Total pages in book: 205
Estimated words: 204377 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1022(@200wpm)___ 818(@250wpm)___ 681(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 204377 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1022(@200wpm)___ 818(@250wpm)___ 681(@300wpm)
When he reaches me, his hands fall to my hips, and his head lowers. Warm, pillowy lips brush mine in apology.
They’ve made a habit of kissing me. All three of them. But never in front of one another. When Leo and I sneak away to have sex, it’s usually a quickie. A few times, late in the night, we crept into his room and fucked for hours. I wish we could do that more often.
I wish we didn’t have to sneak around at all. But while Kody is healing, I don’t want to flaunt all the sex I’m having with his brother in his face. I also don’t want to stir the simmering pot of tension between them.
The lies I tell myself.
The truth is I’m dreading the conversation I’ve been putting off for two weeks.
I’m a damn coward.
“Thank you for helping me.” He draws my bottom lip into his mouth, sending carbonated tingles through my veins.
“You’re wel—”
A violent roar shatters the stillness.
We spin toward the entryway as the door crashes open. Denver flies in as if pushed, stumbling to remain upright with Leo raging on his heels.
“Not again.” I sigh.
Wolf slips in behind them in a deluge of fallen snow. Without glancing at us, he trods up the stairs and out of view.
While Leo is an expert at violence, Wolf has become the master of apathy.
What is happening to us?
“Here’s how this goes.” With ice clinging to his whiskers, Leo prowls after Denver and shoves him again. “I’ll start with your eyes. Those go first for seeing her naked.”
Denver ducks, nimbly dodging Leo’s strike and laughing manically.
“I’ll remove your tongue next.”
“You’re overreacting.” Denver shrugs off his coat and rolls up his sleeves.
“Overreacting?” Leo seethes. “We’re going to starve because of you! How about I skip your eyes and tongue and go straight to cutting off your dick?”
“One less mouth to feed.” Kody nods.
“And one less dick to worry about.” Leo unsheathes a blade from his boot.
Blood roars in my ears.
The threats against Denver’s life started the moment he winterized the plane. He lost his leverage, and everyone wants him dead, including me. But there’s one problem.
If the power goes out, we can’t fix it, and we don’t have enough wood or coal to stay alive.
I step between them, facing Leo. “We need him.”
“At least someone has some sense left.” Denver tugs on a lock of my hair, making me shiver.
Leo isn’t having it. Lifting me with his free arm, he sets me behind him, out of Denver’s reach.
Before he can turn back and make good on his murderous promise, I grab his wrist. The one attached to the knife.
“Hey.” I stroke his scruffy cheek. “We need to talk.”
“Can it wait?”
“It’s important.” Without releasing his arm, I pull him with me in the direction of the stairs.
My gaze connects with Kody’s, a silent plea to follow. After an exchange of glares and snarls between the men, Kody doesn’t move. Worse, Leo frees himself from my grip and spins back to the bane of our existence.
I make the mistake of meeting Denver’s eyes. He stares at me openly, lewdly, smiling like he knows something. Something sinister. Like he can’t wait to reveal some twisted plan that ends painfully for me.
My stomach folds in on itself, and Leo notices my unease.
“Take your fucking eyes off her!” He roars, lunging for him.
Kody jumps in, too, disregarding his injury.
Fuck it. I’ve endured enough testosterone for one day and decide to leave them to it. I refuse to get in the middle of a knife fight.
Moments later, they do the responsible thing and join me upstairs with no blood in sight.
“What’s this about?” Leo shuts the bedroom door behind Kody and braces his back against it.
“First, tell me why you pulled a knife on Denver.” I glance at Wolf on the bed, who studies his fingernails with too much interest.
“I caught him messing with the hydroelectric generator.” Leo clenches his fingers in his hair. “When I tried to go in there, he locked me out. He’s up to something. I don’t fucking trust him.”
“He has to do maintenance on it, idiot,” Wolf mutters.
“He needs to show us how to do it.” Fuming, Leo bangs a fist on the door.
“The only way to beat him is to take away his power.” I tremble with unproductive breathing. “He knows that. But he’s not going to purposefully break our heat source. His usefulness as a pilot still stands. As soon as the snow melts—”
“We won’t live that long.” Wolf grabs a notepad from the nightstand and holds it out to me. “I took an inventory of our food and calculated how long it will last. Even if we start rationing now, we won’t make it until spring.”
Aren’t we already rationing? The guys eat half their usual portions now, measuring each plate in equal parts. I’ve tried to reduce my meals, too, but I lost that battle.