Free Bluebeard by Selena Kitt

 
    INTRODUCING MODERN WICKED FAIRY TALES: THE NEW COLLECTION
     
     
    Selena Kitt’s BRAND NEW Modern Wicked Fairy Tales!
     
    Start now with PINOCCHIO – and look for more COMING SOON!
     
    PINOCCHIO, ALADDIN, JACK AND THE BEANSTALK, PETER AND THE WOLF, RUMPLESTILTSKIN, THE FROG PRINCE
     
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    MODERN WICKED FAIRY TALES: PINOCCHIO
     
    In this modern version of the fairy tale classic Pinocchio, marine Levi Woodyer—known as “Woody” to his special ops team—is on a medical discharge, a man with a haunted past, a painful present and an uncertain future.
     
    His father watches, powerless to help his son, as Levi slips further between the cracks, and troubled Levi doesn’t seem to be too interested in helping himself.
     
    But when his father’s simple bribe finally gets Levi out of the house to a physical therapy appointment, his encounter with former high school sweetheart, Linnea Fey, just might put him on the path to wholeness again.
     
    EXCERPT:
     
    She raised her eyebrows, writing something down. “Bad landing?”
     
    “Bad timing.” Bad everything, really. The whole thing had been FUBAR from the beginning. He should have called it off, should have listened to Cricket. “The chalk was dropped in twenty-seven knot winds.”
     
    Linney shook her head, glancing up at him and frowning, looking for a translation.
     
    He gave her one. “Thirteen knots is the legal limit for civilians.”
     
    “Ouch.” Her eyes widened.
     
    “You can say that again.” He flashed a bitter smile, counting off his injuries on his fingers. “Let’s see, I’ve got severe cranial nerve damage. There was extensive ligament damage, all the way from the top of my head down to the middle of my spine. My jaw was actually torn away from my skull. I couldn’t talk for three months. I broke my tailbone, my rib cage was torn away from my spine…”
     
    “I got it, I got it.” She held up her hand, shuddering.
     
    “Oh hell, I was lucky,” he scoffed. “One guy didn’t make it.”
     
    “Oh Levi, I’m so sorry.” The compassion in her voice made his throat close with emotion. “So you’re here for help with your pain?”
     
    “I’m here…” He shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest and looking at her askance. “I’m here because my dad bribed me. He told me I could drive the Boss if I showed up to this appointment. You can’t help me, Linney. No one is going to be able to put humpty dumpty back together again.”
     
    “Well we’ll see about that.” She offered him a smile, and a hand. “Will you lie down for me?”
     
    Damn but she was irresistible. Her hand was small and warm in his. It was laughable, the idea of her helping him up, but he took her hand anyway, letting her lead him toward the examining table.
     
    “On your belly,” she directed. He did as she asked, stretching out, arms crossed over his head, cheek pressed to the paper on the table. Her hands moved slowly, carefully, over his back, her fingers feeling each vertebrae of his spine. “So, how is your dad?”
     
    “As stubborn as ever,” he snorted, wincing as her fingers made their way up to his neck.
     
    “Face down.” She reached around, adjusting the table so a hole appeared for his face, allowing him to turn his head. Her hands pressed, pulled, making him cringe. It felt like there were marbles in there, shifting painfully under her probing fingers. “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, does it?”
     
    “Damn, Linney, do you have to be so honest?” He gritted his teeth as her thumbs met at the base of his neck, pressing hard, spreading. “Fuuuucccck!”
     
    “Does that hurt?” She asked the question but didn’t stop when he groaned in the affirmative. “Besides, honesty is the best policy. I could have dealt with heroin. But cheating? Behind my back? You know how much I hate lying.”
     
    “I remember.” He did.