Page 66 of Powerless
“Okay, I didnotneed to know that," I groaned. "But yeah, women who don't provide sex as a service treat it differently. Most of them only do it with people they care about. So there's more touching, kissing, little things like that. It creates intimacy."
"It felt good. I mean, it always does. But good in a different way." Shadow's hand rested on his chest tattoo, eyes unfocused as he seemed to recall the sensation.
"Well enjoy that memory because it's all you'll ever have," I said. "Reaper ordered me to tell you it's to never happen again. He also wants an apology from you for having his woman without permission."
Shadow's hand dropped from his chest, his eyes going from dreamy to stoic. "Okay. I can do that."
I sucked in a breath. "He also wants you to apologize to Mariposa."
His gaze snapped up to mine, wide-eyed and panicked. "I can't."
"You can and you will," I told him in my most stern dad voice. "You had your dick inside her. You can say you're sorry."
He shook his head. "I can't do it, Jandro."
"Dude, you're a three-hundred pound gorilla. She'sonelittle woman. What's the worst she can do to you?"
He looked away without an answer but I saw the tremor in his hands.
I felt awful for the guy. He came such a long way since I found him but his trauma and his fears still ran deep. At least twice a week, all his progress seemed to reset due to his night terrors. Shadow was a beast feared almost more than the Steel Demons name itself. But no one else saw the man trembling in the center of a bedroom filled with furniture torn to splinters, wearing the face of a terrified kid I found in a prison cell.
"I keep telling you most women arenotlike your family," I said in a gentler tone, clapping my hand on his shoulder. "I can tell you until I'm blue in the face, but this is your chance to see it for yourself."
He still didn't answer and I knew he was off somewhere in his head.
"Hey," I snapped my fingers in front of his face. "Stay with me, dude. You're building this up in your head and it's really not that big a deal. You can do this."
"Do I have to?" Jesus, he really was like a child. "I'll apologize to Reaper and he can tell her—“
"No. He was very specific, Shadow. You need to tell her yourself." I sighed. "I know it's scary, man. I used to be terrified of talking to girls, too."
"You were?"
"Like twenty years ago, but yeah. It gets easier the more you do it, though. Trust me on that."
He sighed, resigned to his fate. "Will you help me with what I should say?"
"Sure thing, buddy." I slapped his back. "We'll work it out before church. Get on back to your workout."
He jumped up and returned to the weights like he couldn't wait to get away from this conversation. I, too, was glad to have it over with. Now if only I could get the image of Mari riding his dick out of my head.
A chuckle escaped me despite myself. Shadow had to be the only person in the world who found it easier to cut a man's throat than say a single word to a woman.
Twenty-Four
MARIPOSA
"Ow! Fuck!"
I ignored Big G's complaints as I ripped the bandage off of his bullet wound.
"Ow, that was my fucking leg hair!"
"Oh my God, will you quit your bitching?" Tessa waddled over to the couch while I bit my lip to hold in the laughter.
"You've never been shot, woman!"
"And you've never pushed an eight-pound baby out of your body, so shut the hell up."
