Broken Ties Read Online Free

few months of self-imposed exile had nearly killed him.
    “I lived in homes all over the state. Some of them were filled with other kids, but in most of them, it was either only me or just one other child. The others always stayed behind when I left, and I never saw them again.”
    She was staring at her hands, which were clutched so tightly the knuckles were white, and he felt a sick dread in the pit of his stomach as he wondered just what kind of life she had lived in the homes of strangers. Had she had any stability in her life? Had she ever had anyone who loved her?
    “Did you change homes much?” he asked, hoping he was wrong in his suspicions of how alone she had really been.
    “I was fifteen when I ran away from one home. It was number thirteen.” She tried to smile, but failed miserably. “Turns out it was as unlucky as you’d expect.”
    He couldn’t bring himself to ask her to elaborate, so he focused on the number of homes she’d been in instead.
    “Thirteen homes? That couldn’t have given you time to form any kind of bonds with anyone in any of them. Did you ever have anyone constant?”
    “Only Carlotta, the woman who took me to and from each new home, and she would check up on me every few months. She would decide if I stayed or left, and more often than not, I left.” She took a shuddering breath before continuing. “She retired the year before I aged out of foster care, but she called me a few times the first few years, just to see how I was doing. She’s in a nursing home now.”
    “Did she ever suspect you may have been kidnapped as a child?”
    “She never mentioned it, and until now I never considered it.”
    “Tell me what makes you think it happened.”
    Levi watched her intently as she described what she thought was a memory. Her brandy-colored eyes grew dark with fear and confusion, and he wished he could ease her mind, but he had no idea what to say. No empty platitude or lame assurance was going to make her feel better or heal the pain of the past.
    She had worked for him for four years. How could he not have known something so important about her? Part of the reason he was good at his job was his ability to read people, to gauge their sincerity and state of mind. Yet he had never once noticed the hint of sadness that tinged her eyes or the way she hid behind that quiet, reserved grace of hers, using it like a shield to keep him from seeing any flicker of need. He had lost all objectivity the first time she spoke his name in that soft, lilting voice of hers and placed her delicate hand in his. His immediate flicker of attraction had burst into flames, and he had been blinded by his desire and his certain knowledge that she belonged to Teddy.
    That had been the first bone of contention between him and his brother, and from there, it had all gone downhill. By the time everything went to hell in a handbasket, Sidra was the only one left, he was half in love with her, and he couldn’t imagine how he would have dealt with all of it without her.
    Just like the day he met her and hundreds of days since, all he could think of now was how much he wanted to kiss those soft, full lips.
    “Are you even listening to me?” she asked, cocking her head to one side.
    Without considering the consequences, he lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her with years of pent-up passion.
    ****
    She had been kissed a time or two in the past, but never so deeply and thoroughly as this. And never had she welcomed a kiss so much. He knew it, too, judging by the low growl that sounded in his throat as he deepened the kiss.
    When at last they broke apart, they were both breathless and dazed by the desire that arced between them. Even as she was trying to gather her composure, she felt him pull away from her, saw his eyes darken with remorse.
    “Sid, I’m sorry,” he said. “I shouldn’t have done that. You’re scared and vulnerable, and I took advantage of it.”
    “You’re sorry you kissed me?” She