Total pages in book: 109
Estimated words: 103665 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 518(@200wpm)___ 415(@250wpm)___ 346(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103665 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 518(@200wpm)___ 415(@250wpm)___ 346(@300wpm)
“Amka?” Daisy murmured. “I’m happy to close up tonight.”
“Yeah, I think I will head out. Thanks, Daisy.” Amka grabbed her coat off the hook, slung her purse over her shoulder, and crossed the tavern without glancing around. She watched Christian’s gaze tracking her, and her heart rate sped up as she neared him, but she kept her movements casual, her boots clicking on the old floorboards, steady and unhurried.
At the fireplace, she paused. His shoulders had dropped just enough to be noticeable. His eyes, though, were the same. Focused. Heavy. Like he was balancing on the edge of something sharp.
“You headed out?” Dutch asked, lounging with his shoulders and body relaxed. Good. He needed to take it easy once in a while.
“I am. It’s been a long day.” She looked right at Christian, not blinking. “Do you mind walking me out? After the sniper attack the other day, I would be more comfortable.”
“Absolutely.” He stood like he’d been waiting for the order, already in motion before she finished the sentence. His expression didn’t change, but something flickered behind his eyes. Relief, maybe.
“Thanks. I appreciate it.” She turned and gave the troopers a polite smile. “You all have a good night.” Yeah, maybe she wanted to think she was helping him, just this once. Even if he’d never say the words.
“Ms. Amaruq.” The redheaded trooper looked up, her badge catching the light. Her voice carried without raising. “We need to speak with you again about the explosion and ensuing fire next door. Only two people stand to gain from the destruction. You and Wyland Friday.”
The weight in the room shifted. Everyone seemed to pause, definitely eavesdropping.
“I’d like to be included,” the insurance adjuster said from her stool at the bar. She turned slowly, casual as a cobra, wine glass dangling from two fingers. Her gaze didn’t move off Amka.
One of the influencers, a blonde millennial sitting next to Nixi with a microphone clipped to her coat, whispered something and then twisted in her seat to watch. The others followed, their faces suddenly lit with interest, like they’d just remembered they had followers to feed.
Christian took Amka’s arm in a firm grip. Possessive. Controlled. Like the conversation was over. “Tomorrow.” Without waiting for a response from the trooper, he moved them toward the door. Not fast, but without leaving space for anyone to follow.
Outside, the cold slapped Amka hard enough to burn her lungs. The wind had shifted and now carried damp smoke and thawed mud, thick and sharp. It stuck in her throat and settled low. The rain pattered down, and she barely noticed it, wiping her hair back. It’d rain for the next month. At least.
Christian stepped ahead, scanning. One hand raised, fingers loose but precise. “Hold it.”
She paused on instinct, boots crunching on scattered gravel.
He took two steps forward, eyes tracking the tree line, the surrounding buildings, the shadowed edge of a truck down the way. “We’re good.”
“How do you know?” she asked.
“I’d feel it.”
She watched his profile for a second. His mouth didn’t twitch. His eyes didn’t move. She didn’t push because she believed him. Trusted him. The guy was as solid as the mountains around them, which is why she wouldn’t question him. Plus, he kissed like a god.
Heat flared into her face. The attraction might just kill her, and she had to get a grip as they walked to her SUV. The back window was still boarded up with a piece of plywood.
He caught her glance. “Mountain Man’s Garage should have a new window for you by the end of the week.”
“Christian, you didn’t have to—”
“No problem.” He moved ahead and opened her door in a not-so-subtle command for her to get in. “I’ll follow you home. I’ve got Brock’s rig tonight.”
Something in her chest unclenched as she slipped inside to sit. “Does your brother know you have his truck?”
“Probably,” Christian muttered, eyes scanning the lot like he expected something to materialize out of the dark.
Amka leaned back a little, arms crossed. “I heard the Miller boys want to unload one.”
Christian snorted. “Those kids ride hard. I’d spend more time fixing it than driving it.” He scrubbed a hand through his dark and now wet hair, letting the rain caress down the hard angles of his face. “I guess I’ll just buy a new one next time I’m in Anchorage. Or Fairbanks.”
She blinked. “You can just buy a new truck?”
“Yeah. Can’t you?”
Her breath caught for a second. Not now, she couldn’t. Now she’d mortgaged her life to the hilt, and she might give all of that to Jarod to protect Flossy. One problem at a time, however. “You don’t have to follow me home,” she said, pulling the door halfway closed.
“Someone’s got to keep watch.”
Her shoulders tensed, and for a second she almost let her head fall to the steering wheel. “Christian, you can’t sit outside my place all night.”