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 ...

“No uniform, so would it be too hard for you to call me Kalle on an off day?” Emil’s dad smirked and held out a hand for a fist bump.


Makai chuckled and bumped his fist, then nodded. “Sure, but only if there’s no uniform.”


“Good.” Kalle looked at the fence parts. “What do you have here?”


“Lotte dropped them over. We’re thinking about putting them together for a bigger one so we can fit inside. The kittens will love being outside,” Emil explained.


Kalle looked thoughtful as he took in the fences and the yard. “Why don’t you put it against the house? It’d double the space, and depending on where you attach one end, it could have the front door on the inside so they can run back and forth?”


Chapter 81