Total pages in book: 192
Estimated words: 189782 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 949(@200wpm)___ 759(@250wpm)___ 633(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 189782 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 949(@200wpm)___ 759(@250wpm)___ 633(@300wpm)
Finally, we return to Sitka. As I step off the plane, the island beckoning in the distance, I know one thing for certain.
We’ll find him. We owe him that much and more.
The hunt isn’t over. Not by a long shot.
38
Frankie
—
The air-conditioning in the den blasts from the vents, chilling me to the bone and making me brittle.
Doyle leans forward in the chair, facing me, his eyes intense, magnetic, trying to draw me in, but I feel nothing.
I’ve learned to be wary of pretty faces and charming smiles.
Thank you, Denver.
“How are you feeling today?” He brushes his hand against mine. A fleeting touch, but it makes me shudder.
“Trapped,” I admit. “It’s been a month since Leo and Kody started searching for Wolf’s body in the Arctic. Whenever they return to Sitka, I hardly see them. Kody’s busy with the distillery, and Leo’s finishing flight school. I feel so alone.”
Doyle knows too much. More than he should. I’ve been seeing him for three months, and he’s heard it all—every gruesome detail about my time with Denver, my relationship with Leo and Kody, Wolf’s suicide, and the stalker.
The stalker who’s been silent since we received Wolf’s photo.
“You’re not alone,” he says. “You have me.”
“For two hours a week.” I laugh, hiding my discomfort. “Rhett is still holding my job. I want to go back to work. I need to feel useful, to have a purpose.”
“Your mental health is just as important as your physical safety. If going back to work makes you happy, you should do it. Even with the stalker threat, you can take security guards with you.”
“I live with three men who would be absolutely furious to hear you say that. They want to protect me.”
“Protect you? Or control you?”
“No one controls me.”
Leo and Kody are my world, but their quests for closure and independence keep them from me. I understand, but it doesn’t make the loneliness any easier.
They’re somewhere in the Arctic Circle right now with Sirena. When they return, they’ll be upset and worked up, their eyes haunted by another failed mission. And they’ll direct that aggression at me.
They’ll think of nothing else than luring me to be alone, putting their hands and mouths on me, pushing my clothes aside, and slacking their insatiable need.
I want them to feel how wet they make me while they whisper filthy words. Their touch, their growls, their scents, our connection—all of it compounds with mine, sparking like an overloaded electrical circuit.
The problem is they don’t want me to leave the island, and I won’t have sex with them under Monty’s roof.
What kind of person would I be if I gave in and fucked them with Monty in the other room?
Cruel. That’s what I would be. Fucking cruel.
Like it or not, I’m in a complicated love square, and until I figure it out, no one is getting laid.
It’s torture.
So when Leo and Kody return, I’ll continue to resist their advances with a crumbling willpower. It’ll enrage them, and they’ll storm off to Sitka and channel all that frustration into their dreams.
Kody pours his heart into the distillery, and I admire his drive. He’ll be opening his bar to the public soon, and I couldn’t be happier for him. But I miss him. So fucking much.
Leo remains focused on earning advanced pilot certificates. It’s his way of gaining control, of proving to himself and the world that he’ll never be helpless again. I love him for it, but I need him here, with me, to remind me that the present is just as important as the future. I need him to prove our connection is more than just sex.
Then there’s Monty. He tries so hard to fill the gap, but I keep him at arm’s length. Because I’m scared. I’m fucking terrified of my feelings for him. If I nurture those feelings…
It will ruin everything. My relationship with Leo and Kody. Monty’s relationship with them. There’s no scenario where the four of us can be together the way I want. I’ve thought about it. A lot.
“Every decision you make revolves around them,” he says. “It’s not healthy, Frankie.”
“You’re right.” I rub my temples, conflicted and confused. “I don’t know what to do.”
“Maybe you should separate from them for a while. If they love you, they’ll understand your need for independence.”
Horror robs my breath as denial crashes over me, dragging me under where the light of reason cannot reach.
“No. Absolutely not. I love them.”
“All three of them?” His eyes narrow, a flicker of something dark passing through them.
“Yes. I love them and can’t imagine my life without them.”
“We’ve talked about this, Frankie. You can’t have three men. Especially three unstable men with aggression issues who refuse to see a therapist. You need to rewire your nervous system to gravitate toward healthy connections, enriching relationships, and meaningful intimacy. Not the toxic ones you’re clinging to.”