.
“You never went back and dug through the details of your old missions?” she finally asked.
He shook his head. “No. I couldn’t.”
Chloe captured his hand in her much slenderer one. After working her hair free from between his fingers, she placed his hand over his heart, anchoring it there with her own. His heart thumped steady and strong beneath their palms. “Feel that?” she asked.
“I feel it.”
“In there lies the heart of a protector. I may not know all of you, but I know that much is true. You are a man who guards and defends. You’ve built your life around it.”
Nearly the same words had come from Copper’s lips only days before. Apparently, this was the image Rocket portrayed. Not a bad one, but he’d always thought of himself more as an angry vengeance seeker. Not a protector.
“Of course, the idea of harming an innocent got to you. It goes against the very heart of who you are as a man. But, Logan, you have to realize you are as much of a victim here as any innocent person Esposito targeted. You were used, tricked. The details don’t matter.” She pressed harder against his chest. “This does. And it’s not the heart of an evil man. An evil man wouldn’t give a shit. An evil man wouldn’t be torn up over the notion of bringing danger to his family. An evil man wouldn’t give a shit about anyone but himself. And from what I see, the only one you aren’t protecting well enough is you. So I’ll do it for you.”
“Chloe…”
“No,” she said, voice firm and unyielding. “I want you to listen to me. And listen good.”
