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)
The nausea passes by the time I reach the island, but my nerves wreak havoc on my heart rate.
What if Monty and I can’t work things out? I don’t have a backup plan.
One therapy session isn’t going to stop me from punching his lights out. That’s exactly what I’ll do if he doesn’t cooperate.
I want my girl back.
Tonight.
Kody and I trimmed our beards, cleaned up our hair, and put on our best boxer-briefs this morning.
Yeah, we’re fucking hopeful.
He got held up at the distillery but won’t be too far behind me.
Oliver greets me at the door, his face expressionless. “He’s upstairs.”
I ascend the grand staircase, my heartbeat resounding with the echo of my footsteps.
I find Monty curled up in bed, looking worse than he did two days ago.
Sweatpants, shirtless, unshaved, and unwashed, he stares blankly at a black-and-white romance movie on TV.
“Is that Casablanca?” I walk in without knocking.
He glares at me.
“Is this your plan?” I gesture at the TV. “This is how you solve your problems?”
He continues to glare, the anger in his eyes burning through the shadows there. Then he turns his attention back to the screen.
“I started seeing your doctor.” My palms slick with sweat.
“I know.”
“Tracking my movements in the app? You fucking creeper.”
“Yes.”
“Then you knew I was coming here.” I spot his phone on the nightstand.
He doesn’t remove his eyes from the TV.
“You left me that package for a reason. The note…” I clutch my nape and shift my weight. “You wanted me to remember Wolf, to grieve him. Well, I’m here, and I’m grieving. But I can’t do it alone. None of us can.”
“That’s not why you’re here.”
“Yeah. You’re right. I’m grieving her, too. I miss her. I fucking need her.” I feel my temper rising, the familiar heat licking at my insides. “The only way I’m getting her back is with you and Kody.”
For a moment, I think he’s going to tell me to leave. If he does, I’ll have to break his face, and that would hurt Frankie.
He pushes to a sitting position and meets my eyes. “I’m not convinced.”
“Convinced about what?”
“Your purpose here.”
Christ, he’s not making this easy.
I scrub my hands down my face and look him dead in the eye. “Like it or not, motherfucker, the four of us have been in a relationship for five months. We lived together. We ate our meals, worked out, pursued our dreams, learned to drive, cried, laughed, and fought together. We made all our decisions together as a team. Hell, we still do. The only thing the four of us haven’t done together is fuck.”
He doesn’t even blink.
“What am I missing?” I cross my arms.
“I think you covered it.” Powering off the TV, he shifts to the edge of the bed and clasps his hands between his knees. “But you brushed over some significant talking points.”
“Such as?”
“Did you two get your shit worked out yet?” Kody strides into the room, his black hair soaked by the rain.
“No.” I arch a brow at Monty. “Which points did I brush over?”
“If we share her, we’ll face a slew of new challenges. Social stigma, time management, insecurity, jealousy, boundaries, legal and financial complications, pecking order…”
Kody grunts.
“What?” Monty squints at him. “I know you’ve had your share of complications with this already, but polygamy in the middle of fucking nowhere isn’t the same as polygamy in modern society, where the world scrutinizes, judges, and interferes.”
“You care what people think?” I ask.
“Not at all.”
“You can make all the other shit go away with your money and influence.” Kody snaps his fingers. “Like that.”
“I can’t make our internal obstacles go away. Strakh men are controlling, domineering, and stubborn as fuck. Put three of us in a bed together and what do you think will happen? I don’t want to fight with you for the rest of my life.”
“You’re overthinking this.” I lace my hands behind my head. “Kody and I already sleep in the same bed. When we disagree, we work it out. We would do the same with you.”
“We know a thing or two about overcoming obstacles.” Kody leans against the dresser.
“Understatement,” I mutter.
Monty taps his fingers together, studying me. “Why did it take you two days to come here?”
“Nerves.” I brace a hand on my hip and chew my thumbnail. “Considering I turn every uncomfortable conversation into a brawl, I didn’t want to fuck this up. Dr. Thurber taught me some breathing techniques, which I haven’t used since I got here. I prepared a speech, which I forgot about until now. But I’m here. I came crawling back to you, willing to fucking beg, because I love her and refuse to spend one more night without her.”
“Thank you for your honesty.” His voice scratches, eyebrows furrowing.
“Why did I find you in bed, staring at the TV like you gave up on life?”