people"s eyes, a
whore.”
“Wow, I hadn"t thought about that,” I said.
He gave a sniff of quiet laughter, and this time it was undeniably bitter.
“Guess we both know what it"s like to be damaged goods, don"t we?”
“Yeah, I guess we do.”
Sabian let out a breath. Then he shook his head. “I"m sorry, Jocelyn. This isn"t
what you paid for.”
“I paid for an evening of company and conversation, didn"t I?”
He pursed his lips. “Yeah, but probably not a depressing conversation about
exes and that kind of thing. This is supposed to be about you. Talking about the
things you"re interested in.”
“And right now, I"m rather interested in the fact that we have more in common
than I thought.”
Again, our eyes met.
Almost whispering, he said, “Yeah, I guess we do have a few things in
common.”
I forced a halfhearted laugh. “The escort and the single mom. Who"d have
guessed?”
He shrugged, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips. “There aren"t too many
people who"d admit to having much in common with someone like me.”
“Something tells me that"s only because they don"t know anything about you.”
Sabian swallowed hard. Without a word, he reached for me, but not with the
confidence of a paid prostitute who knew what he was doing. His hand approached
my face slowly, tentatively, and when his fingertips brushed my cheek, we both took
sharp, startled breaths. His other hand slid around my waist, and I put my arms
around him. Out here in the cool evening air, the warmth of his body against mine
was more pronounced than it had been when we"d danced earlier.
“I have to tell you,” he said. “Whoever said you were damaged goods, they
didn"t have a clue what they were talking about.”
I traced his goatee with the backs of my fingers. “Likewise.”
For a long moment, we just looked at each other in the stark light. Then he
leaned in closer. Our foreheads touched. His fingers trembled against my cheek. I
Damaged Goods
57
lifted my chin, and he tilted his head. His lip brushed mine, but he pulled back just
enough to keep us from sinking into the kiss we both so desperately wanted.
“There"s something I want you to know,” he said.
“Hmm?” My lips tingled from the vibration of his voice.
His hand moved into my hair, the other drawing my body closer to his, and
just before our lips touched, he whispered, “My real name is Austin.”
My heart pounded, thundering his name over and over in my ears as he held
me to him and kissed me. Electricity crackled through my veins and up and down
my spine, and while it was far from the first time we"d touched, this kiss was
charged with the thrill of a first kiss. The kind of kiss that was meant to follow
hours, days, weeks of coy dancing and teasing.
The kind of kiss that meant we weren"t pretending anymore.
Austin. Austin. “My real name is Austin.”
Footsteps clicked on nearby pavement, but we didn"t let go of each other. I
wasn"t worried about anyone with a badge. We weren"t doing a damned thing
wrong. We were lovers to anyone who happened by. Two people too caught up in the
moment to take it elsewhere. Somewhere deep down, I wondered if I"d even fooled
myself into believing that.
Was I fooling myself?
We broke the kiss. As he looked at me now, his eyes edged more toward gold
than green this time, and he looked shy. Uncertain. Surprised. Either he was a
damned good actor, or this was no longer a business transaction. And whether it
was real or fake, business or pleasure, I wanted him.
“Do you…” I hesitated.
He ran his fingers through my hair. “Do I what?”
“I"m not sure where the lines are now,” I whispered. “If I said I wanted to go
somewhere else, I…” I gulped. “I don"t know who…”
“Who do you want?” he asked.“Sabian or Austin?”
My heart pounded, and my lips tingled with the echoes of his gentle kiss. “I
want…” I hesitated again, not sure if I dared cross this blurry
whore.”
“Wow, I hadn"t thought about that,” I said.
He gave a sniff of quiet laughter, and this time it was undeniably bitter.
“Guess we both know what it"s like to be damaged goods, don"t we?”
“Yeah, I guess we do.”
Sabian let out a breath. Then he shook his head. “I"m sorry, Jocelyn. This isn"t
what you paid for.”
“I paid for an evening of company and conversation, didn"t I?”
He pursed his lips. “Yeah, but probably not a depressing conversation about
exes and that kind of thing. This is supposed to be about you. Talking about the
things you"re interested in.”
“And right now, I"m rather interested in the fact that we have more in common
than I thought.”
Again, our eyes met.
Almost whispering, he said, “Yeah, I guess we do have a few things in
common.”
I forced a halfhearted laugh. “The escort and the single mom. Who"d have
guessed?”
He shrugged, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips. “There aren"t too many
people who"d admit to having much in common with someone like me.”
“Something tells me that"s only because they don"t know anything about you.”
Sabian swallowed hard. Without a word, he reached for me, but not with the
confidence of a paid prostitute who knew what he was doing. His hand approached
my face slowly, tentatively, and when his fingertips brushed my cheek, we both took
sharp, startled breaths. His other hand slid around my waist, and I put my arms
around him. Out here in the cool evening air, the warmth of his body against mine
was more pronounced than it had been when we"d danced earlier.
“I have to tell you,” he said. “Whoever said you were damaged goods, they
didn"t have a clue what they were talking about.”
I traced his goatee with the backs of my fingers. “Likewise.”
For a long moment, we just looked at each other in the stark light. Then he
leaned in closer. Our foreheads touched. His fingers trembled against my cheek. I
Damaged Goods
57
lifted my chin, and he tilted his head. His lip brushed mine, but he pulled back just
enough to keep us from sinking into the kiss we both so desperately wanted.
“There"s something I want you to know,” he said.
“Hmm?” My lips tingled from the vibration of his voice.
His hand moved into my hair, the other drawing my body closer to his, and
just before our lips touched, he whispered, “My real name is Austin.”
My heart pounded, thundering his name over and over in my ears as he held
me to him and kissed me. Electricity crackled through my veins and up and down
my spine, and while it was far from the first time we"d touched, this kiss was
charged with the thrill of a first kiss. The kind of kiss that was meant to follow
hours, days, weeks of coy dancing and teasing.
The kind of kiss that meant we weren"t pretending anymore.
Austin. Austin. “My real name is Austin.”
Footsteps clicked on nearby pavement, but we didn"t let go of each other. I
wasn"t worried about anyone with a badge. We weren"t doing a damned thing
wrong. We were lovers to anyone who happened by. Two people too caught up in the
moment to take it elsewhere. Somewhere deep down, I wondered if I"d even fooled
myself into believing that.
Was I fooling myself?
We broke the kiss. As he looked at me now, his eyes edged more toward gold
than green this time, and he looked shy. Uncertain. Surprised. Either he was a
damned good actor, or this was no longer a business transaction. And whether it
was real or fake, business or pleasure, I wanted him.
“Do you…” I hesitated.
He ran his fingers through my hair. “Do I what?”
“I"m not sure where the lines are now,” I whispered. “If I said I wanted to go
somewhere else, I…” I gulped. “I don"t know who…”
“Who do you want?” he asked.“Sabian or Austin?”
My heart pounded, and my lips tingled with the echoes of his gentle kiss. “I
want…” I hesitated again, not sure if I dared cross this blurry
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