Total pages in book: 152
Estimated words: 155037 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 775(@200wpm)___ 620(@250wpm)___ 517(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 155037 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 775(@200wpm)___ 620(@250wpm)___ 517(@300wpm)
“Fuck.”
“Not sure that could have gone any worse,” Loki mused.
Remy ran his hand over his face. “Christ, I didn’t mean to upset her. I was just . . . I’m not . . . I didn’t want her to feel like she had to do anything. This should be special for the two of you. And you’re more ahead in your relationship with her than I am.”
“Fuck, man, ease up. You shouldn’t say all those words at once or you might give yourself a stroke.”
Remy sighed. “I need to go explain. It’s not that I didn’t want to . . .”
“I get it. But you don’t need to hold back if it’s what she wants.”
“I’m just glad the two of you let me be here.”
“Fuck, man. I’m the one that’s grateful. Without you, I’d probably have come in the first ten seconds and be snoring on the couch. Come on, let’s go find her.”
Feeling like shit, Remy followed him into the bedroom. He frowned when he saw it was empty but that the window was wide open.
“Where is she?” Remy asked, bending to look under the bed. Wow. It was a mess under there. Baby girl really needed to start tidying up after herself.
Loki walked over and shut the window. “I’ve got to get an alarm.”
“Actually, yes, you do,” Remy said. “We need to see to that immediately. It’s not safe. For her or you.” Then he stiffened. “Fuck, did someone get in here? Take her?”
But Loki wouldn’t be so calm if she’d been harmed.
In fact, he was certain the other man would lose it if anything happened to their girl.
“No,” Loki replied. “She’s run away.”
Remy blinked. He hadn’t heard that, right?
“Um, sorry?”
“She’s run away from home. Well, sort of. When she was a kid and her dad or her stepmom were being awful, she’d run away and hide in our treehouse.”
“Bastards. And you think she’s done that now? But where would she have gone?”
“To our treehouse, of course,” Loki replied. “Come on, let’s get a blanket for her. Hopefully, she put shoes on.”
She better damn well have put shoes on. Remy grumbled to himself as he put on his jacket and rushed after Loki.
Loki’s headlamp lit their way. “Be quiet going past the chickens. Jennifer gets really grumpy if she doesn’t get enough sleep.”
“I can’t believe you keep those chickens.”
“They have damn good eggs. And I didn’t know they were going to be she-demons when I got them.”
They moved quietly past the chicken coop and headed out into the forest.
Fuck. Remy really didn’t like that she’d gone out here on her own at night. Wasn’t she scared? Anyone could grab her and he’d have had no idea.
“This isn’t happening again,” he murmured after they were well past the chicken coop.
“Agreed,” Loki said grimly, surprising him.
He’d half expected the other man to argue with him, to defend her. Satisfaction filled him.
“You know, it kind of feels good having someone else help me look after her,” Loki said. “She’s a handful.”
That she was.
Her ass was also toast for this.
Except . . . he remembered the devastated look on her face when she’d looked up at him.
Fuck. This was his fault. What right did he have to punish her when he was the one who’d hurt her feelings?
He hadn’t meant to, but he had. He’d made it seem like he didn’t want her when nothing could be further from the truth.
Still . . . that didn’t excuse her running off and putting herself in danger.
They came up to a large tree with a half-built treehouse in it.
Loki shook his head as he looked up at the treehouse. “Isabelle Evelyn Ashley, get your butt down here now.”
Whoa.
He sent Loki a look of admiration. He hadn’t heard such a stern tone come from the other man before.
A pale face appeared over the edge of the platform.
“Are you sure that this is safe?” he asked Loki.
“It will be once it’s finished.” Loki crossed his arms over his chest. “Are you supposed to climb up there on your own?”
“No. But I’m hiding.”
“That’s no excuse,” Loki told her. “You’re not to go up there without me and you know it. You’re also not supposed to run away from home without telling me.”
“Telling you?” Remy asked quietly.
“Sometimes, she needs a bit of downtime to think. So she packs up a bag, takes Razzie, and they ‘run away from home.’ But she always tells me where she’s going and when she’ll be back. Normally, I follow her.” That last part was said in a whisper and it eased Remy’s tension.
“I’m not ready to go home,” she said. “I’m sad.”
And just like that, Remy’s heart melted a little. “Baby, I didn’t mean to upset you. I wasn’t rejecting you.”
“It’s o-okay. I know you didn’t mean to hurt me. I was being selfish.”