"Fuck me, Bambi. How many boxes of shoes are you taking with you?" Shay groans as he watches me finish packing another box of my must-have, can't be donated, shoes, and pass it over to him for taping.

"A girl can never have too many shoes," I reply, laughing as he frowns down at the large, brown box.

Opening the lip of the folded cardboard, Shay reaches in, pulls out a strappy silver and crystal stiletto, and holds it up to eye level, inspecting it closely before smirking. "Well," he drawls, "I suppose these spiky things can be worn at home after Griffin installs a stripper pole."

I push myself up from my seated position and gently remove my favorite, Jimmy Choo Misty 120 sandal from Shay's fingers. Turning, I elbow him in the gut, a loud oomph coming from him. Delicately, I settle it back in its box before returning to my spot on the floor.

I hear Griffin chuckle when he enters the bedroom, ready to collect another box, a large grin appearing as he looks at Shay. "Now that's one of the smartest ideas I think you have ever had, brother."

Coming over to where I'm sitting and bending down to press a kiss on my head, Griffin whispers in my ear, "What do you think? Doe, if I put a pole in our room, would you wear them, and only them, for me?" The last few words came out as a purr.

Blushing, I wrap my hands around the collar of his plaid shirt and pull him down for a real kiss, biting his lip and responding through our bond, <Only if you'll use the pole to dance for me?> My mind sending images of him taking me against said pole.

<Anything for you, Doe,> he sends back, heat flooding the bond, as my stomach flutters. I love this man so much.

"Can you two focus? We only have like a million more shoes to pack before we can get on the road, and I'm getting hungry," Shay grumbles. Griffin chuckles again and stands up, moving towards the pile of boxes waiting to be loaded into the trailer.

"Less complaining and more working will help everyone in getting this job done quicker," Griffin tells Shay, patting him on the back as he passes and lifts two boxes that would take at least four guys to carry. Using only one of his arms for balance, he moves to the door, "Why don't you take those boxes down to the trailer, and then we can go down the street and get you girls something to eat." He adds, pointing to the two remaining boxes before walking out.

"Sir, yes sir!" Shay salutes, then, with a look of surprise, "HEY! Did you just call me a girl? Cause I'm more than happy to pull out the evidence to show that I'm most certainly male!" He shouts, taking the boxes and following Griffin out the door.

"Child," Isla sighs, shaking her head, as she closes the newly empty dresser, making me laugh.

Over the past few weeks, away from the Ranch, Isla has gained most of her strength and can now walk by herself, only requiring to rest now and then. She's still quiet, but Griffin assures me that that's normal behavior, and Isla only speaks when she has something worth saying. I've yet to ask Isla her story, but I know that when she's ready, she'll tell me.

Putting the final shoe in the box and standing, I look at my empty room and smile. My time here, in my little house, has been nothing short of amazing. Memories flood my mind. Visions of Erin and I staying up all night, eating ice cream and watching chick flicks, dancing in our pajamas and passing out after several bottles of wine. Along with the happy come the sad memories of us crying on each other's shoulders when the world just seemed too hard to cope with.

Moving in with Griffin is the right decision for me but leaving here is bittersweet. Erin, of course, wasn't surprised when I told her, after speaking with her for several hours over the phone, the day after Griffin and I reconciled, I was able to tell her everything. In typical Erin fashion, she's happy as long as I'm happy. I still haven't been able to talk to her about what happened to make her leave the Ranch or what's going on in her world, but she's promised to visit regularly, especially since she'll be a proud aunt in the next seven or so months. I know I'll eventually get it out of her but, like Isla, Erin will tell me when she's ready.

"Sister," Isla whispers, tilting her head and smiling widely, her white teeth showing.

"Erin?" I ask, she nods and starts moving towards the downstairs level. It still amazes me that Isla can sense things that not even Griffin can. Griffin assures me this is also normal, but I have watched the three of them over the past two weeks, and Isla seems different again. At least, she's very different from me.

Following her down the stairs and onto the porch, I hear Erin's red Mercedes speed into the street before pulling up in front and stepping out. Lowering her black Gucci glasses, she squeals before rushing towards us and throwing her arms around Isla and me, bursting into happy tears as we embrace. "I have missed you bitches so much." Erin sobs into our arms and draws us close.

Squeezing her and pulling back, I can see that she's dressed in dark jeans and a red plaid jacket, very unlike Erin. Noticing me looking her over, she laughs, "What, can't a girl dress like a hillbilly when she wants to?"

"Sure, she can," I reply. Then looking at her car, I can see that her back seat is stacked with suitcases.

"Erin, are you going somewhere?" I question, looking her up and down.

"Well," biting her bottom lip and looking sheepish, "I may have arranged with Siobhan to stay in the cabin for a few days while you settle in, you know, for Christmas and all that."

It's my turn to squeal as I pull her in for another hug before the three of us move back inside to the kitchen. Taking out three glasses and filling them with water, we sit on the bar stools and toast to new adventures.

"So, I hear you got an amazing price for this place," Erin states, filling her now empty glass of water back up with what looks like Vodka from her little silver flask.

"Yeah, the realtor managed to get me well over the asking price, and the new owners have bought all the furniture as well," I answer, still delighted with the outcome. Not that I need the money, but it's one less thing I need to worry about. "Apparently, the new owners are a married couple from overseas who are immigrating over here for work. The wife fell in love with the house from the photos the realtor took, and that was that."

"Well, it's a fucking fantastic place to live." Erin salutes, her glass raised high.

Hearing the front door open, the scent of pine and musk hitting me, I stand and smile as my mate walks inside, Shay close behind, both carrying two massive bags full of food from one of my favorite local cafés.

"Tiger," Shay greets, making my eyes roll as he smiles widely at Erin, who turns to greet him, setting the glass back on the counter.

Moving my gaze back to Griffin, who is surprisingly quiet, I pause when I notice that my mate has frozen in the doorway, his face going white before he drops the bag of food to the ground, and rushes at Erin, taking her face in his hands, looking her up and down and smelling her.

"Griffin," I yell, seeing Erin, eyes wide and mouth open, "Griffin, what are you doing? This is Erin." I tell him, panicked by his actions.

Eyes still scanning, he turns her around and pulls her hair to the side, bending her neck ever so slightly. That's when I see it, something I had never noticed before.

At the base of her skull, so faint and aged over time, is a small scar in the shape of a V.

"Sister," Isla says again, grinning at her brother.

Griffin, still in a trance, turns Erin back around, taking her in his arms, and pulls her in close, smelling her hair, and whispers, "Ciara..."

STAY TUNED FOR BOOK TWO  

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OMG! I cannot believe I wrote a book - COVID gave me the time to get off my ass finally and write...

I wonder how many of you are sitting back smugly saying  - I knew it, I knew E was C - I called it!!! - Well done to those readers, I didn't hide it as much as some of the other secrets to be revealed, but it is still impressive to those that picked it.

Thank you so much to my readers that have reached this page (unless you cheated and skipped - GO BACK, all chapters have little secrets, if you skip them, you will miss them)

So I know some of you are thinking - when will book two be released. I have to admit. I cannot confirm that. COVID gave me ample time to write book 1 - but being back at work has ceased all NEW writing for book 2.

BUT, now that BOOK 1 is complete, I can focus on book two and begin writing with a clear mind and focus... Also, I am a writer that will not publish something that I will not finish - so WHEN I post the first chapter of book 2 - know that I have completed it (rough draft only) but that you will get to read every chapter until the end without me ghosting you...

So if you have not already, please follow me - that way, you will not miss out on any updates that may come.

Finally, to my loyal readers that have voted and commented - it is for YOU that I write! Listening to you fall in love with Griffin has made everything worth it. So once again, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart.

KnightWaters