Page 1 of Faith

prologue

Four years ago

Jensen Wulf let himself into his New York brownstone and sighed with relief. It had been a long three months since he’d been here, in what he had termed as hissanctuary. He’d left on his own accord, ready to make a fresh start and walk away from the heroin haze he’d lived in over the last four years.

The apartment smelled fresh. The vinegary scent of heroin no longer clung to the furniture. He assumed that his mother had made sure everything had been cleaned out before he returned. She was good like that. She kept things tidy, even as everything else was falling apart. The floors had been redone, there was a new coat of paint throughout…damn, he owed her.

He had disappointed her, more than a few times, but almost dying of an overdose was the worst. He would never forget the look of pain in her gaze. It was that look that had made him realize he wasn’t just hurting himself.

There was mail stacked up on a credenza. His mother had taken care of the bills, he knew that. But, he was sure there was other correspondence for him. He picked up the envelopes and stepped into the living room.

He didn’t see her at first. She was sitting in the chair to the right of the fireplace, her phone in her hand as she read something on the screen.

“I thought you would never make it in here.”

American, but there was a slight accent to her voice that he couldn’t place. She was dressed in a striking red blouse, a short black skirt, hose, and fuck me heels. Her hair was dark brown and long from what he could tell. She had it up in a ponytail. A black coat was draped over the arm of the chair.

“Excuse me?”

She looked up at him. Ice blue eyes. Jesus, it didn’t fit with the rest of the package.

“You spent a lot of time in the foyer.”

He opened his mouth to explain why, then he remembered it washisfucking house.

“Who the hell are you?”

She smiled, but there was little humor behind it.

“Nicola McCann.”

The name was familiar, but he was sure he had never met her.

“And you are sitting in my house for what reason?”

“Your mother hired me.”

“For what?”

“I’m your sober companion. We're going to be best friends for the next three months.”

chapterone

Hawaii, Present Day

Nicola stepped off the last stair from the private jet and cursed her life. Okay, she sounded like a bitch, even to herself…in her own head. She had flown from LA to Honolulu on a private jet, and she was cursing her life. Rich people problems, indeed.

She slipped on her sunglasses and ignored the bead of sweat that had already formed on her back and was now slowly rolling down her spine. She was not a woman made for tropical beaches or humidity. Before she was eighteen, she had spent most of her life in an ice rink. She longed for a day in the snow, drinking hot chocolate, and riding a sled.

“Move it along, Nic,” Jensen said from behind her, irritation easy to hear in his voice.

He didn’t like being here anymore than she did. Hawaii was gorgeous, but she had a feeling Jensen’s irritation arose from the laidback style of Hawaii. He had a lot of time on his hands when he was here, and he knew that’s when he made mistakes.Mistakes, that’s what they called it since the one time he had gone on a bender three years ago. Idle hands and all of that.

She stepped aside and waited for him to take the lead. She followed behind him, not out of duty, but it was the easiest way to get things done. Nicola gave up duty a long time ago.

“Did you contact Micah Ross?” he asked.

“Yes. He knows you are on the island today.”

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