Keep Her From Harm(16)

"We didn't kill those girls."

"I know. They, erm, they showed the bodies once. I think they've stopped  showing them now, but I recognized the damage that had been done." She  frowned. "There was a woman a couple of years ago. She had the same  marks and stuff. She was dumped in a park near where I lived. I told the  lawyer, and Lewis, all of this information. I hope it can help."

"I can't keep this shit from you. I wanted it to be different, but like  all things that is related to my life, it's fucked up. I've run myself a  bath."

"I can sit with you. Let me know when you're decent." She was just so  happy to have him back. The past couple of days had been the hardest of  her life. She had found herself waking in the middle of the night, and  missing his presence. He didn't know that she'd caught him watching her  sleep. Sometimes he fell asleep, and she would lie in the bed, watching  him.

When it came to Damian he inspired feelings she had believed were dead.  She would stand in the shower, washing her body, and she'd touch her  shoulder or her stomach where Damian had touched or grazed, and she'd  feel a stirring, a tingle that awakened her entire body, making her want  his touch again.

She waited for his call, and it came seconds later. Entering the  bathroom, she froze as she caught sight of his naked body. She had known  his was a large, muscular man, just not as big as he actually was. His  shoulders were large, thick, and there were several tattoos up and down  his arms. Her mouth went dry.

Feeling like a moron, and getting aroused just by seeing his naked  chest, she forced herself to take a seat. Rubbing her hands together,  she smiled.

"You like what you see?" he asked.

Her cheeks heated. "Please, don't."

"It's nice to know that you like what you see." He winked at her. "I certainly love what I see. Love it when you wear jeans."

"Why?"

"It shows your ass off to perfection. Whenever I see you bend over, it's hard to not just stare."

"Because it's huge?"

"No, because it's sexy as fuck, and makes me think of doing stuff that you're not ready for."

Her pussy grew slick, and she pressed her thighs together, licking her  lips. "Wow," she said. "What makes you think I'm not ready?"

"Ivan."

"He doesn't get to control me, Damian. I'm a big girl." She felt his  gaze slide down her body. "We can come back to this. You wanted to tell  me something." They needed to stay on track before she lost herself.  There was a lot of shit happening all around her. Now wasn't the time to  think about her personal needs.                       
       
           



       

Needs she had thought had long gone.

"The Dentons are a name that instills fear in a lot of people but also a  lot of respect. We're in drugs, women, money, and anyone who wants to  set a business up in our city, has to come to us. We control everything,  and we get our cut. You once asked me if I'd killed anyone, and the  answer is yes. To be a Denton, you have to prove your worth. I've  fought, I have killed, and I have done a great many things for my  family, and to make the world safer, in a way." She had figured most of  this out. "The thing is, there is a curse or a legacy. It's known as the  Denton family legacy. There is a great deal of speculation about it.  Some think it's a pile of bullshit. Others believe it's our weakness,  and I guess in a way they are right."

"You have a weakness?" she asked.

"The moment we see a woman, the woman that is meant to be ours, we know.  She is the woman we will love, desire, respect, and just be devoted to.  I know to a lot of people that's far-fucking-fetched, but guess what?  It's the truth. My brothers, Jacob, Abel, Oliver, and even Landon have  gone through it. My father feels it for my mother. I never felt it for  Betty, but she was aware that there would be a woman out there I loved  more than anything else in this world." He paused, and she watched as he  swallowed. "I never lied to her. I always told her the truth. It didn't  matter though. It wasn't enough. I could never love her like she had  seen my brothers love their women. She wasn't mine, and I accidentally  knocked her up, Mia. You think I'm a good man, and I try to be. I  fucking try, and I'm not good. I'm like Ivan. The only difference is I  wouldn't rape a woman to get what I wanted."

She was shocked as she averted his head, and he wouldn't even look at  her. He rubbed at his eyes, and she just knew that he was crying. She  really didn't have a clue what to do. Men didn't cry, did they? They  never showed weakness, and yet Damian started to cry, snot-nosed ugly  crying. His sobs filling the room, and breaking her heart, bringing her  own tears to the surface. Unable to watch his pain any longer, she went  to the bath, and climbed in, not even thinking what she was doing, and  just knowing she had to do this. Straddling his waist, even though he  was very much naked and she was dressed in jeans, she wrapped her arms  around his neck. This was nothing sexual. Even as tears slid down her  cheeks, she held onto a sobbing Damian. She felt the guilt coming off  him in waves, and it broke her heart to see him this way.

"It's okay. I've got you. You're fine. Everything is going to be fine."

"I thought she could handle it, Mia. I really did. I didn't mean to get  her pregnant, and I didn't give her false hope either. I was real with  her."

She closed her eyes imagining the torment he must have been through ever  since he'd found Betty dead. It was too much to even think about, and  had her heart breaking for him.

"You can't blame yourself, Damian." She cupped his face. "You're not the  one who made promises you couldn't keep. You were honest. You can't  blame yourself for that."

"She's dead because of me."

"No. You were honest with her. You gave her everything that you could,  and there's no shame in that. This is not you, Damian. You didn't tell  her to kill herself. You didn't expect anything like this. You cannot  blame yourself."

"How can you even look at me, Mia? I'm a monster."

"I've seen monsters, and I've been with monsters. They don't make me  feel like this. You're a good person, Damian." She had known for some  time exactly what the Denton family were. They were the kind of people  that monsters were afraid of, and yet, she had seen and heard so much  good about them. The guys who watched her talked often, and there were  times she would sit and listen to them. Obviously, they didn't know she  was close, or if they ever knew, she didn't know either way. "You've got  a beautiful daughter. I will always be your friend, Damian."

He stroked her cheek. "You're the woman, Mia."

"What?"

"The moment I saw you, I knew you were mine. You're my woman, and I'm  totally in love with you." Then he grabbed the back of her head, pulling  her down for his kiss. She didn't fight him though. Sinking her fingers  into his hair, she took the kiss that she had been thinking about for  some time now, loving the feel of his lips against hers.





Chapter Nine



Later that night when the tears were all gone Damian lay beside Mia,  touching her cheek. They hadn't fucked, or made love. Instead, she had  held him as he cried, and then kissed him back. Running his thumb across  her lip, he stared into her eyes, knowing without a doubt that he was  the luckiest man alive.                       
       
           



       

"You love me?"

"More than anything you will ever know."

That made him sad, but he knew that in time she would love him. He was going to be sure to love her for the rest of his life.

"I've never been loved before." She touched his hand, and smiled. "I  like you, Damian. I don't know if I love you, but I want to. I want to  be loved and to have everything I've seen your brothers have with their  women. Am I presuming too much?"

He shook his head. "Not at all."

"Is it always like this? Being arrested, thrown in jail?"

"No, it's not. With everything that has happened in the past year, we've  dealt with our own stuff. Our family has always been at the top of the  food chain. Someone decided to take our spot, and rule the city. This is  our own fault. We'll fix it."

"Can you walk away?" she asked.

He shook his head. "No. We've always kept a semblance of peace in our  city. We pride ourselves on the protection we provide for everyone, even  the women that work for us. Those two women that died, that should  never have happened, and we have all learned from our mistake. It will  never happen again. That I promise you."