A big boom of laughter escaped him, startling Robin. “I think you might be clumsier than I am.”

“I promise I’m not usually this bad.” She laughed as she tried to push herself off him.

When her hand slipped and almost ended up somewhere embarrassing, he held out his own hand to help her up. After an awkward moment, she was finally on her own couch cushion. The trouble was, she didn’t want to let go of his hand. Looking at the massive paw of a hand that engulfed her own, she tried to remember the last friendly touch she’d received. Her sister? Her mom? It definitely wasn’t her dad, since he’d pushed her into Randall’s arms as she screamed and tried to cling to him, before he turned and walked away.

“Do you know I can’t remember the last time I felt a kind touch?” Her voice sounded far away in her own ears, as if someone else was speaking.

“I’m sorry you had to go through that, Robin.”

Her name sounded like magic on his lips, a secret promise meant just for her. She let his hand rest on her thigh and traced the lines that crossed his palm.

“Before you, I think it was my mother, Tamara.” She breathed deeply, lost in the memory, while her finger mapped his hand. “She’d thanked me for doing something for her—I can’t even remember what anymore—and given me a hug. When my father, James, made the deal with Randall, my mother started treating me as if I didn’t exist. She wouldn’t look at me, wouldn’t touch me, wouldn’t respond to me. My sister cried the whole time. The night my father took me to Mr. Fields, my mom had taken my sister out shopping or to see a movie or something. I will probably never know what, but no one was home. No one fought to keep me. I fought for them. I fought to stay. I fought against my gut that told me to run away because I knew they would be the ones who paid the price. I wonder if my father ever told them that Randall killed two men in front of me?”

She felt Hal’s palm twitch as though he wanted to say something but didn’t want to interrupt her. “When we arrived at the meeting point, it was a dark warehouse, industrial-park-type area. Randall was standing next to two men. I knew who he was right away because he was so well dressed compared to the other two. I have no idea who they were to this day. As soon as we got out of the car, the scream started. It built inside me with the force of a wrecking ball, getting bigger with each step my father forced me to take. By the time we were halfway to the three men, the scream tore out of me, wrenching my jaw open and bellowing out into the world.

“I saw the exact scene we were standing in while I screamed. I knew Randall was going to shoot the man on his left with a smile on his face. I fainted then, but fortunately my future employer had planned for that and provided my father with a container of ice water, which he promptly threw over my head.

“I woke, and Randall smiled at me as he pulled the trigger. It had been a test. He wanted to make sure I had the skills my father claimed, but it also served as a warning. I got to see how easy it was for him to kill. He demonstrated how little human life meant to him that day. The thing I didn’t expect was the second scream. It tore out of me faster than a racecar and just as powerful. This time it wasn’t a vision. I watched in real time as he shot the man on his right.

“Then my screams became normal. The vibrations in my voice changed from the shriek to something more human. When I started begging and clinging to my father, he only sighed and pushed me into the murderer’s arms. From that point on, the only touch I felt was Randall’s.” She almost laughed. “There was another employee who hit on me a few times, but the only time he’d been about to touch me, Randall appeared and beat the guy. The word that no one was allowed to touch me spread like wildfire throughout Eclipse. But people stopped talking to me and looking at me as well. I was an island in the hurricane that was Randall Fields, and all I wanted to do was survive.”

As she finished speaking, Robin had no idea why she’d said all of that. It was like word vomit; once she’d started, she couldn’t stop. Not that she’d ever had anyone to talk to about it. Maybe that was why. She glanced up at Hal through her eyelashes, trying to gauge his reaction. She realized she’d been crying. Her lashes were wet, and when she touched her face, she could feel the tear streaks on it.

Hal handed her a tissue in stony silence.

She wasn’t sure what to make of his reaction. Maybe he didn’t want to talk about personal stuff, or maybe crying freaked him out. She had no idea.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to put all that on you.” Robin felt more self-conscious with every passing second of his silence. She went to pull out of his grip to stand, but he held fast.

“What you went through . . . no one should have to go through that. I’m so, so sorry, Robin.”

“It’s fine. It’s in the past.” She looked down at their entwined hands.

“It’s not fine. You’re not fine. You haven’t been given the opportunity to deal with what happened to you in a constructive way since you’ve been so focused on survival. May I brush your hair away from your face?”

Robin startled at the question, but appreciated it more than she could express. She simply nodded.

His large hand came up and gently brushed a lock of her fire-red hair away, tucking it behind her ear. A shiver went down her spine at the touch, breathing new life into the fire in her belly from before.

“Don’t stop.”

The words whispered through her before she could censor herself. A slight chuckle came from Hal’s direction, but she’d closed her eyes already, enjoying the strokes of his fingers on her hair and occasionally her skin. Each touch was a balm, soothing the emptiness she’d felt for so long.

She wanted to touch him back, to feel his skin under her hands.

“May I?” she asked, opening her eyes and pointing to his hair. The sun-bleached brown tresses were still messy from his sleep.

“Sure. Whatever you want.”

Her hand came up, and her fingers ran through locks of hair that were so drenched in sun, it was as if she could still feel the warmth coming out of them. They were soft and coarse all at the same time. The tangles would need a comb to get out, but she pushed the tresses away from the eyes that studied her with fascination.

It was almost as if each eye contained a whole nebula. They were mystifying. As she looked closer, she could see that yellows and golds shot through the blue-green irises. Her hand drifted down to the surprisingly soft stubble that covered his face. She’d expected scratchy, painful hair, but, while coarse, it was soft under her hand as her fingers ran down the side of his face.

When Hal’s hand shifted from her hair to her face, she leaned into the warmth and the sense of safety that came with it, something she hadn’t expected to feel again for a very long time. She scooted closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder as she’d done when he had carried her. The hand caressing her face moved down to her arm, rubbing up and down gently, as though he didn’t want to overwhelm her.

Her body thrummed with energy, but a serene energy, as she pressed against Hal. One of her arms wrapped around his middle as she hugged him.

“Robin . . .” His voice was uncertain.

“I just need to touch you for a while.” She looked up at him, his eyes captivating her. “I need to know you’re real.”

Something shifted in his gaze, and the heat there intensified.

“I need to feel alive again,” she whispered. It was the secret she’d never told anyone, and why it popped out now she didn’t know, but it was the truth.

She pushed up slightly and let her lips graze his, her stomach full of butterflies as she hoped she’d read him right.

His hands stilled as her lips pressed his again.

Her heart was in her throat. Why was she suddenly so bold? Because it was Hal, and she knew she was safe with him. He made her feel real, feel alive, again. She could hear her blood rushing in her ears as he kissed her back ever so gently.

Hal’s hand ran up her arm, causing her to shiver and break out in goosebumps once more as her mouth connected more surely with his soft lips. Her tongue swept along his bottom lip, and he groaned under her.

Robin pulled away. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

Hal’s eyes focused on her. “Hurt me?”

“The noise you made sounded like you were in pain.”

A low masculine chuckle emanated from him. “Not quite.” His hands dropped to his lap. “It felt good. That was a noise of pleasure.”

“Oh!” Robin’s eyes took in his hands and how they were resting over his groin, and blushed furiously. For a moment, she considered turning away, unsure how far she should go and what he expected out of this encounter. Just the thought of it made her feel like she was turning away from the sun, and she’d been in the dark too long.

She pushed up on her knees and kissed him again with more confidence. He’d liked what she had done with her tongue before, so she did it again, earning another groan of pleasure from him. This time his mouth parted under her and his own tongue came out and tangled with hers. It might have been a few years since she had been kissed, but she was pleased to know she hadn’t forgotten how.

His stubble was slightly scratchy on her skin, heightening the softness of his lips. Her tongue danced with his as she clung to his shoulders, pressing herself ever closer against him. The position was awkward, though. She was kneeling and leaning into him; plus, having her weight on her knees was starting to hurt.

Briefly she pulled away from him, breathing heavily as she made a decision. She threw one leg over his lap so she was straddling him.

“Robin, I—” Hal’s voice cut off as her body centered itself over his. The fire that had started in her belly was now focused lower as her body tightened with need. She rested on his lap for a moment, holding eye contact with him. She hadn’t done anything so intimate in, well . . . ever. Scooting forward ever so slightly, she felt his manhood press against her. With just his boxers and her shorts separating them, it was the most erotic thing she’d ever felt. His head fell back against the couch, and his hands gripped her thighs. She froze, unsure what he was going to do next.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” he said, bringing his head up. He’d clearly sensed her reaction. “I won’t do anything you don’t want me to. If there is somewhere you don’t want me to touch, I won’t. If you want me to stop touching you altogether, I will. This is your show, Rin. You’re calling the shots.”

Her head cocked at the nickname. She’d never had one before. “Rin?”

“Sorry, just slipped out.” He blushed ever so slightly.

“I like it.” She smiled and leaned in to kiss him.

It was like setting a match to a flame. Her hands came up and tangled in his hair as her mouth molded to his. She was conscious of his hands moving slowly up her hips to her waist, where they rested on the open slice of skin between her T-shirt and shorts. He was hot, not just sexy, but everywhere he touched, it felt like a lick of flame going over her skin. When it was just her arms and legs, it wasn’t a big deal, but his hands on the skin of her stomach drove her to a fever pitch. She rocked back and forth slightly in time with their kisses while little sounds of pleasure escaped her.

Hal’s hands drifted from her waist around to her butt, one on each side, cupping the flesh there, some of which was exposed by the shorts. His long fingers wove under the edge of the shorts, resting against her skin, making the fire inside her blaze even brighter.

He pulled her against him as she rocked, and she gasped with satisfaction as the part of her that ached for his touch was now more firmly connected to him. She realized she must have just been resting on the edge of his cock before, because now she could feel the whole shaft throbbing against her.

As she rocked again, he groaned and his head fell back as his fingers squeezed her ass, pressing her against him as close as possible before he removed them and ran them up her sides under her T-shirt all the way to the edge of her breasts.

It hurt.

White-hot pain streamed out from the scar on her back, and it consumed her whole world.

“Rin? Rin, I’m sorry! Tell me what to do!” Hal’s voice was frantic as she fell off him to the side, curling in on herself. She felt his weight get off the couch and could make out the sound of him pacing back and forth. The pain was starting to recede slightly. She took a deep shuddering breath.

“Rin?” Hal’s face appeared in front of her, concern pinching his features.

“I’m okay.” She took another deep breath. “It’s the mark.” Instinctively she knew it wasn’t just because Hal touched it, while that didn’t help. It felt like something triggered it inside her.

“The mark?”

She turned away from him and pulled up her T-shirt, exposing the scarred area of her back.

“What the hell?”

“It’s part of what I wanted to talk to you about with your brothers. The Order of Talos apparently marks its initiates and full members, not that I got a choice in the matter. I don’t even know what it looks like, but from what I just felt, it seemed like it was fresh again. I’m wondering if they can use it to punish or track or do something to its members. Kind of like a fail safe.”

“Well, it is glowing slightly, so I would say, yeah, that’s some magic shit right there.” Hal sighed in relief. “By the gods, I thought I’d hurt you.”

“I don’t know that it’s fully healed. It only happened a few days ago, I think. I don’t even know what day it is, to be honest.” She sighed and let her T-shirt fall as she turned to face him. “Sorry I scared you.”

“Don’t worry about me.” He grinned at her. “You wanna talk about what that was on the couch?”

“I, uh, got a little carried away.” She wasn’t sure what he expected her to say. The truth was, it had been amazing. She’d never felt that connected to someone in her whole life.

“Feel free to get carried away with me anytime you want.” He waggled his eyebrows at her.

The tension she’d been feeling since she had started talking about the mark disappeared, and she laughed harder than she had in years. Tears began streaming down her face, and she struggled to breathe.

“It wasn’t supposed to be that funny!”

After another fit of giggles, Robin managed to get her breath back. “Sorry, I just . . . I feel like I’m finally free, and all I want to do right now is be free with you.”

“That sounds good to me.”

Robin sighed. She wanted to jump into his arms and kiss him until they were both gasping for air, but that spell had been broken with the pain of the mark or scar or whatever it was.

“Coffee?” she asked, not knowing how to express the flurry of emotions blowing through her right now.

“Coming up.” He smiled as he leaned forward and kissed her forehead. The peace she’d experienced before was back, and she gladly sank into it.

Watching Hal in the kitchen was a thing of beauty, and she hoped she would have many more opportunities to do it, but the sun was rising. Robin grabbed the blanket Hal had been using overnight and went out onto the porch, sitting in one of the wooden chairs out there.

The thing that kept puzzling her whenever she thought about his cabin, which was supposed to be oh-so-secret, was why he had so many chairs. Surely if it was just him here, then he would only need one chair at the table, one bar stool, and one chair for the porch? So why had he made so many? She hoped it was because he was going to share this place with his brothers one day. It was beautiful. Watching the sun rise over the ocean from the top of Hal’s mountain was one of the most peaceful things she’d experienced in a while.

She wrapped the blanket close around her, pulling her feet onto the chair itself so they could be covered too, and breathed in the fresh ocean air. Pink and orange streaked the sky as Hal came out holding two cups of coffee.

“This place is magical.” She smiled up at him, gratefully accepting the warm mug of coffee.

“I’m very glad you like it.” He smiled at her as he sat in the other chair before staring out to sea.

“Why do you have so many chairs?”

“Huh?”

She chuckled. “You said this was your super-secret hideaway that was just for you, so why do you have so many chairs?”

“Ah.” Hal ran a hand through his hair, shoving it back from his face, exposing the strong jawline that was softened by the stubble. “Well, I make them, and sometimes I don’t like what I make, so I do it again. I guess . . .” He sipped his coffee. “I guess I’m hoping one day I’ll find someone who wants to share it with me. Alec and Thad both found their soulmates, and I had never thought it was an option until recently, but now that I know, I just keep hoping that I’ll meet that person one day. Sappy, I know. My brothers would tear me a new one if they heard me talk like that.”

She smiled at him as he lost himself in his own thoughts.

“You know, at some point I think I’d like to have sex with you, if you’re interested,” Robin mused.

Hal spit out the sip of coffee he’d taken. “If I’m interested? You mean you couldn’t tell back there if I was? I should really work on that.” He smiled at her, but there was a seriousness to his eyes. “You know there is no rush, right?”

“I know, but you have to see it from my perspective. I feel like I’ve been living in a low-oxygen environment for the last nine years, and now I’m finally able to take deep breaths again. I trust you. Don’t get me wrong—I know we barely know each other, but we rescued each other. You came back for me even when you could have looked the other way. That means a hell of a lot to me. Plus, I’m having a hard time keeping my hands off you. So, there’s that.” Robin usually wasn’t so frank about her wants and needs, but after wasting almost a decade of her life at Eclipse, she didn’t want to stall anymore.

“I appreciate that, and believe me, the sight of you in nothing but a T-shirt and shorts has been distracting me since you knocked on my door last night, but that doesn’t mean we need to rush this.”

“You like my current outfit, huh?”

“Well, I think it shows off your, ah, assets to the best of its ability. Who am I to argue with that?” He winked at her, and the melting sensation was back.

“I guess my plan to ask if I could borrow some of your clothes is badly timed, then, huh?” She smiled and sipped her coffee.