Untamed: Duty Bound Book 3 (34 page)

The deadly trio.
Abbott had died at the hands of his wife, her cousin, and her boyfriend, his only son witnessing his last moments.

“The three individuals died resisting arrest.” Though the nightmare was over, Avery would make certain Rory received the counseling he’d need to grow up emotionally unharmed. “Rory is safe. I intend to keep him that way.”

“Then you may want to stop his mom from smothering him.”

Oblivious of the conversation, Rory struggled to escape his mother’s arms. “Mama! You’re squeezing me!”

A blaze of unadulterated wonderment burned in Hannah’s eyes as she fell to her knees and released him. “You’re talking.”

His head bobbled up and down with the seriousness of a four-year old. “Grampa said it was okay to talk, that Brent wouldn’t be angry.”

“Brent loved you, Munchkin. He would never be angry with you.” Hannah placed her hands on both his shoulders, keeping him close. “Who’s Grampa?”

“That’s Grampa.” Without a hesitation, his little man pointed at Bill. “And there’s Gramma Gail. She bakes cookies. And there’s Auntie Roan. She reads me and Baby Vannah lots of stories. And there’s Uncle Born. He’s funny, like Uncle Freddy.”

“You’re one lucky Munchkin.” The words had flown out of Rory’s mouth at the speed of a bullet, and yet, Hannah showed no sign she’d missed any portion of his speech. “You even got bigger while I was gone.”

He puffed his bony chest. “Gramma doesn’t give me peas. Can I keep her and Grampa? Please?”

Avery swallowed his chuckles, breathing in the sweet aroma of chocolate and banana. Bringing Rory here had been the best decision he could have made.

“Of course you can keep them.”

As a victorious grin spread on Rory’s face, Hannah looked at him over the youngster’s head. Hoping she was thinking about a different set of grandparents, Avery nodded in approval. To his pleasure, she responded in kind.

“Munchkin, I know two other people who don’t have a grandson. Maybe we could ask them if they’d like to be your grandma and grandpa too. What do you think?”

“But…” Rory’s face scrunched up in a cartoonish caricature. “Can I have a dad like Baby Vannah instead? Please? There’s one I like a lot.”

The request squeezed the air out of Avery’s lungs, and seemed to cut the circulation in Hannah’s arms.

Her hands dropped onto her lap. “There is?”

“Yes, he…” Rory’s voice dropped to an inaudible whisper, his lips moving for his mother’s eyes only.

The promise of a smile swirled on Hannah’s lips. “He keeps his promises
and
Snowflake likes him? I’d say he’s a good choice. Why don’t you ask him if he wants to be your father?” She winked at their son. “I bet he’ll say yes.”

“Really?” His face lit up like a firework, Rory bounced up and down, becoming very quiet when his gaze settled on him.

With the last building block of his new life falling into place, Avery scooped his little man off his feet and held him tight. “I love your mom, I love you…and I love Snowflake. You think you could pick me as your dad?”

Rory wrapped his arms around his neck and gave him a solid nod, sealing the bond.

Uniting them.

Biography

J.S. Marlo spent her childhood in a small French Canadian town, reading and daydreaming stories. One day, she met her hero, a dashing young officer, and followed him back and forth across the country.

The memorable adventures she experienced with her young family fueled her imagination and kindled the dream of one day becoming a published author. It wasn’t until after her three spirited children left the nest in pursuit of their own adventures, that J.S. finally gave writing a chance.

Her first two dozen stories were for her friends’ eyes only. To her surprise and delight, they enjoyed them and rewarded her with their encouragement and support. J.S. kept writing, and learning, and writing…

She finally captured her dream with her first novel
Salvaged
, and then carried on with her first series “Duty Bound”:
Unscripted
–Book One,
Unearthed
–Book Two, and
Untamed
–Book Three.

J.S. lives in northern Alberta with her wonderful hubby, and when she’s not visiting her children and little granddoggie, she’s working on her next series in front of the fireplace.