Sins of the Past (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)

spent thousands of dollars on tanning beds or spent countless hours out in the sun in an effort to achieve the perfect tan she naturally had.
    Lorna kept her black hair short because of her job, but she liked to think the cut was cute. She stared into the mirror at her hazel eyes and wondered if Jacob saw the same things she did. Did he think her breasts were too large or that she was fat? She wasn’t a size two, but Lorna had never been uncomfortable about her weight. She didn’t go out of her way to starve herself or diet. When she was hungry, she ate. When she wanted ice cream or something sweet, she didn’t deny herself.
    “If he doesn’t like it, then screw him.” Lorna turned away from the mirror before she saw the lie on her face. For some reason, she cared what Jacob thought. There was something about him that she couldn’t quite figure out. He was different from any guy she had ever met and for the first time, it mattered whether he liked her or not.
    “I wish you were here, Uncle John. Maybe you could make some sense of all of this.” Lorna wiped away the tears that trailed down her cheeks. It was times like this that she could really use his advice. She could almost imagine his gruff voice in her ear as he put his arm over her shoulder like he always did. He was the only one she had ever allowed to show her any affection. She wouldn’t even let her own mother hug her. Right now, she really wished she had his comfort.
    Taking a deep breath, Lorna headed to her closet. She looked at all her clothes and shook her head at the selections there. She didn’t think she had anything that didn’t have at least one grease stain on it. It was a bad habit of hers to wipe her hands against her clothes while she worked. It was to the point now that she did it without even thinking, no matter if she was wearing what she considered work clothes or not. Over the years, everything she owned somehow wound up as work clothes.
    Lorna winced. She didn’t want Jacob to think she was a huge slob, so she settled for the least offensive shirt of the bunch, which turned out to be a blue ribbed tank top that had a small smudge on the side as if she had brushed up against something the last time she had worn it. She paired the top with a pair of cut off jean shorts. Even though it was dark outside, it was still muggy and hot. Looking at herself in the mirror once she was dressed, Lorna nodded. She was comfortable and at least presentable. If Jacob had a problem, then maybe he would be better off with someone like Ashley.
    Just the thought of Ashley getting her perfectly manicured claws in Jacob sent her pulse racing as Lorna turned away from the mirror. The thought shouldn’t have bothered her as much as it did, but she couldn’t seem to help it. For once, Lorna was interested in someone who seemed to be equally as interested in her. She wanted to see where things went with Jacob and the last thing she needed was Little Miss Perfect sticking her nose where it didn’t belong.
    “If he goes for that skank, then there is nothing you can do about it,” Lorna told herself. If Jacob wasn’t interested in her, then he wouldn’t be the first. Still, she would settle for at least a friend in Jacob even if he wasn’t interested in anything romantic with her.
    Knowing she was just stalling, she slid her feet into her flip flops and headed out the door. As she marched across the street, she made a promise to herself to just have fun. She decided to just enjoy Jacob’s company for a change and if something between them happened then she would deal with that when it happened.
    Lorna reached Jacob’s house and opened the door when he yelled that it was open. The smells of cooked food hit her as soon as she entered and her stomach growled immediately.
    Jacob laughed. “It’s a good thing dinner is almost ready.”
    “It’s your fault.” Lorna frowned at him. “If I hadn’t had to use all of my lunch saving your ass today, then maybe I would have had time to eat.”
    “My ass thanks you.”
    Lorna paused a moment before she doubled over laughing. Not many people could handle her snarky comments. She knew she was rude and crass and Lorna didn’t go out of her way to hide the fact.
    “It’s refreshing to finally meet someone that can dish as well as he can take it. You have no idea how boring the local yokels are.”
    Jacob nodded. “I take it they don’t get you.” He turned and motioned for her to follow him to the