The Hollow (Preacher Brothers 4)

If she thought running to some motherfucker who didn’t realize what he was up against would protect her, she’d find out the truth sooner rather than later.

She didn’t know the lengths I’d go to get what I wanted, and what I wanted as much as I wanted to lead the organization… was her.

24

Frankie

I felt her watching me, knew I should have kept my fucking cool, but once my mind was set on something, it was hard for me to derail from the task.

And the task was getting everything ready to take her as far from here as humanly possible.

“Frankie?” she called softly, and I felt my body tighten in response. There was hesitance and uncertainty laced in her voice.

I forced myself to take a step back from the situation, inhaled deeply to try to calm myself, and turned and faced her. She stood in the doorway to my bedroom, her hands wringing at the edge of the shirt she wore.

Dom’s woman had gone shopping for her, picked Nadja up some jeans and shirts, toiletries, and undergarments. Although I fucking loved seeing her in my clothes, I knew realistically I couldn’t have her wearing my oversized shirts for the rest of her life… even if that sounded hot as hell.

“You’ve been quiet since we left the cabin. I know something big is going to happen, and I wish you’d talk to me instead of waiting until the last moment to let me in on it all, which I know you’re going to do.” She started worrying her bottom lip. “I know you don’t want to frighten me even more, but… you’re terrifying me.”

I was in front of her a second later, closing the door, sealing us in. Or maybe I just didn’t want her to escape. Maybe I wanted to keep her trapped with me, so she had no choice but to surrender.

I pulled her into an embrace, cupping the back of her head with my hand, and just held her.

“You’re my everything,” I murmured against her hair and then kissed the crown of her head. I didn’t want to let her go, but I had a lot to do before we left. But still, I just held her, inhaling her scent, letting the feeling of Nadja pressed up against me still my frantically beating heart.

She calmed me instantly.

“You have to tell me what’s going on,” she said softly against my chest, and involuntarily I tightened my hold on her. “You need to tell me the plan so I can be prepared, Frankie, so I can help.”

She pulled back and tipped her head to look into my eyes. I slid my hands up her sides, over her arms, and cupped each side of her face. I moved my thumbs under her eyes, her skin smooth, delicate. I was gentle with my touch. I wanted to protect her from everything, from the ugliness of the world… from even me. But I couldn’t shield her from this. I couldn’t keep the evil and darkness out of her life forever.

She needed to be prepared, to know the plan, so she was on the same page as me.

But I didn’t say anything right away, just stared into her emerald eyes, the contacts out for the night, getting lost in them. She made me feel whole. God, she made everything right in my world.

I couldn’t stop myself from leaning in and kissing her softly. It was slow and steady at first, easy, and I was just savoring how she felt against me. I relished the fact that she was actually here with me.

The longer I kissed her, the more my passion heightened. All my emotions started waging war with each other. I needed her, my desire, the bone-deep feeling that I had to protect her washing over me powerfully.

I was afraid, terrified of the out of control feelings I had for Nadja, how with each passing second, they grew exponentially. Before she came into my life, I’d never experienced them before. I was afraid of her getting hurt, of someone taking her away from me again. It was a feeling so strong that I felt myself start to lose control.

Something in me snapped then, as if a volcano had erupted inside me. All that power started deep in my gut before spewing forth, so I had no option but to let it take me under. My fingers tightened against her face as I deepened the kiss, tilting my head and opening my mouth, pushing my tongue inside the sweet, warm depths that made her up.

And I swear I felt her resistance crumble, sensed her control slip as mine had just done. She wasn’t holding back anymore, and instead gave me a soft, desperate moan that matched my own deep-rooted one.

We kissed for long moments, moving our heads back and forth, tilting them to the sides, deepening the kiss. She stroked her tongue along mine, gave me everything I ever wanted and more. I found myself moving her so she was forced to retreat, her back against the bedroom door. The sound of her body connecting with the wood heightened my pleasure, and I groaned, letting my passion escape for her.