“You should be,” he warned with a glimmer in his eyes.
I ignored his taunt as I leaned back to see him better. My curiosity overcame any fear I had. “Why?”
“Why is he in prison, or why should you be scared?”
“I don’t know, both, I suppose,” I shot back, feeling flummoxed.
Hudson released me, and my arms fell to my sides as he stepped back. I watched, totally confused, as he cupped some water in his hands and splashed his face and hair.
My eyes dipped to his strong torso, where rivulets of wetness streamed down his perfect skin. The wolf tattoo on his shoulder almost growled at me. Hudson’s chest was lightly covered with hair. As I looked down into the water, I could see that fine line of hair which led from his belly button down to his crotch.
OMG, Molly, eyes up.
“Hudson?” I repeated, seeing a myriad of emotions crossing his face.
This boy is tortured.
At that point, I wanted to know everything about him. Somewhere under that brooding hostility was a different guy, the true Hudson. This boy had a vulnerability he was hiding, and I wanted to find it—dig it out.
He surged in the water, snagging one of my hands and lifting it to his face.
I watched, feeling so far out of my comfort zone as he held me loosely by the wrist, inspecting my palm and finger tips, “Whilst I love a farcical debate as much as the next guy, I have places to be. Your skin is wrinkled and you look cold,” he husked, sliding his gaze back to mine. “Now get out of the pool and get yourself dry.”
When he mentioned me getting dry, I realised the towel I had been wearing was floating behind him in the middle of the pool.
“I don’t have a towel.”
“There are spare ones. The coach keeps some in each room by the showers. Go now, you’re turning blue.”
“Fine,” I huffed at his bossiness, tugging my hand back, knowing the conversation was well and truly over now.
Hudson’s mask was back in place. I hated that sinking feeling that washed over me.
I turned away then, no longer wanting to look at his smug, fake face, irrespective of it being downright sexy.
As I exited the water, hoisting myself up the steps, I could feel his eyes drilling into my back.
That strange connection I had felt between us in the library had not gone away; if anything, it had become stronger. And I now knew one of the reasons he was so damaged. His mother died, and hehatedhis father. I didn’t wonder why, as there werecountless reasons. If his father were in prison, then he clearly did something wrong. But what?
I shoved that thought away as I entered the girls’ changing rooms and found the locker I had used, and fortunately, what appeared to be a fresh, clean towel.
The damaged parts of Hudson called to the broken ones inside of me. And that thing that Hudson and I had in common became more defined.
We werebothhurting.
Coach Sheldon stopped me on my way out of the complex to grill me about what had happened. I played dumb.
I had enough shit on my plate without making things worse.
HUDSON
I was as confused as fuck. What the hell? How did Molly Miller manage to get me to talk about my parents? That shitneverhappened. The girl had unearthed some of my secrets without even trying. I had every intention of taking those motherfuckers to the grave with me. Not even my brothers knew about all the shit that had happened in my past and we were tight.
What was it about this girl?
Maybe she was sent to save my soul. The girl certainly glowed like an angel. Yeah. Good luck withthatone.
I was surprised by her strength today. In the cafeteria and the boys’ locker room, I’d had her pegged as a crier, but nope, not one tear, evenafterher ordeal. I bet they’d taste so sweet, too.
