Read Online The Mighty Quinns: Thom by Kate Hoffmann - Free Book Online Page A

and they were happy until my father lost his job. He started drinking a lot and my mum had to work longer hours. She worked nights so that they didn’t have to pay for child care, although my da wasn’t around much once my older brother, Tristan, was able to watch over us. I was about ten when the bad times started.”
    “Did he get sick?”
    “My father was killed trying to rob a gas station. My mother started drinking after he left, and things got even worse when they sent us into the foster care system. We bounced in and out of that, back and forth between my mother and the system. There was the occasional nice family and some not-so-nice group homes. Sometimes we were together, sometimes not. We rarely had money and we lived out of our car one summer. School was a joke. But then one of my foster parents enrolled me in an after-school hockey program. I learned to skate and play the game, and I was good at it.” He’d avoided her gaze for most of his story, but he took a moment to look at her. “Do you feel sorry for me?”
    Malin shook her head. She crawled closer to him and tucked herself beneath his arm, then pulled him down to lie next to her. Their naked limbs tangled beneath the bed linens, and she pressed a kiss to the center of his chest. “Did your brothers play hockey?” she asked, hoping she’d found a question that might keep him talking.
    “No, they had their own interests.” A long silence descended between them. He grabbed her hand and began to toy with her fingers, weaving them through his as he contemplated his next words. “So, do you pity me?”
    “No, I really like you. I mean, really, really, I do. I never expected to like you so much.”
    “I like you, too,” he murmured.
    Thom slipped his hand around her waist and pulled her naked body against his. The contact was electric, and Malin felt the breath suddenly leave her body. When he wanted something, Thom Quinn didn’t hesitate to take it.
    He kissed her and she was lost in the sweet taste of his mouth, the way he drew away and toyed with her bottom lip, catching it between his teeth before kissing her again.
    Thom rolled over her, stretching his body out over the length of hers. Malin loved the weight of his flesh pressing against her breasts and hips.
    “Do you know what I think we should do?” he asked.
    Malin swallowed hard, wondering if this was when they’d finally make love. She was ready. She’d even considered taking control herself but then remembered he had his own reasons for the delay.
    “We should go on a date,” he continued. “I’m going to take you to dinner. I know this wonderful Italian place right in the neighborhood. They have the best lasagna. If you hate lasagna, they have—”
    “We can’t go out,” Malin said. “If I’m seen with you, there’ll be photographs and all kinds of speculation.”
    “I’m not always recognized,” he said.
    “All it takes is one photo to be posted online and suddenly you and I are engaged. Believe me, I know how these things can flare out of control.”
    “I guess you’re right,” he murmured.
    “We could always call and get takeout.”
    He nodded, but Malin saw the disappointment in his eyes. She should have been pleased about the prospect of a real date, but in truth, she had to be realistic.
    If he was traded, they would never see each other again. And if he wasn’t, there was no way she could continue to sleep with him. As soon as his fate was decided, hers would be, too. Thom Quinn would be off-limits.
    * * *
    S HE SLEPT CURLED against his body, her legs tucked into his lap, her chin resting on his shoulder. Thom couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt so absolutely content with his life. As long as she was with him, all was well with the world.
    Still, he knew it was only a matter of time before the wolves were at the door. He’d never regretted the choices he’d made in his life until this very moment. And now all the stupid moves had come back to