Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 58727 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 294(@200wpm)___ 235(@250wpm)___ 196(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 58727 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 294(@200wpm)___ 235(@250wpm)___ 196(@300wpm)
He chuckles. “Could you even move in that getup?”
I shake my head and can’t help the small chuckle. “Not really, but I didn’t have to move. I just had to stay on the sled.”
Miles’s eyes crinkle at the corner as he gives me a smile. “That sounds great, baby. I wish I’d had a little sister to take sledding.”
I warm at the thought. Miles would have been a great big brother. Protective and bossy, but in a good way.
“Central Park was always too crowded,” he continues, “but sometimes I went upstate with my grandmother.”
“Did you?” He hasn’t mentioned anyone in his family before besides his mom. The woman who was Jonathan Bridger’s second wife.
“Yeah. Until my mom alienated her, too,” he grumbles.
Funny. When my mom and dad divorced when I was eight and Joey was eighteen, Mom got custody of me, and I hardly saw my father or brother after that. My dad stopped being my dad, and it’s been a long time since I’ve seen him. He lives outside Billings in tiny house, and last I heard he’s pretty much a drunk.
But what I went through sounds tame compared to Miles’s life. It can’t be more obvious how his father wanted nothing to do with him. Or Austin. And what of Chance? They lived together on the ranch but from what I see, Chance hates the guy just as much. Maybe more.
I don’t let myself dwell on the memory of Joey often, as it makes me miss him, makes me sad at what I’ve lost. When I found out he’d disappeared, it was a brick to my gut. Now that I know he’s gone for good? That memory is all I have, and I want to hold it close to my heart. Joey will always be the big brother who took me sledding on that wonderful snowy afternoon.
“What do you need?” Miles asks. “You want me to start the shower for you?”
“Yeah. I want to wash this day away.”
“Oh, baby, I wish I could wash the day away for you, especially any part where I made you sad or upset. But life doesn’t work that way.”
“I just wish I knew what he was doing.” I sigh. “If he was hauling freight to Canada, how did he get on your property? And if he wasn’t hauling freight, which I’m betting he wasn’t, then what was he doing? How did he…die?”
“You heard Peterson. It’s going to be difficult to find the cause of death. There was clearly no blunt trauma, and it’s been too long for toxicology to be accurate with his body.”
I can’t help a wince. Thinking of my brother as “a body” feels all kinds of wrong.
He sighs and pulls me close. “Fuck. I’m sorry, Sadie. I shouldn’t have said any of that.”
I cling to him once more. “It’s okay. It’s the truth. Just hard to hear. I don’t want to talk about it anymore. He’s gone. He’s been gone, but now we can find answers. I’ll have to face it soon enough. We both will, even though you’re no longer a suspect and, as you told Peterson, I’m probably no longer on the case. Peterson doesn’t expect to see us until Monday, but I know who we can talk to for answers.”
“Who?” His brows draw together as he strokes my hair.
“My father.”
“You know where he is?”
I nod. “I’ve got a pretty good idea.”
“Okay. Tomorrow, we’ll go see him.”
Good. Tomorrow will come soon enough. “For tonight though, I need to let it go.”
He nods and brings my fingers to his lips, kisses the tips. “Okay. I understand.”
Miles. Strong and protective Miles.
Miles, who didn’t get another woman pregnant after all. Who wasn’t involved in my brother’s death. Who’s here right now for me.
Miles turns the shower on for me, and I slowly peel my clothes from my body, completely uninhibited.
When I stand naked, his eyes flare and his jaw clenches. He rakes his gaze over every inch of me, from my painted toenails to the top of my head. Then he turns and walks out of the bathroom.
“Miles,” I say.
“I’ll give you some privacy.”
Privacy? To be alone? “No, wait. Please.”
He turns around and he fixes his gaze to mine.
“I… I really can’t be alone.”
“I’m not going anywhere. I’ll wait for you in your living room.”
I swallow. I don’t even want him that far away. “Join me? In the shower?”
“Sadie…”
“Please, Miles. I need you. I need to feel alive.”
He studies me some more, as if looking for some mystery. “Are you sure?”
“Standing here naked, right in front of you, I’m absolutely sure. Shower with me. Stay with me. Tonight. In my bed. Make me forget.”
17
MILES
* * *
I was trying to do the right thing. Give her room. Space. Allow her to process the news of her brother’s death without any pressure or expectation from me.