Free Unknown (Hooked Book 3) by Charity Parkerson

remember until the day he died. He’d done that. The man he’d promised to love and protect now believed him capable of anything. As he’d climbed from the bed, Logan’s expression had transformed, becoming empty—dead. The sick feeling in Malik’s gut wouldn’t relent. His hold kept tightening on Logan until Logan gasped in protest. At the sound, Malik broke. He leapt from the bed.
    “I can’t do this.”
    Malik didn’t glance over his shoulder as he stormed across the room to the dresser. If he saw the panic or hurt in Logan’s eyes again, it might finally break him. He searched the contents of the dresser. It didn’t take him long to spot Logan’s wedding ring. Logan had always been the cleanest person alive. There wasn’t as much as a single speck of dust on any of the furniture. Malik’s house was a horrible mess since Logan went away.
    With the ring in hand, he returned to the bed. Climbing on, he didn’t stop until he straddled Logan’s hips, keeping him pinned to the bed. Logan’s features were blank, giving nothing away. He’d learned to hide his feelings sometime in the past eight months. Before they’d split, Malik had always known exactly how Logan felt. A pain hit Malik in the chest. That wasn’t entirely true. He hadn’t for one second suspected Logan would leave him.
    “You made me promises,” Malik said, hearing his hurt and incapable of hiding it.
    “I did,” Logan agreed, sounding every bit as sure as he had the day he married Malik. Every ounce of Malik’s inner rage slipped away. He knew he was always on the verge of losing his shit, and even he didn’t know which side he would come down on from day to day, but he fucking loved Logan with everything he possessed. That had never and would never change.
    “As I said the other night, I don’t expect you to rush home.”
    “I know.”
    “But you will wear this fucking ring, Logan,” Malik said, emphasizing every word.
    Logan smiled.
    The sight did something to Malik’s chest. He was scared to look at it too closely. He feared he knew exactly what was going on inside him. In spite of every lecture he’d given himself, Malik expected Logan would take him back in every way, and that would break him in every fucking way if it didn’t happen.
    “I can’t wear it if you don’t let me have it,” Logan said, bringing Malik back to reality.
    Malik quickly slipped the ring onto Logan’s finger before Logan changed his mind. As the warm metal moved over Logan’s knuckle, and settled back into its rightful spot, Malik felt the same as he had the day they’d gotten married. They fit. This was right. Anything else was a sham. He wouldn’t settle for less. Logan stared at his hand for a moment before meeting Malik’s gaze once more. Just as he had the day they’d married, Logan said the one thing that always took Malik’s breath.
    “You are the greatest love of my life.”
    Those blue eyes. Those lips. Fuck. He loved this man so goddamn hard, it was nearly impossible to breathe around it. Leaning in, Malik went down on his forearms, leaving barely an inch between them. “You are everything,” Malik said, keeping up his end of the bargain by giving Logan his truth. They’d be okay. It had to happen. Otherwise, they’d both eventually fade away.
     

Chapter 5
     
    One month later…
     
    “You’re not concentrating today,” Ryan yelled, clipping Malik across the cheekbone—again.
    “Fuck. Sorry, man. I’m exhausted today.” The words came out sounding breathless, lending truth to his statement.
    Ryan didn’t look appeased. In fact, he looked pissed as hell. “You don’t have time to be tired. Not with your fight coming up in three days. Where the hell is your head?”
    In bed with Logan. No way in hell would Malik utter those words to Ryan. For the month they’d been working out together, Ryan hadn’t let up on his taunting of Malik with Logan. The man swore he could steal Logan away any time he wanted. While it