Page 43 of His Atonement

Then I watch as Samson, that goofy dog, climbs out of the water and up onto a rock before he jumps back in a few feet from Frankie.

I had no idea he was outside, let alone all the way out here. Last I knew he was in the main house with Hank, begging for table food.

Some dog sitter I am.

My sister would have my head if she knew her beloved Great Dane snuck out of the house undetected by me, and had something happened to him while he was out here? Yes, I believe my gem would have twistedmyhead from my body and punted it.

Luckily, the little pervert is merely skinny dipping with the she-devil.

The she-devil who laughs loud and hard as Samson treads water next to her and splashes her with his tail.

"You wanna play like that, huh? Ok, buddy, you're asking for it." Frankie goes upright, submerges her beautiful body under the waves and splashes back at Samson who happily tries to catch the water in his teeth.

He may be the most intelligent dog I've ever met with a soul older than dirt, but he is still a pup at heart.

I watch from my place just beyond the rocks a little longer, my emotions all over the map, my head a complete mess.

Relief is most prominent, relief that she is ok, that I have set eyes on her, and have confirmed that she is not sick or injured. I am relieved that she is not with the wolf, not engaging in some animalistic fucking out here in the woods with Colt, though I still fear it is a possibility.

But despite my relief I am still angry, still quite pissed that Frankie would come out here alone, still concerned because my gut says there is still something going on with her.

And I'm incredibly confused by the disarray in her cabin, the way she seemed to just leave the messes and the projects halfway through to wander around at night in unknown parts of the property.

And those feelings, those emotions, are exactly why I move closer, then yell like an asshole. "Do you have any idea how dangerous it is for you to be out here unattended?!"

Frankie jumps then spins to face me and scowls hard. "I don't think I asked for your opinion, Zan."

"Obviously you did not ask for anyone's opinion because if you had, you would not be out here alone!"

"I can take care of myself, thanks! I don't need a bodyguard while taking a swim!"

I glare, and hold up her clothes in my hand. "And what of this then? Were you trying to leave the animals a way to find you? Offer yourself up to them on a silver platter?!"

"Hardly!" Frankie scoffs. "I know for a fact that the only thing that would draw their attention is raw meat, thanks to you!"

I take a few steps closer, the toes of my Vans touching the cool water. "This isn't even the proper clothing to wear while traipsing through the woods unprotected! You could have exposed yourself to poison sumac or poison ivy, could have tripped and injured yourself with these flimsy things on your feet!"

"Since when do you give a shit about what happens to me?!"

Now this causes me to pause, the thought a tad perplexing.

Why do I care so much about what happens to Frankie?

I shouldn't, not since I've made it my mission to make her experience here at the compound miserable, but I somehow find that I care a great deal about what happens to her, especially with that nagging dread sitting in my gut.

But I don't say that, don't say any of it nor do I have the time if I wished to because Frankie swims toward where I'm standing with Samson right on her heels.

"Turn around," she demands, her tone harsh, stare firm.

I blink. "What?"

"I said turn around. I'm going to get out because you ruined my first skinny dipping experience and I want to go home, but I also don't want to give you a free fucking show."

We stare at each other for a few beats before I turn on a frustrated sigh. "It was not my intent to ruin this for you." Why the fuck did I say that?

Frankie laughs but it's forced, hollow and a touch angry. "Yeah, well, you did anyway, so good job. You can chalk this up as your retaliation to the picture I left for you."

I hear her get out of the water and have to fight every cell in my body to keep from turning around to face her, especially when she gets so close I can feel the electricity rolling from her in scorching hot waves.