Can two broken men build one life? Ten years. That’s what Makai lost for a crime he didn’t commit. He’s been exonerated, but the abuse he suffered in prison isn’t so easy to leave behind. He heads to the one place he remembers being happy: Acker, Wisconsin, where he spent summers with his grandpa. Unfortunately, not everyone wants Makai there. Ten days. That’s how long Emil, now twenty-one, was held prisoner as a teenager. The mental and physical injuries he suffered at the hands of a drug trafficking ring still haunt him. Nightmares, anxiety, and PTSD challenge the connection forming between Makai and Emil, though together, they might find a way to move beyond their pain and into a future -- and a relationship -- that both had thought impossible. Now they just have to convince Emil’s father, the town sheriff. It won’t be easy with danger closer than they know ...

She cleaned the first one that looked light in color as soon as she got it dry.


“Gingery,” Makai murmured and grinned. Yeah, there wasn’t much question on the dad, especially if they had longer than average hair, but that wasn’t something Makai could tell from a newborn.


The next two kittens arrived in good, surprisingly fast pace, and ended up being darker in color than the first one, even after Mouse was done with them.


Although they didn’t seem to need much nudging in the first place, she nudged them toward the milk bar, and Makai reached to pet her. She headbutted him as much as she could and looked at him with what he could only think of as her proud “look at what I made” expression.


“They are lovely, Mouse. So pretty. Are there more?” he asked and carefully ran his index finger across each of the kittens’ back, feeling the silky fur and tiny, trembly bodies.


Chapter 25