Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 75288 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 376(@200wpm)___ 301(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75288 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 376(@200wpm)___ 301(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
Even after I do all the housework I can find to do, I’m too restless to sit down. It’s still sunny outside, and it’s too pretty a day to spend indoors, so I bundle up and head outside.
Fresh snow blankets the woods and sparkles in the sun. The air feels fresh and clean. I follow a familiar path I’ve walked before, until I come to a clearing beyond the inner fence line, where the snow has drifted out and is only a few inches deep.
My boots crunch softly, forging a new path, as my thoughts swirl around the events of last night. When I first went to Atlas’s room, he was working, but once I was in his arms, he held me like there was nowhere else he needed to be.
In every way possible, he’s more than enough man all on his own, and things would be simpler if my feelings ended there.
But I can’t help how I feel about Grizz and Viper.
I don’t want to pull Atlas away from his brothers. The three of them share years of history and a bond forged by fire.
I wonder if he said anything to them about last night. He must have.
I haven’t seen the other men all day, but it’s as likely they’re busy as it is that they're avoiding me.
A set of tiny animal tracks under a nearby tree catches my eye. As I step off the path to get a closer look, the crack of a gunshot splits the air.
I drop to the ground, my heart slamming against my rib cage. Snow burns my cheek as I flatten myself on the ground, breath locked in my throat.
A voice, very close, cuts through the ringing silence. “Don’t move.”
CHAPTER 27
KIRA
It’s Viper, calm, sharp, and suddenly right beside me. He crouches next to my prone body and hovers his hand over my back, keeping me down while barely touching me.
He already has his sidearm out, a compact pistol much like the one he taught me to hold. He’s holding his weapon low but ready. His posture is lethally still. There’s also a rifle slung across his back, the strap snug against his shoulder.
“You’re okay,” he says quietly.
“How did you—”
“I saw him come onto the property. Just a hunter.”
He gives me a hand and helps me up onto shaky legs. Fear races through my body, looking for an escape.
Grizz appears a few seconds after I get my balance. He’s dragging someone by the back of the jacket, and I expect it to be Preston, even though my rational mind trusts what Viper told me.
I let out a breath when I see the man’s face and don’t recognize him.
The stranger stumbles, nearly face-planting, but Grizz, with one massive hand locked between the man’s shoulder blades, doesn’t even slow.
“Take it easy,” the man grumbles. “I didn’t do anything.”
“You fired a weapon on private property,” Viper says.
Grizz stops several feet away, but positions himself in front of me. His presence is as solid as a wall. “What were you aiming at?” he demands of the man.
“A deer. It was right over there—” The man’s voice shakes as he points into the forest. “I didn’t know anyone lived out here.”
“That’s a lie,” Viper says flatly. His weapon is lowered but ready. He hasn’t raised his voice once, and his posture is relaxed in a way that somehow makes him seem more dangerous than if he were primed to fight.
“There are posted boundaries,” Viper says. “You crossed a perimeter fence. That doesn’t happen by accident.”
“I didn’t see—”
“You saw,” Viper interrupts, “and you chose to ignore it.”
“Try again.” Grizz adjusts his grip, and the man hisses in pain.
“I … I was following a fresh set of tracks,” the hunter says. His shoulders are slumped like he knows he’s defeated, but he keeps arguing. “I thought the land was unoccupied.”
Viper’s gaze goes briefly to me, then back to the man. “You were warned off this area last year.”
The man’s eyes widen. “You remember me?”
“I remember everyone who trespasses,” Viper says. “Especially stupid people carrying rifles.”
The hunter shakes his head. “I didn’t know anyone was around. I swear.”
“That’s not reassuring,” Viper says.
Grizz releases the man abruptly, shoving him forward a step. “You’re leaving now.”
When the hunter hesitates, Viper steps closer to him. “Now.”
Viper guides him away with a firm hold on his elbow. “You’re going to get in your truck, drive down the hill, and never give us a reason to think about you again. If you come back—”
“I won’t,” the man says quickly.
Viper’s voice goes lethal. “If you come back here, I won’t escort you off the property.”
They disappear into the trees, and I don’t realize how badly I’m shaking until Grizz comes to my side.
“You okay?” His voice is suddenly gentle, as if he turned down a volume knob just for me.