She sighed. “I think your hand looks sexy. It’s probably stronger than my whole body, and I feel safe with you.” She ducked her head, trying to hide her embarrassment.
He put his hand under her chin and raised her head. She slammed her eyes shut and squeezed them tightly.
He chuckled. “Honey, open your eyes and look at me.”
She reluctantly opened them and looked up at him.
“I don’t want you to be embarrassed. I love that you find me attractive and feel safe with me. That’s exactly what I want.”
Her brows snapped together. “Oh, okay.”
“What I’d like to talk about is your situation. Do you like living above your uncle’s garage?”
She shook her head. The place creeped her out, and she always felt like someone was going through her things when she wasn’t there. Her uncle’s new wife hated her for some reason, but she hadn’t thought she would go that far. “No, I don’t.”
He nodded. “How about your job at the bar?’
“No. Men try to touch me all the time.”
She saw a muscle jump in his jaw and wondered why that made him angry.
“What would you say if I asked you to stay here with me and I’d find you things to do in my office?”
Her mouth dropped open, and her mind scrambled with the shock. She never thought he’d say that. She thought he might want another date, but that was it. “What kind of office is it?”
“We deal with security issues around the world.”
“I don’t know much about that,” she said.
“You don’t have to, baby.”
“W … what would I do?”
“I’m not sure yet.”
“What if I can’t learn it?” she asked. The last thing she wanted was for him to think she was dumb.
“Honey, we’ll find something you can do and enjoy doing. I don’t want you to worry about this,” Gavin said.
“It’s just I don’t want to be a leach.”
He cupped her chin. “Where did you get an idea like that from?”
“My step-aunt. I stayed in the house with my uncle until he married her. She called me a parasite, too, but I wasn’t. I helped with everything. I cleaned the house, cooked, mowed the lawn, and then worked in the bar.”
Was there more she could have done? When she asked her uncle, he always told her no and not to listen to her aunt, but it was hard to do. How could she block out words that pierced her heart?
Chapter Seven
Gavin squeezed her foot to get her attention. He hated the fact that bitch said such things to her. Women like Alexa tended to internalize their feelings, and they took it so much harder than a regular woman her age. Also, words cut deep for littles, and it would take a while to make her believe that she wasn’t bad.
“Listen to me, baby. You did everything right. I can guarantee your aunt has a mean spirit, and she likes making people around her miserable. I know it’s weird and very sad, but some people like being mean.”
“Why?”
“I’m not sure. Please believe me when I say you’re perfect the way you are.”
“Okay.”