A heavy-duty generator gives us electricity. We have a small television in the corner, and a lighthouse puzzle we finished as a family is framed, along with a bunch of other pictures on the wall.
Of course, the bed is the same. No way in hell I’d replace that old thing.
Quietly, I slip into the small room filled with steam. The tub has been upgraded, and we have running water and indoor plumbing.
Good thing, too, because that means longer, hotter showers.
Snaking my hand past the curtain, I find Preston’s soapy arm.
I’m immediately yanked in, clothes and all.
“Preston!” Laughing, I motion to my now wet T-shirt and shorts. “I was going to give you a hand job.”
He shrugs. “As nice as that sounds, I’ve been meaning to have a reason to get you out of these.”
He unbuttons, tugs, and unclasps. In under a minute, I’m naked, too, except for my necklace. I never take it off.
As water rains down around us, I glance up at my husband. God, he’s even more handsome now than he was years ago. The gray has almost completely taken over his head, and it isn’t fair how distinguished he looks.
I rub my thumb over his bottom lip, pulling down so I can see the gap between his teeth. “Tell me something real.”
We still play this game sometimes, and I’m perpetually surprised to find out new things about my husband. Whether it’s sad, funny, or just a random fact, he always answers my request.
Staring down at me with serious blue eyes, Preston wraps a lock of my hair around his finger. I get the feeling he’s about to say something romantic, and he doesn’t disappoint.
“You saved me, Rosie. In the beginning, I thought I was the hero of our story. But it’s you.” He kisses me deeply, stealing my breath like he always does. “You’re the one who rescued me.”
THE END
A note to the reader: Thanks for reading LONER! Writing this book was bittersweet for me because this is the last of the Good Guys series. The idea of “good guy” heroes is what motivated me to start writing, so I’ll always have a special place in my heart for Travis, Colton, Jimmy, Ezra, Jay, and Preston. If you haven’t read the other books in the series and your interest in Jay and Casey is piqued, read on and enjoy the prologue to MAGIC MAN!
Also, if you like sneak peeks at upcoming books, giveaways, and most importantly, otters, you should consider joining my reader group on Facebook! Or subscribe to my newsletter to always stay in the loop.
MAGIC MAN PROLOGUE
The first time I met Casey Maxwell, I told her two lies and a truth. After all, deception was one of my best talents.
Knocking on the screen door of her doublewide trailer, I stepped back on the rotted wooden porch. I studied the faded yellow siding while mentally rehearsing the answers to the questions she would ask.
She’d be curious about the stranger on her doorstep with a mysterious wad of cash, and I had the lies locked and loaded on the tip of my tongue.
Seconds ticked by, and I knocked again.
I knew she was home.
I knew a lot of things about her I shouldn’t.
Like the fact that she’d turned sixteen two months ago, her favorite color was blue, and she worked at the diner down the road. She rode her blue bike everywhere because she couldn’t afford a car. She got straight A’s in school, and she lived in this piece of shit trailer with her mom. Her dad had been out of the picture since before she was born.
And, if she hadn’t gotten knocked up by an abusive psycho, she would’ve been going into her junior year at Brenton High School at the end of the summer.
I heard the rattling of locks before the door opened a little. One apprehensive blue eye peered at me through the crack.
“Can I help you?”
“So,” I started, my tone jovial as I raked a hand through my hair. “Last night was a shit show, huh?”
A quizzical quirk of her eyebrow was the only agreement I got, and I could read the sarcastic comment running through her mind.
Ya think?
My assessment of the events that led me here were accurate—an illegal fighting match at an abandoned farmhouse, bloodshed, and the biggest drug bust this small corner of the world had seen in decades.
And Casey was at the center of it all.
Although my memories from the past twenty-four hours were hazy, I remembered seeing her last night. Out of place, too young to be there, heavy makeup meant to make her look older.
After her boyfriend got knocked out, she’d fallen to her knees next to him and quietly admitted she was having his baby.
“Jaxon didn’t even tell me where he was taking me last night.” Casey’s jaw worked with annoyance. “I’m not a fan of violence.”
Well, she was dating the wrong guy then.
She probably didn’t even know what a bad guy Jaxon Meyers was.
But I did.
Casey wasn’t the first vulnerable girl he’d pursued. At least that fucker got the ass whooping he deserved, courtesy of my buddy, Jimmy.
Jimmy had been blood-thirsty on behalf of his girlfriend, Mackenna. She’d been a victim of Jaxon’s abuse years ago. The bastard almost killed her. In the couple months since Jaxon got released from prison, he’d been harassing Mackenna with threatening letters.
And apparently also getting a sixteen-year-old girl pregnant. Busy guy.
“Hi, I’m Jay.” I offered Casey my right hand.
Without opening the door further, her skeptical gaze landed on it, then flitted back up to my face. No handshake then.
She was afraid of me. Good girl.
I dropped my arm. “I’m a friend of Jaxon’s.”
That was the first lie. The words felt wrong coming out, but I needed Casey to trust me enough to accept the gift I wanted to give her.
“What does he want?” Her voice was hard. “I’m not bailing him out. Even if I had the money, I wouldn’t do it. If I’d known he was dealing drugs, I wouldn’t have been dating him. I’m not that kind of girl, so if he gets out you can tell him to stay away from me. I already told him it’s over.”
Okay, so maybe being friendly with her ex wasn’t the right angle to play. Unfortunately, it was the only angle I had.
“No bail for him,” I reassured her. “Thanks to the meth the cops found in his pocket, I don’t think Jaxon will be seeing life outside bars for a long time.”
A relieved sigh left her and some of the worry vanished from the one eye I could see. She opened the door wider, and then I had a full view of her heart-shaped face.
That trust I was seeking? I could sense Casey’s defenses coming down a little.
But I wasn’t innocent either—not when it came to drugs. I’d been selling and using for years, and it was only a matter of time until I got caught.
After the fight was over, all hell had broken loose when we’d heard the sirens approaching. High on painkillers and panic, I’d tried to outrun the police.
I just wasn’t fast enough.
My biggest regret was almost taking Jimmy down with me. Instead of pulling my car over and keeping my cool like any sane person would’ve done, I drove into a ditch then took off on foot into a cornfield, leaving Jimmy behind to deal with the consequences.