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)
“Talk to me.” I crouch before her.
“I don’t like hurting him.” She squeezes her eyes shut for a moment before meeting my gaze. “I know that’s naive after everything he’s done. But what if his help is genuine? What if he’s a victim in this, just like us? I’m not trying to be mean—”
“You don’t have a mean bone in your body.” Kody crosses his arms, towering over us.
“We’ll get to the bottom of Montgomery Strakh.” I cup the back of her head and pull her face to mine. “In the meantime, there’s nothing wrong with being cautious and setting boundaries. He has no right to touch you, and when we land, we’ll make the rules clear for him.”
“My snow cabin boys have rules?” She quirks an eyebrow.
“Snow cabin boys?” I scowl. “When it comes to you and him, you better fucking believe your men have rules.”
“There is no me and him.”
“Exactly.” I kiss her lush mouth, savoring the soft, sensual glide of her tongue against mine, groaning into the heat. “I think I’ll stay back here with you.”
“No.” She fans her fingers over my braids, kissing me again. “Fly with Monty. Ask him about the plane, about what to expect in Sitka. Find out everything you can.”
“Okay, but if you need me—”
“She has me.” Kody grunts.
I glide my thumb along her bottom lip. “If Monty’s flying lessons are worth anything, I’ll be up there learning something useful for us.”
“I know.” She manages a small smile. “I love you.”
“My forever.” I look her over for any sign of distress, reluctant to leave.
“I’ve got her.” Kody clamps a hand on my head and shoves me away.
I lunge to my feet and grip his neck. “You need anything, you call for me.”
“Yep.”
“Keep her safe.”
“Always.” He swats me away, but the look he shoots me echoes the concern pulsing through my veins.
Her fear of flying could materialize into a full-blown panic attack.
He’ll alert me if that happens.
Bending down, I steal another kiss from her. Then I turn and make my way to the cockpit.
Even though I’m leaving her in Kody’s capable hands, my role as her protector never leaves me.
“Frankie.” I pause with my hand on the door. “I’m putting my trust in Monty to get us there safely. But make no mistake. If he looks at me wrong or if this becomes too much for you, I’ll turn this plane around myself.”
My words are a vow, carved from the depths of my savage commitment to her.
3
Kodiak
—
As Leo disappears into the cockpit, I swallow my nerves and keep my attention on Frankie.
She clutches the armrests of her seat, her fingers stiff and pale.
The plane hasn’t even started its taxi to the runway, and her eyes already dim beneath ghosts of anxiety. She tries to hide it with a brave smile, but it’s not working.
The distant tinkling of glass and subtle movements from the nook in the front signal the presence of a crew member.
They haven’t closed the air stair door yet. I can still carry her off.
“Hey.” I crouch beside her, meeting her stark gaze with a steady one of my own. “Give me one good reason not to throw you over my shoulder and haul you out of here like a caveman.”
“Because I secretly enjoy the caveman act and might start thinking it’s the only way to travel.”
“Woman, I’ll always be your caveman.”
A small, nervous breath escapes her, wrapped in curved lips.
Stunning.
I need to strap her in, but the seat she chose puts her back to the cockpit.
“Is this where you want to sit?” I glance around, counting. “There are five other options plus that three-person divan.”
“If we crash, no seat is safe.”
“The chance of crashing twice in three days is extraordinarily rare, verging on statistically improbable. For once, the odds are in our favor.”
“Good answer, handsome.” She runs the backs of her fingers along my jaw. “Even so, will you sit across from me so I can look into your eyes when we become an improbable statistic?”
Christ. My chest constricts.
Her fear is instinctual, a deep-rooted dread that even the bravest can’t easily shake off.
“I know it’s hard, but I need you to try something for me.” I take her seat belt in my hands, beginning the familiar ritual of securing her in. “Focus on the here and now, not on what could happen. You control this moment, not your fear.”
“Okay.” She squares her shoulders. “I’ll try.”
As I straighten the straps across her lap, every little flinch and tense breath she takes has me scrambling to lighten the mood. A tactic Wolf excelled at.
“When I buckled you in on the Turbo Beaver, I checked it about twenty times. Bet you thought I was just being overprotective.”
“There was another reason?”
“I was making excuses to stay close.” I peek at her face. “To get into your pants.”