Damaged and the Knight (Damaged #2)

Whimpering behind my hand, I was still too loud and his eyes opened as if he hadn’t been asleep at all. Judd stared at me for a moment then whispered, “Angel.”


Another minute passed as I tried to quiet myself and he stared like I was a ghost. Once he sat up, his frown looked more like the one I’d seen the day before.

“What?”

Unable to explain my fear to a man like Judd, I knew he wouldn’t understand or care about a bad dream.

Judd stood up and switched off the television. Taking me by the back of the neck, he maneuvered me to the bedroom.

“Get in.”

Unwrapping the blanket from around me, I climbed into bed and wondered what would happen next? While Judd had saved me, he looked intimidating in the darkened room. He set a gun on the dresser then pulled off his shirt and jeans. This was the moment when I panicked enough for my breath to catch in my throat.

“Let’s say,” Judd whispered, “that some fuck was to show up here and cause trouble. Let’s say the piece of shit that put those bruises on your face shows up here, do you know what would happen?”

As I shook my head, Judd laid over the covers I rested under.

“I would shoot the fucker. No warning shot. No flesh wound. One shot and it would be over. Do you understand?”

Nodding, I watched as he stretched out on the other side of the bed.

“We’re not fucking, kid. I just want some sleep and you got yourself all worked up over a bad dream. This way, you’ll quiet down and I’ll get rest. We both win and nothing more is going to happen,” he said, closing his eyes.

“Thank you,” I whispered, lying down too.

“With that said, you’d be smart to keep on your side of the bed. If you start fondling me in the dark, I might forget where I am and who I’m with and I won’t stop. Get it?”

Staring at him, I sighed. “I shared a bed with my sister for years and never fondled her. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

Judd smiled in the dark. “Good to hear. Now, go to sleep.”

Maybe ten minutes passed before I suspected Judd was asleep. I heard the way his breathing softened and slowed. Yet, even with the gun nearby and a big scary guy to protect me, I was afraid.

My mind returned to the sound of Tommy’s face slamming into the car. How his blood splattered across the windshield and he flopped to the ground like a ragdoll. Once I remembered the way Judd intimidated those perverts, I fell asleep smiling.





Chapter Three


The first time I woke up, a sleeping Judd had his back to me. I stared at the tanned muscles before focusing on a large pirate ship tattoo. The design was so detailed I felt like a real man stared back at me from the deck. My fingers went to trace the lines until I remembered what Judd said about fondling him. Pulling my hand back, I stared at the tattoo until dozing off again.

The second time I woke up, the room was brighter and Judd was facing me. With an arm propped under his chin, he studied my face for nearly a minute after I opened my eyes. He didn’t seem to notice I was awake, but it was probably that he didn’t care. His strong fingers reached out and brushed hair away from my face. Trying not to shiver from his touch, I failed.

Judd showed no reaction to my reaction. He just watched me for another moment or two then pulled his hand away and sat up.

“It’s after nine,” he announced. “You need to get cleaned up, so we can grab breakfast downstairs before they stop serving it at ten. I want to get on the road soon, since your sister pulled rank and we’re driving.”

Sitting up, I watched him pull his tee over his head. There was something entirely too tempting about his strong shoulders down to his lean waist. Overwhelmed with lust, I was afraid to make eye contact with Judd. Yet, he knew what I was thinking. When I finally looked at Judd, I found him smirking.

“Never going to happen,” he said, walking out of the room.

Judd sounded as if he meant the words, but his hungry expression earlier made me think he wasn’t convinced.

Soon, I was showered, dressed, packed, and we were headed downstairs for the hotel’s continental breakfast. I’d never stayed in a hotel that served breakfast and it was better than I expected. I bagged up extras because Judd muttered something about having me pee in a bottle, so we could drive the whole day.

Once in the SUV, Judd turned on a CD and ignored me for the first hour. Using his phone, I texted Farah. When I asked about our mother, Farah only said she was gone. Long after I set the phone aside, I thought about what “gone” meant.

Amy Jones Smith was a lifelong loser. Con woman, addict, coward, she was our mother though. Farah likely wanted something from Amy when she moved in with her in Ellsberg. My sister always dreamed of a normal family and life. I suspected she hoped Amy was sober enough to be a different person. Instead, our mother stole Farah’s nest egg, much like she stole our innocence when she left us with those bikers.