My Last Hope

Also by Katie Richard Destiny Into The Storm Katie Richard LLC My Last Hope Copyright © 2023 Katie Richard Published by Katie Richard LLC www.katierichard.com This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. Any brand names and product names used in this book are trademarks, registered trademarks, or trade names of their respective holders. Katie Richard LLC is not associated with any product or vendor in this book. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except for brief quotations in articles and reviews. Printed in the United States of America for Worldwide Distribution ISBN: 978-1-7371453-8-7 For those of you who have faced trauma or abuse, you're not alone. Keep fighting, keep surviving. Don't let your abuser take more from you. Don't let them continue to rob you of life after you've separated yourself from the situation. Fuck them. You deserve happiness and love. This book may not be suitable for all readers. Mature themes within have a recommended audience of 18 years old and above. Read at your own discretion. Scenes in this book may include but are not limited to: ~ physical and emotional abuse ~ violence, death, and grief ~ hostage/ kidnapping ~ mention of suicide (not an actual one) ~ substance abuse ~ sexual scenes Contents 1. Chapter 1 2. Chapter 2 3. Chapter 3 4. Chapter 4 5. Chapter 5 6. Chapter 6 7. Chapter 7 8. Chapter 8 9. Chapter 9 10. Chapter 10 11. Chapter 11 12. Chapter 12 13. Chapter 13 14. Chapter 14 15. Chapter 15 16. Chapter 16 17. Chapter 17 18. Chapter 18 19. Chapter 19 20. Chapter 20 21. Chapter 21 22. Chapter 22 23. Chapter 23 24. Chapter 24 25. Chapter 25 26. Chapter 26 resources About The Author Chapter one Abby"Honey, I'm home!" Frank belts out from the doorway, making me smile as I put the final layer of cheese on top of the lasagna. Opening the oven, I get a burst of hot air in the face. Squinting from the heat, I shove the casserole dish on the center rack. The construction company Frank works for landed a big contract for the local hospital today. His crew will build a new inpatient wing on the west side. It's nice to see Dillon, our hometown in Montana, finally get some needed upgrades. Living in such a small town, Frank found the funding sources are limited, unlike East Point, which is about an hour away. They're a level-one trauma center, meaning they get all the fancy stuff. I wanted to help him celebrate by making his favorite dish with my grandmother's recipe.He comes into the kitchen, tosses his keys in the wooden bowl in the center of the table, and wraps his arms around me from behind. I love how he nestles his chin in the crook of my neck, dragging his nose up and down the side, making me shiver. He knows that my neck has always been one of my most sensitive parts. His mouth twists into a smile as he presses his lips to my skin, where my vein pulses. My lips part as I lean into him while he continues to kiss me there. His rough, calloused hands trail down to my waist and grip me tightly, pressing me against him."I missed you today," he says gruffly.I clear my throat. "I missed you too. Congratulations on landing that contract.""Thanks. What are you cooking? It smells good in here." He inhales deeply."Lasagna," I answer, twisting in his grip and putting my arms around his broad shoulders. I don't mind the drywall mud and paint splatters that cover him. They compliment his dark olive-green eyes. I wipe a chunk of white mud off his eyebrow and grin."Mmm. My favorite." Tilting his head, he grins down at me and taps the tip of my nose with his index finger. "Just like you, my favorite person."I wish it were always like this, the loving couple. I don't answer him back. I can't lie to him and tell him he's my favorite person. He was once, but he's changed too much over time. Instead, I hug him and sigh contently. Times like these make me think there's still hope for us. That we can still go back to the way we were before our current struggles.He dips his head down and covers my lips with his. I open for him, and his tongue darts inside and caresses my own. As he deepens the kiss, I slide my hands through his short, light brown hair. He abruptly pulls away, leaving my face tingling from his stubble."I'm going to go get cleaned up.""Okay," I say breathlessly, watching him stroll away.I don't mind him staying in his dirty khaki carpenter pants and the blue sweatshirt with his company's logo on the back. I find it sexy when he's covered in grease and grime from being a blue-collar worker. There's nothing like a hard-working man.He disappears around the corner and into the hall that leads to the bathroom. Turning back to the stove, I realize I forgot to set the timer. "Shit," I mumble under my breath. I estimate how long I was distracted and set my timer for a few minutes less, just in case. Grandma would curse me from heaven if I burnt one of her recipes. She was a fantastic cook and wrote painstakingly detailed instructions. Even a beginner shouldn't be able to screw up the recipe from inside the pages of what I call my bible.It doesn't look like anything special. The leather-covered book is cracked from years of use, the binding is fraying at the