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“Sharon—for now,” she insisted.“If you make him sad again, feel free to call me Mrs.Roberts when I confront you with my husband’s twelve-gauge.I’ll give you a moment to beg for mercy, but don’t hold onto hope.”
Grinning but eyes still damp, I wrote down the information she gave and promised I would do my best to help heal the hurt I’d caused.
The next call I made was to my boss.Since I rarely took time off, he allowed me two days, reminding me I had a case on my desk and that I needed to be back in town for the trial since I would take the stand for the District Attorney’s office against Joseph Delaney III.
Rather than waiting and wasting the few hours I had, I tossed some shit in a bag and got on the road.Kellen would probably already be in bed when I finally reached his family’s camp which lay a little over three hours away, but I was done allowing him space.
It was time to go get my man.
Chapter25
Kellen
The fire crackled, keeping me company and breaking the stillness of the cabin.Jacob and Dad had stayed back south when we’d gone down for Brian’s game on Friday night.His team had crushed their opponents 42-7.I almost felt bad for the other team.
Almost.
I’d never experienced such pride as when my nephew got carried off the field, his fist pumping toward the stands where his entire family sat.He’d taken his team to a winning season with half the games officially over and was already talking about the following year.
While I’d enjoyed the time with my parents and siblings, I’d been ready to slip back up north to the cabin and enjoy the silence again.I didn’t have an exact plan set in my head just yet, but I felt good about where I was both mentally and emotionally.I’d allowed myself to explore my thoughts on JJ, working through the sense of grief I’d experienced when he’d walked away then didn’t bother to show up and explain himself.
I was sure he had excuses, but I wasn’t interested in hearing them.Hadn’t even given him a chance with how quickly I’d blocked him.If I’d meant something to him—if that night of passion between us had moved his soul anywhere as deeply as it had mine—he wouldn’t have left.He would have seen the importance of explainingin that moment.
But something or someone else had come before me.
Most nights, I reflected on my life since meeting Xavier, how unmatched we’d been according to who he’d cheated with, how I’d been dazzled by his good looks and body that first time I’d seen him with his cousin in a local Maine bar.
Sure, I’d been slapped in the face with initial lust in the same way with JJ, but the energy between him and I had been different.Talking to him had been easier.There was freedom in his presence I’d never experienced with my ex, who’d always had expectations I strove to meet.
I fucking missed JJ.Couldn’t lie to myself, so I didn’t.At least I didn’t experience an urgent need to go out and do something stupid to get back at him.Hell, I wasn’t even sure the guy had truly liked me beyond a fuck on the side.He’d claimed to though…that truth always resurfaced to make me question my negative thoughts.
And my action of blocking his number.
But there was nothing to do for it now.With the wilderness around me, only the silence to keep me company, and no cell tower for miles, I was truly cut off from humanity.
But I loved the deep woods of Maine, always had.It was where my family had gone for vacation when me and my siblings had been little.We’d made countless memories, some of my best ones on the property Dad had recently put into a trust under the four Roberts’ kids’ names.
Having read all of the old tattered paperbacks stacked haphazardly on the lone bookshelf against the far wall, I decided to head to bed early.I’d spent most of the day ripping out the upstairs bathroom that needed an upgrade.The next morning, I planned on heading back south into Nodhead Falls to pick up a new toilet, tub insert, and vanity.I was no plumbing expert, but we’d tinkered around on the farm enough that I knew how to get the job done.
And if I ran into trouble, I could always return to civilization until I had service and watch a couple of how-to videos to figure shit out.
The warmth of the fireplace and blower allowed the heat to rise, so the bedroom at the top of the stairs stayed toasty warm.
I stripped down to my boxers and lay beneath a sheet, my blankets at my feet for when I woke up during the night cold from the fire having burned down to embers.
Not for the first time, I allowed my mind to wander, revisiting my two nights with JJ.A small bottle of lube on the bed stand made jerking easier, so I lubed up and played, slowly bringing myself to completion like JJ, the sadist, had been fond of doing.
No one had edged me like he did while actually having sex.Dragging out the arousal, the need, until I came without effort.
But same as the other times I’d allowed myself some relief while thinking of him, I felt empty once done—and not in the good way.Release relaxed me into the mattress, but the sting of loneliness lingered where euphoria should have lightened my chest.
I cleaned up with a couple of tissues and rolled over, refusing to overthink.Focusing on the bathroom rehab, I eventually slipped into sleep.
A loud knock jolted me awake, making my heart race.
Scowling, I hopped out of bed, yanked on my sweats, and hurried down the stairs.No way whoever banged on the door a second time was family.We all had keys.
I’d shut off the outside lights before going to bed but peeked through the kitchen window.Enough moonlight revealed a car I didn’t recognize.The profile of the man on the porch, however, confirmed who’d gotten me out of bed.
