Page 3 of Frankie (Big Northwest #5)

CHAPTER THREE

FRANKIE

T here were few things more beautiful in this world than the sight of a grown man about to shit his pants, and from the way Phillip's face paled, he was about to ruin that expensive suit he was wearing.

"She's not kidding, man," JD piped up from the back seat, amusement in his voice. "But technically, it was two bears."

For the first time, Phillip looked less than confident. But his rattled expression only lasted a second. The mask of cool confidence was firmly back in place when he said, "I'll do my best to stay on your good side then."

Whatever Craig told him, it must not have been the whole truth, or Phil wouldn't have been surprised to find out what happened to Lily's sperm donor and his buddy. The private investigator might know some things, but he obviously didn't know everything .

Unlike the man filling the backseat.

She and JD had their differences, but she trusted him implicitly with the truth of what she was. The man was many things, but he knew how to keep a secret.

"Just do your best to find my sister." Frankie reached for the door, but paused to turn back to Phil. "And you should probably tread lightly when you question Sam. Her boyfriend Tate makes Craig look like a sweet little kitten.”

Phillip tipped his head at her. "I appreciate the suggestion."

It wasn't so much a suggestion as a warning, but Phil could figure that out on his own. Or not. She'd helped him as much as she was interested in helping. Especially since he didn't seem to know shit about where James actually was.

Going back to the door, she flung it open and stepped out onto the quiet street. Closing it behind her, she turned toward the parking lot adjacent to the bar, ready to put this shit show of a day and evening behind her. She made it only a handful of steps before turning to face the man following behind her. "What?"

JD didn't stop, just kept walking in the direction of her truck. "It's your fault I don't have a way home, so you're giving me a ride."

Her jaw dropped as she stared at his back. " My fault?" She stalked after him, having to take twice as many steps to catch up with his long-legged strides. She was tall for a woman, but JD still had almost six inches on her. "How is it my fault that you stuck your nose where it didn't belong and pissed off your girlfriend?"

JD mumbled something, but the words were tangled and low enough even she couldn't make them out.

Frankie caught up to him, reaching out to grip the sleeve of his shirt as she asked, "What was that you said?"

JD spun to face her. "I said, she wasn't my girlfriend yet."

Yet .

It had been the plan to make pretty princess his plus-one then. Of course it had. Why wouldn't it? Lena’s everything JD obviously wants in a woman. Sweet. Soft. Pretty.

"Then maybe you should catch an Uber to her house and apologize." Frankie stood straighter, getting as close to eye to eye with him as she could. "Fall down on your knees and beg her forgiveness for being so fucking stupid."

" I was being fucking stupid?" JD stepped closer, forcing her to tip her head back even more to maintain eye contact. "I'm not the one who was about to leave the bar with a man she barely knows." JD flung one arm in the direction of where Phil's SUV was parked. "That guy could have known exactly what you are and been here to abduct you."

"Come on." She couldn't decide what pissed her off more—JD acting like he had any right to police who she went home with, or his clear belief she couldn't handle herself in a situation like that. "Do you really think Phil could have managed to abduct me?"

"I don't know what I fucking believe anymore, Frank." JD flung his other arm out in an exaggerated shrug. "But I do know you're not as fucking invincible as you seem to think you are." He leaned down, bringing the tip of his nose to touch the tip of hers. "And I'll be damned if I let you end up dead because of it." His voice was shaking, vibrating from the anger simmering in his eyes.

If she wanted to, it would be easy to think there was emotion behind all that rage. Sentiment fueling his fury. But there wasn't. Not beyond the same affection he felt for her sisters.

JD had made it abundantly clear that's all there would ever be between them. And that was fine. She could catch a dick any night of the week. Except for this one, apparently, because he was hell bent on pissing all over her fucking parade. The sooner she got rid of JD, the better, because if she had to deal with him much longer, the man was going to end up dead.

Or maybe barricaded into his basement. Possibly dumped in the middle of the woods.

"Fine." She pressed the unlock button on her fob. "Get in the fucking truck."

Climbing behind the wheel, she started the engine, wrestling her sunglasses off before dropping them into the console. She peeled out of the parking lot, driving fifteen miles over the speed limit while doing her best to pretend the man beside her didn't exist. JD lived about halfway between the little town where the bar was located, and Shadow Pine, so it took almost twenty minutes to get to his place. Twenty long minutes.

Finally, she jerked the truck to a stop in his driveway. Not bothering to put it in park, she snapped, "Get out."

Much to her dismay, JD didn't budge. Instead he emitted a long-suffering sigh. "I'm sorry."

Frankie stared straight ahead. "I don't care."

It was an art she'd spent years perfecting after learning early and hard that caring was nothing more than a one-way ticket to heartache. So she'd decided not to do it. With limitations, of course. She cared about her sisters. She cared about her nephew and niece. Kenneth and Jeffrey. Outside of that, though? Caring would never be an option.

"Obviously, you do, or you wouldn't have been such a fucking pain in the ass about it." JD's voice got louder. "I'm trying to apologize to you. Do you think maybe you have something to apologize back to me for?"

She didn't even have to think about it. "No."

Everything that happened tonight was his own damn fault. He could've continued with his little date with his pretty pretty princess and ended up with the girlfriend he so obviously desired.

But no.

JD had to go and insert himself into her life yet again. And now, he was taking the blame that shouldn't be anywhere but on his own broad shoulders, and attempting to drop it right on her .

"Really?" JD turned to face her, expression incredulous. "Not even for walking out of your niece's fucking birthday party?"

"Why would I apologize to you for that?" she sneered. "And that's your fault too, by the way." Now it was her turn to raise her voice. "Who brings someone who's not even their actual girlfriend to a family event?"

JD's eyes narrowed on her. "Some of us let people into our life for more than one night at a time, Frank. Some of us make plans for the fucking future and act accordingly."

"Who said I'm not making plans for the future?" She had lots of fucking plans. Plans to make money. Plans to build a bigger house with a fireplace and a hot tub. Plans to buy as many psychotic chihuahuas as she could fit in it. "And for your information, I've discovered men aren't good for more than one night at a time."

She'd technically never tried for more than that, but what would the point be? They’d end up getting attached and then she'd have to break their little hearts. Considering the majority of her evening entertainment consisted of the lumberjacks who came into town looking for work, she'd be shooting herself in the foot by muddying the waters.

JD huffed out a breath, his brows pinching on the scoff. "You still really fucking believe that, don't you?" He shook his head. "Even after watching your sisters find men who love the fuck out of them, would die for them, you still think we're useless. "

"Not useless." She gave him a sweet smile. "Some of you are really good at cutting down trees."

JD didn't know it, but he was arguing the wrong point. Were Craig, Adam, Edward, and Tate good men? Probably.

Were there other good men in the world like them? Also probably.

Was it worth the effort and heartache to find out? Absolutely not.

JD shook his head. "You're a real fucking piece of work." Shoving the passenger door open, he finally did as she asked and stepped out into the dark night. "Thanks for the ride." He slammed the door harder than he had to and she gritted her teeth as the loud bang of it echoed through the trees around her.

"Asshole." Frankie threw the truck into reverse and backed into the turnaround, swinging the nose of her truck toward the road without checking to make sure he got inside. Hopefully he forgot his keys and had to spend the night on his porch.

She was still fuming when she got home, muttering under her breath about men and their bullshit as she let herself in the front door of the cute little prefab house she called home. Flipping on the lights, she glanced out the window and frowned at the side of Sam's old house sitting dark and empty.

She didn't blame her sister for moving in with Tate. His house was beautiful, and much better suited for a family. But this side of town was starting to feel a little lonely. Maybe she'd get lucky and Phillip Foster would find James and her younger sister would take over the place next-door. Then she wouldn't be the only single girl in town.

Because it was a weird freaking place to be.

Growing up the way they did, never once did Frankie imagine her sisters would all end up paired off. She'd always expected them to grow old alone together. Yes, men were good for some things. Like she'd told JD, they were great at cutting down trees, and occasionally they were good in bed, but that was about it. For the most part, dudes were more trouble than they were worth, and part of her was a little irritated that her sisters forgot that lesson so easily.

Hopefully they didn't get a reminder.

After taking a few minutes to feed and cuddle her dogs, she let the trio outside and went to take a shower. After scrubbing down and drying off, she moisturized and spent twenty minutes coiling the curls of her hair so they would dry properly. When they were set, she went out to check on her pups, letting them in and offering a few more cuddles before sitting down to watch some television while her hair dried.

Unfortunately, JD and his fucking mouth still had anger simmering under her skin, making it impossible to focus.

With a groan, Frankie shoved up off the couch and went to the bathroom. Snagging one of her satin bonnets, she tied it into place. It wasn't a perfect solution, but hopefully would keep her from completely destroying all that hard work. Once her hair was protected, she put on a pair of sneakers and ducked out the back door. Cutting across the large field at the back of her house, she raced for the woods, picking up more and more speed until she was sprinting toward the tree line. The second she reached the trees, she started to climb, latching onto the rough bark of an ash and scaling to the top.

There was something so freeing about being up there. In a place few other people could go. Even if they could get where she was, there was no way they could move like she could, and tonight she needed a reminder of what she was. Because being around JD drove home all she would never be and all she would never have.

Walking the smallest branch capable of holding her weight like a tightrope, Frankie followed it as far as she dared before launching into the next tree and doing the same in that one. Thanks to years of practice and skill, her path through the canopy was nearly silent. That's why it wasn't until she was nearly a quarter of a mile into the woods that she noticed her own movements weren't the only thing that was silent.

Stopping where a thick branch joined the trunk of the tree she was currently in, Frankie crouched, listening for the sounds that should be all around her. Animals walking over the leaves scattered across the dirt below. Birds fluttering through the air. The wind shifting vegetation.

But there was nothing. Silence. Almost as if the forest knew something wasn't right. It was another lesson she learned long ago—believe what the trees are trying to tell you. It's how she and her sisters escaped their father. How they'd managed to save Sam and track down Adam.

As much as she wanted to continue running—needed to continue running—Frankie stayed put, keeping her body perfectly still as she waited to discover what everything around her already knew.

It took about ten minutes, but eventually, she heard it. The distinct sound of footsteps. And not just one person, but a few. They were trying to be quiet, and while they were more skilled than some people she'd come across, they were still fairly obvious.

Moving carefully, she shifted around the trunk, scanning the area until she found which direction the intruders were in.

And they were intruders.

Since Shadow Pine had taken off and started earning a ridiculous amount of money, she and her sisters had started buying up all the land surrounding their little town. Collecting as much as they could so they—and ultimately any children her sisters chose to have—would have a safe space to do exactly what Frankie was doing now.

They hadn't yet been able to put up fencing, but there were hundreds of no trespassing signs marking the area as private property. Enough that whoever was down there couldn't have missed them. That, coupled with it being nearly midnight, left little room for her to think this could be anything but purposeful .

Closing her eyes, she focused, putting all her energy into listening as hard as she could. Hoping to make out a voice or words. Something that would help her know who was down there.

But they were too far away. Their voices too hushed.

She needed to get closer.

Moving carefully now, Frankie crept from one tree to the next, ensuring she didn't make a sound. Whoever she was hunting couldn't know she was there.

But it seemed like for every step she gained, she lost two. As if they were moving quickly.

Picking up her pace, Frankie leapt to the next tree, discovering too late she'd miscalculated. Stretching in an attempt to catch the limb, her fingers barely closed around the surface before slipping free. The momentum she had ran out, and her body started to drop, dragged down by gravity and negligence. Frankie braced to hit the ground.

With a whipping noise, something sailed past her ear, making her suck in a sharp breath. Just before she expected to connect with the dirt, her body was engulfed. Pinned into a tangled ball as she stalled out midair and started to rock from side to side. Narrow bits of string cut into her flesh, like a thousand little pinches, as she stared up into the branches with a sigh. There was no sense in fighting it. The net around her was all but indestructible.

She should know. She helped set the trap with it.