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Jared reached out, took her hand in his. “Were there lots of dragons in your childhood?”
At first she thought he was making a snide comment, but a quick glance in his direction revealed he was serious. That maybe he saw more than most.
“Enough to keep my brother busy.”
“What about now?” His thumb caressed her palm. “Are there dragons you need rescuing from?”
She started to say no, but realized that would be a lie. Dragons haunted her every day. Leftover dragons from her childhood. Deeply embedded dragons that said she was scarred and unlovable. Dragons that said a man like Jared wouldn’t really ever want her. Dragons that lived within herself.
How could one be rescued from one’s self?
“I have dragons.”
“Fire-breathing ones?”
“Total flamers.”
“There’s an entire gulf full of water, Chelsea. No dragon can get to you here.” He lifted her hand, kissed it. “But I’ll stay close, just in case.”
Jared close?
She wanted him close. So why was he standing, watching her with dark eyes?
He stripped off his pants, leaving only his boxers to cover his hips. Chelsea refused to look up. To do so would put her gaze right at his most private parts and she just couldn’t. Not when she so vividly recalled making love with him.
“Chelsea?” He said her name in a low voice. She barely heard it above the crashing of the waves.
But she knew what he wanted, what he was asking.
Her breath heavy in her chest, she slipped her fingers into his outstretched palm.
She’d take this chance, trust in what she felt for Jared.
Because deep inside she trusted him not to hurt her. Trusted that he really would protect her from the dragons haunting her.
With his free hand he undid the buttons on the casual sundress she’d slipped on after they’d made love. She’d felt oddly exposed in her shorts and T-shirt with him fully dressed in his work clothes.
He slid the strap from her shoulder. His fingers lingered, teasing the suddenly chilled skin. “You’re an amazingly beautiful woman.”
She gulped back that she wasn’t, that when he saw the rest of her he might think differently. Instead, she waited for him to discover the truth on his own.
“I didn’t think it was possible for me to feel good today, Chelsea. Not after everything that happened with Connie and my guilt, but I do.” He bent, kissed one shoulder, then the other. “Thank you.”
The fabric slid from her body and pooled at her ankles, leaving her wearing only her panties and her bra.
The moon was bright enough that she felt exposed, but she didn’t turn away from his exploring eyes. The way he looked at her left her feeling cherished, beautiful.
And that scared her, made her feel set up for a fall. A hard one.
She had to know. Had to know how Jared would react to her back.
“I have to show you something.”
His gaze lifted to hers, and he grinned. “Is this where you show me something, and then I have to show you something?”
She shook her head, fighting the panic rising in her throat. Silly, she’d come to term with her scars, had opted not to go back for more cosmetic surgery because her scars were badges of honor at what she’d endured and overcome. Yet she kept them hidden away from the world. Even before Kevin’s reaction. Because no matter how much she told herself her scars weren’t anything to be ashamed of, she didn’t believe it. Neither did her parents.
“I had scoliosis as a child,” she blurted out, needing to spill her secret.
