One Chance (The Marchetti Men #1)

by Vee Taylor

To those who have been told they weren’t good enough by others. Let this be a reminder that you are. And to those who have tried to tear you down. . . fuck them.

“You can break down at home,” I told myself under my breath.

I had my vibrator, Dominic.

That’s the thing about abusers. Everyone always asks, “But didn’t you see the red flags?” I want to be like, of course I did. But I never really did. I was literally clouded by love.

“It’s like every time I start to feel like I’m getting back on my feet, life throws another curveball at me.

It’s a constant battle with my mind, and I don’t know if I’m strong enough to win it,”

“Hey, you know you don’t have to go on this journey alone. It’s okay to let someone in and see where it takes you. Don’t be afraid to let your guard down and give someone a chance.”

“Am I happy with what’s in front of me? You have been the object of my obsession over the last few days. I was desperate for a taste of you, even a little smell of the sweet lavender, to melt into your blue eyes. I haven’t been able to focus on anything BUT you the last few days, little bear.”

“You deserve to be put first. I told you before, and I’ll say it again. It’s not often I’m told no, but that doesn’t mean your opinion doesn’t matter.

“I will always tell you the truth, little bear, even if it means you may be in danger of knowing what that is. I never lie.”

“Little bear,” he murmured, wiping away a few rogue tears. “Who hurt you?”

Decisions should be like wine; the longer you mull on them, the sweeter they taste.”

Why were the easiest decisions the hardest to make?

“You are an enigma, my little bear. A gorgeous package that I ache to unwrap.”

Did men just fucking think that women would drop their panties for anyone? But when they took control of a situation, their fucking balls shriveled up.

I lived in different worlds inside the books I read and envied the characters with groups of friends who put them first.

“What you will not do is let another man put their hands on you when you don’t want it. And if I see it? I will take them out to protect what belongs to me.”