by Danah Logan
Jesus, so good.
Picking up her pace, it didn't take long for me to come. She knew exactly how to push me over the edge.
Peering down at her exposed lower half now, I pretend to think about it. She places one foot against my chest and pushes playfully. "Sheats," she growls.
"MOAB Girl," I shoot back before I dive between her legs, and her moans fill the room.
Later that night, her spent body is tucked under my arm, and I draw circles with my fingers on her shoulder. "I don't want to miss a second of it this time." I can't see her face and keep my voice low in case she fell asleep.
She tilts her head up, and our eyes meet. "Not a second?"
"Not one," I confirm.
"You're going to hold my hair back when I puke my guts out?" she challenges.
I grin. "Bring it on, Princess."
We found out last week that King is pregnant. We weren't trying, but we also weren't preventing it. We're going to keep it to ourselves for a little longer since it is still early. This week is to celebrate someone else—two someones, if you count his return.
"How was the beach?" Hudson asks me from across the aisle on the private jet. He and Elle made it today; his sister and the rest of their gang would come tomorrow. I haven't seen him—or the others—in almost two years and am looking forward to catching up with everyone at the party.
"Oh, you know. The girls played in the ocean until they passed out from exhaustion, and then I had to take care of myself—even cook my own dinner," I counter with a grin.
Smack.
"Ouch! Woman!" I rub my bicep where King sucker punched me, throwing her an accusing glare.
"Who took care of you last night?" She tilts her head, daring me to give the right answer.
Hudson cackles in his seat, and I hear Elle chastise, "You guys never learn. Don't antagonize the women who feed you."
That makes King blush, and it's my turn to laugh out loud. I lean close to her ear. "You fed me, alright."
"What did Mommy make you for dinner, Daddy?" an innocent voice comes from somewhere between us, and we both wince at the same time.
"Yes, Daddy, what did Mommy make you?" Hudson mocks.
"Why don't we go check if Heather wants to do some color by numbers." King rummages through her massive bag until she finds Haddie's pencil case and coloring book and stands from her seat. Before she takes our daughter's hand, she slugs Hudson against the shoulder and then marches past Elle, who's kneeling next to Lilly, talking in hushed voices.
I grin at Hudson, who scowls. "Your wife has a mean punch."
"Don't I know it." I turn forward and take in the thundercloud over Marcus's head. He glowers at something behind me—correction, someone. It's been years, and I'm still clueless about what his deal is. He's as closed off as George's secret hideout on the East Coast. I have a feeling that King knows—at least part of it. She and Marcus have a bond like Den and me, but I've never asked my wife. If it's something I need to know, she would tell me—or Den would. Besides being a huge dick to Den, he has always been nothing but good to my family.
After we land, two SUVs take us to the vineyard. Marcus drives with Tristen in the passenger seat. Elle, Haddie, and King take the middle row and leave Hudson and me to climb into the third.
Everyone chats among themselves when Hudson nudges my knee with his. I meet his eyes, and in a low tone, he asks, "Have Rhys and Lilly said anything about how he's doing?"
I shake my head. Lilly has been unusually quiet about the topic, and I didn't pry. No one expected him to be back after just six years. With the legal team Lilly had at her disposal, and the blame being pushed onto the pharmaceutical companies for his erratic behavior, they managed it somehow.
After we arrive at the estate, Lilly and Rhys separate from everyone, heading into the house right away. Heather starts directing us to our rooms. King leads Haddie into the main building, and I call after her, "I'll grab the bags."
"Okay," King's voice drifts back to me.
I unload our rolling duffels and follow everyone into the house. I reach the landing to the second floor and—shit, did Heather say our room is to the left or right? I'm about to turn left, where more of the guest rooms are, when out of the corner of my eye, I notice a blonde head ducking into the room at the end of the hall of the west wing. By the time I turn, the person is gone. Weird.
Shrugging to myself, I set out to find my girls. It was probably Lilly.
"Daddy, here!" Haddie pops into the hallway just a few feet from me, and King follows, smiling.
"There you are. We were about to start a search party."
"Well, you found me." I walk past them and drop the bags in the corner.
I plop down on the edge of the bed. King eyes our daughter, who has a mischievous twinkle in her little ice-blue eyes.
"Ready?" King grins at her.
"Ready," she mimics her mother.
"Girls," I warn, but it's already too late. Both pounce on me with a war cry.
My family.
Dear reader,
Make sure to check out the Acknowledgments section for more secrets and unanswered questions that will be revealed soon.
If this was your first encounter with The Dark Series and you want to find out how Lilly and Rhys's story began, click here.
BUT FIRST, keep reading for an exclusive preview of
Followed by the Dark, Book Five in The Dark Series.
KEEP READING
Followed by the Dark
(Prologue)
Note:
This chapter is subject to change in
the final version of Followed by the Dark.
MARCUS
I cross my ankle over my knee in a failed attempt to stop my leg from bouncing. All I achieve is for the itch to switch to my other limb. My knee starts to bob up and down, and I swallow the growl that's been steadily building in my throat since boarding the jet. I glance at the Garmin on my wrist and calculate our remaining flight time—one more hour.
I shouldn't be here.
I'm not afraid of flying. At thirty-seven years old, there is not much that scares me. I was thrown into hell well before I was legally an adult. I fought and clawed my way out of the black pit that kept my soul hostage since I last held her. I'm alive, but at the same time, I'm not. I'm in purgatory. To the clueless observer, I am having a case of aerophobia as my nails dig into the buttery soft leather of the armrest. I'm not. My heart rate has been somewhere around one twenty, and the oxygen supply to my lungs is as delayed as the restocking of toilet paper during the pandemic a few years ago. None of this should be the case when your ass is planted on a private jet approaching a multimillion dollar vineyard in Northern California.
I am a mess.
I wasn't supposed to be working. I've never worked this week—not in the fourteen years I've served under George Weiler. He knew the date when he hired me for his security team. It was my one and only condition.
When Lilly and her husband Rhys informed me that they decided to move their daughter's first birthday party to the family's private estate, it was a win-win situation. The place is a fortress. Since becoming Lilly McGuire's bodyguard after she came out to the public and took over her family's empire six years ago, I always felt guilty about leaving her side for a whole week. She and Rhys are not just my employers; they are my friends. The closest I will ever get to having a family. Knowing she would be shielded from the public during my absence was a huge relief.
Then, I got the call.
George was not able to accompany Lilly on the jet as planned. He is the head of security of Lilly's family, including the business side. He runs the show. Being his second-in-command for almost a decade—and Lilly's Shadow, as I was named years ago—it fell on me to make sure the family arrived safely.
I've replayed the phone conversation in my head numerous times, searching for a clue as to why George would force me to be here. I came up blank. If the man doesn't want to talk about something, you'd ha
ve more success digging through a three-foot-deep concrete wall with a plastic spork.
Don't get me wrong, this job saved my life, which is why I will never refuse an assignment. I care about the McGuires and, of course, want to make sure their guests are secure. But being in her vicinity…
Her. Denielle Keller. Lilly's best friend since the two were prepubescent teens.
I lift my head, and my eyes immediately zero in on the perfectly curled, dark-brown hair spilling over the backrest two rows up. I purposefully chose the single seat in the front, so the only time I had to face the woman was during boarding and deplaning.
I attempt to be courteous with her, but ninety-nine percent of the time, that goes out the window. Her presence triggers a deep-rooted hatred I didn't know existed. Her friends still believe it is because she clocked me in the nuts six years ago, and I had to physically restrain her for five hours—and I let them believe that. The last thing I'd want is to lose my position because of my dislike for Denielle The Bulldog Keller. This week, though…I have no fucking clue how I'm going to do it.
Hide in my room or the wine cellar. Avoid everyone with a pulse.
She laughs at something Rhys says to his wife, and my jaw clenches of its own volition. A wave of heat spreads through my body—the unpleasant kind. Besides the physical assault, which I can somewhat excuse, given the circumstances, her presence sets me back years—not something I ever thought I'd have to go through in my mid-thirties.
A ripping sound brings my attention back to the present, and I close my eyes in resignation when I take in the tear in the leather where I've dislodged it from the seat.
Well, fuck. This will be a long seven days.
The dark follows everywhere. She used to be The Bulldog, but she lost her bite. He buried the one person he should've protected. Now, his life is driven by anger and revenge. Together, they're toxic for each other, but neither can deny that something is there. FBTD is an age-gap, enemies-to-lovers, dark romance.
Preorder Followed by the Dark, Book 5, here!
(The release date is temporary!!! I'm planning to release FBTD late 2022.)
Add Followed by the Dark to your TBR on Goodreads.
ALSO BY DANAH LOGAN
Wes and King got their happily ever after, but what's going on with Denielle? Did she keep a secret from her friends all this time? And why does Marcus hate her? Find out how the dark takes over Den's life in book five of The Dark Series.
The Dark Series
In the Dark, Book 1
(Lilly and Rhys)
Out of the Dark, Book 2
(Lilly and Rhys)
Of Light and Dark, Book 3
(The Conclusion to Lilly and Rhys's Story)
Because of the Dark, Book 4
(Wes and King)
Pre-order
Followed by the Dark, Book 5
(Denielle and Marcus)
Add to your TBR on Goodreads
I am the Dark, Book 6
(HIM)
The Ghost, A Dark Series Novella
(George)
Planned Standalone / New Series
GRIZZ
(Grizz & Mags)
Deadzone
(Natty)
ELEVEN, Untitled Series
(Elle)
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
You guys, I am crying. Again. Is this normal every time one finishes a book? I wrote the prologue while I was still in the writing cave for Out of the Dark—almost two years ago. A similar scene played out in front of me during a late grocery run, and all I could see was Wes and King in my head. I came home and wrote it down, knowing this was how Wes's story would begin.
If this was your first encounter with The Dark Series, thank you so much for picking up Wes and King's story. While I did my best to keep their story separate from the first three books in the series, you received some hints about Lilly and Rhys. If you want to find out how it all began, check out In the Dark here.
(Please note: Lilly and Rhys's trilogy is considered a mature, slow-burn, new adult, suspense romance. While there are steamy scenes, the intensity increases gradually throughout the books.)
For those of you who have been with me from the start, thank you from the bottom of my heart. What a wild ride it has been. It is still mind blowing to me that people read the stories that play out in my head.
You get to experience how everyone has grown—is that the right word?—over the last few years. Wes is no longer the guy you met in Lilly and Rhys's books. What do you think about grown-up Wes? :-)
You also got a glimpse into what's to come. Denielle and Marcus are next. The dark has been following everyone, and as you can probably guess, Denielle has secrets of her own. I'm so excited to give you their story.
Bonus Scenes!! Make sure to sign up for my newsletter to receive bonus scenes for each book in The Dark Series. The exclusive newsletter content for Because of the Dark are the following scenes:
- The Airport (Wes drops off Denielle at the airport)
- The Confession (Lilly's confession to Rhys that she kept King from him)
- UNKNOWN (A small glimpse into what happened to Gray)
- Change of Plans (Meet Haddie Sheats)
Once again, I'm aware that there are still some unanswered questions, but I can promise you they will be answered. Bear with me and the series.
- What happened to Gray in New Mexico?
Make sure to sign up for my newsletter. (Bonus scene: UNKNOWN)
(If you missed the newsletter, don't worry. All bonus scenes will be published in Behind the Dark, A Dark Series Novella when the series is complete)
- Tanner Jaxon Weiler!!
I didn't see him coming either until I wrote his name. George will get his own novella, which will have more backstory to Jax, but you will find out more in books five and six.
- What's the deal with Grizz, Mags, and Jax?
Once I figure that out, you will be the first to know. Grizz's backstory is set, and he will get a book (or novella) of his own.
If there are any other loose ends that you would like to know when they will be tied up, message me at [email protected]. I'd love to hear from you.
Okay, now to the thank-yous. WOW, I need to thank so many people for their assistance with this book. I have such an amazing team behind me. I couldn't do this without all of you!!
My husband & daughters: You are my everything. Chasing this dream would be nothing without you by my side. I love you!
My family and friends: Thank you for your continuous support in my dream and for cheering me on every step of the way.
Mary: My PA, plotting partner, beta, and friend. She always throws curve balls at me that trigger new plot twists or brand-new book ideas in my head. Thank you for your daily voice messages, letting me rant when Wes or King went quiet or didn't do what I had planned for them. I couldn't do this job without you.
Sammi: You are my sanity. I cherish our daily conversations and texts. Your friendship and support means the world to me. Love you to pieces!
Cara: My wonderful alpha. Who would've thought that one dinner with our men would lead to this? You were the first to get the full story of Wes and King, and I was TERRIFIED sending it to you. Thank you so so much for all your feedback and help in polishing this book up. To many more books together.
My betas: Lyndsey, Maggie, Jenn, and Arika. Thank you for taking time out of your busy lives to beta read Wes's sto
ry. You are such an integral part of my process, and I can't begin to tell you how grateful I am for you.
Jenn from Jenn Lockwood Editing: Thank you for once again working with my crazy schedule and making my words clean and pretty.
Rosa from My Brother's Editor: Thank you so much for proofing Because of the Dark and making sure Wes's book is ready for the world.
My ARC Readers & Street Team: THANK YOU!! Thank you for reading and reviewing my books before they're out in the wild and for spreading the word. I'm blown away by your support and wouldn't be here without you!
And finally, you, my Readers: Thank you for reading my words and escaping with me into the world(s) my crazy head cooks up. Seeing you fall in love, like (or even dislike) my characters makes me so happy because it means I created something you can identify with in one way or another. I can't wait to give you many more books and to hear what you think about them.
Denielle and Marcus, let's see what your story brings.
See you all at the end of book five.