You’d think I’d keep seeing the deranged man, mydad’s enemy, who attacked and almost assaulted me. And I do. I guess I learned, in a horrific way, why my dad has been trying to protect me.
But in the blink of my mind’s eye, I still see Loch on bended knee in the snow, asking me to marry him.
How long did he plan to lie to me? Till death do us part?
“Hey, Allen.” Paul approaches, morning java in hand. “Where’s the lucky man?”
I shrug, swallowing the lump in my throat. “At home.”
Loch’s home. His cabin. Not mine.
Ironically, months ago, I invested the money I’d saved and bought us a condo in Folly Beach. It was going to beourplace when we went home. Not Dad’s. Not Loch, bunking at his friend’s place.
I mean, his brother, Sire’s place.
Instead, I spent a week at the condo with Vale, wallowing in my tears, then shock, then anger.
Then I remembered being a young girl, with my tall frame, learning how to ride a kids’ bike. How I’d topple over, struggling. But my mom would wipe my tears and say, “Fall seven times, Alena, and stand up eight.”
So I had enough wallowing. I left Folly Beach and sped home. Of course, Loch followed me, but I drove faster. When I got here, I put all of Loch’s stuff in a laundry basket and left it by his cabin door.
“You two’ve switched to opposite shifts?” Paul asks. “Waring’s working second, and you’re on first. Isn’t that hard on newlyweds?”
I lift my gaze, hoping the brim of my hat hides my glistening eyes. “No, sir. Not when I love my job.”
It’s the one thing I have—the life I’ve built for myself.
Not my father’s secret mafia life or Loch’s lethal Bratva lineage.
My boss glances down, wordlessly clocking my missingring. And for the first time, I’m thankful Paul’s a work daddy. He pats my back. Understanding. “We got a Junior Forest Ranger class today. Need your help with it.”
Kids. He knows they’ll cheer me up, and they do. I spend the day teaching them how to track elk and bear. Of course, they giggle when I teach them about scat. It’s the distraction I need until I pull up to my cabin and see Mutt resting by my cabin door.
He lifts his head from his golden paws as I approach. “Hey, buddy.” Squatting, I pet him and find a note in a zip-lock bag tied to his collar.
He misses you.
Belongs with you.
Will never stop loving you.
Glancing over my shoulder, I blink back tears—Loch’s standing in the open doorway to his cabin.
“Let him protect you, Alena.” His husky voice cracks. “It’s all I ask.”
Mutt whines, nuzzling my hand like he wants to lead me back to the one we’re tethered to, but I can’t speak.
Pain chokes my voice away.
I let Mutt inside, close the door behind me, and keep him for three months.
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
LOCH
Three months later
Loneliness is a distinct feeling.It’s a heavy grief, shadowing you even when you’re not alone.
