Forever Branded (Billionaire Love Series #1) by Jessa Eden Page B

reached over and tucked her hair behind her ear, wanting to make her feel better.
    “What are you doing?” she whispered.
    “I don’t know,” I said as I leaned into her, overcome with the need to be close to her. I could smell the strawberry shampoo coming from her shiny, soft hair.
    “You have the prettiest hair, Marla Matthews,” I said, picking up a few strands and rubbing them between my thumb and pointer finger.
    It was just as soft as it looked.
    “Uh, thanks,” she said, blushing.
    Her sexy lips parted, sparking something intense inside me.
    “I wanted to say I was sorry for the other day. I shouldn’t have called you boring. You are most definitely not boring.” My lips hovered over hers as I dared myself to kiss her.
    She gently pushed me away. “Thank you for saying that. But this doesn’t mean you get to take liberties with me,” she explained as I struggled to control my attraction to her.
    “Liberties?” I asked in confusion.
    “Yeah, liberties, like taking advantage of me.”
    I smiled wickedly, hoping to charm her. “A little sugar doesn’t hurt anybody.”
    “Maybe. But I don’t throw my affections around lightly, Beau Shepard.”
    “Affections? You sound like Jane Eyre,” I teased.
    “I might be old-fashioned, but I can’t afford to be your conquest of the moment. You don’t even seem to care about your grades. Why would I think you could care about me?”
    Whoa. That was heavy.
    I shoved my hand into my front pocket. “I learned not to care about much a long time ago.” Marla brought out an honesty in me I had never experienced with another person.
    “Why?”
    “It was just easier than pretending I was smart.”
    Her gaze softened; her brown eyes bright with warmth. “Oh, I think you’re plenty smart, Beau Shepard.”
    “You do?”
    “Oh, yeah.” Her gentle gaze studied me. “I want you to tell me the real reason you don’t like English class.”
    I looked away, stripped of my usual confidence. “Reading has always been hard for me.”
    Her face lit up with understanding as I glanced back at her. “Ah...Now, I get it. That’s why you’ve been working overtime to avoid reading Jane Eyre . Why didn’t you say something sooner?”
    “Because I didn’t want to see that look of pity on your face.”
    “It’s not pity. It’s compassion. Everyone has their struggles.”
    “Yeah, but my dad says weakness isn’t acceptable.”
    “If there wasn’t weakness in the world, how would any of us get stronger?” she countered.
    “I hadn’t thought of it like that before.”
    “Yeah, we all have things that are hard for us. It shouldn’t stop you from trying.”
    I shook my head and grinned. “Are you always this optimistic?”
    “Yeah, pretty much. I choose to stay positive because the alternative is to become bitter and negative, and I don’t want to live like that.”
    “How did you become so wise?” he asked, his blue eyes full of wonder.
    “I don’t know. I just always follow my heart.”
    “So is your heart willing to help me with my paper?” I asked, hoping it was the perfect time to pop the question.
    She sized me up, cocking her head to one side and sighed. “All right, I’ll tutor you.”
    “Yes!” I said, throwing my hands up in victory.
    “You’re not going to complain about being bored?”
    I put my hand over my heart. “You’ve got my word, Sunshine. In fact, I wanted to see if you wanted to come over to my house for dinner tonight and help me do a little work on my paper.”
    “Are you serious?” She took a step backward, looking scared.
    I grinned widely, trying to put her at ease. “Absolutely.”
    “You’re being real here, right? You’re not trying to be mean or nasty are you?”
    I shook my head in denial.“No, not at all. Just come to dinner, Sunshine.”
    Her body relaxed as she realized I was being sincere. “Okay.”
    “I’ll pick you up at seven.”
    “No, I can take the bus. I just have to arrange for Emma to be