Opal, p.1
Opal, page 1
OPAL
GEMS OF WOLFE ISLAND FIVE
WOLFES OF MANHATTAN TEN
HELEN HARDT
CONTENTS
Opal
Also by Helen Hardt
Praise for Helen Hardt
Warning
Prologue
1. Leif
2. Kelly
3. Leif
4. Kelly
5. Leif
6. Kelly
7. Leif
8. Kelly
9. Leif
10. Kelly
11. Leif
12. Kelly
13. Leif
14. Kelly
15. Leif
16. Kelly
17. Leif
18. Kelly
19. Leif
20. Kelly
21. Leif
22. Kelly
23. Leif
24. Kelly
25. Leif
26. Kelly
27. Leif
28. Kelly
29. Leif
30. Kelly
31. Leif
32. Kelly
33. Leif
34. Kelly
35. Leif
36. Kelly
37. Leif
38. Kelly
39. Leif
Bonus Content
Excerpt from Rebel
A Note from Helen
Acknowledgments
About the Author
OPAL
GEMS OF WOLFE ISLAND FIVE
Helen Hardt
This book is an original publication of Helen Hardt
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are 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. The publisher does not assume any responsibility for third-party websites or their content.
The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work that have been used without permission.The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized by, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
Copyright © 2023 Helen Hardt, LLC dba Hardt & Sons
Cover Design: The Killion Group, Inc.
Edited by Eric J. McConnell
Print ISBN: 978-1-952841-21-7
All Rights Reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic format without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
For my amazing beta readers—Karen Aguilera, Serena Drummond, Linda Pantlin Dunn, and Angela Tyler.
You ladies rock!
ALSO BY HELEN HARDT
Follow Me Series:
Follow Me Darkly
Follow Me Under
Follow Me Always
Darkly
Black Rose Series
Blush
Wolfes of Manhattan
Rebel
Recluse
Runaway
Rake
Reckoning
Billionaire Island (Wolfes continuation)
Escape
Gems of Wolfe Island (Wolfes continuation)
Moonstone
Raven
Garnet
Buck
Opal
Phoenix
Steel Brothers Saga:
Trilogy One—Talon and Jade
Craving
Obsession
Possession
Trilogy Two—Jonah and Melanie
Melt
Burn
Surrender
Trilogy Three—Ryan and Ruby
Shattered
Twisted
Unraveled
Trilogy Four—Bryce and Marjorie
Breathless
Ravenous
Insatiable
Trilogy Five—Brad and Daphne
Fate
Legacy
Descent
Trilogy Six—Dale and Ashley
Awakened
Cherished
Freed
Trilogy Seven—Donny and Callie
Spark
Flame
Blaze
Trilogy Eight—Brock and Rory
Smolder
Flare
Scorch
Trilogy Nine—Brendan and Ava
Chance
Fortune
Destiny
Blood Bond Saga:
Unchained
Unhinged
Undaunted
Unmasked
Undefeated
Sex and the Season:
Lily and the Duke
Rose in Bloom
Lady Alexandra’s Lover
Sophie’s Voice
Temptation Saga:
Tempting Dusty
Teasing Annie
Taking Catie
Taming Angelina
Treasuring Amber
Trusting Sydney
Tantalizing Maria
Standalone Novels and Novellas
Reunited
Misadventures:
Misadventures of a Good Wife (with Meredith Wild)
Misadventures with a Rockstar
The Cougar Chronicles:
The Cowboy and the Cougar
Calendar Boy
Daughters of the Prairie:
The Outlaw’s Angel
Lessons of the Heart
Song of the Raven
Collections:
Destination Desire
Her Two Lovers
Non-Fiction:
got style?
PRAISE FOR HELEN HARDT
WOLFES OF MANHATTAN
“It's hot, it's intense, and the plot starts off thick and had me completely spellbound from page one.”
~The Sassy Nerd Blog
“Helen Hardt…is a master at her craft.”
~K. Ogburn, Amazon
“Move over Steel brothers… Rock is everything!”
~Barbara Conklin-Jaros, Amazon
“Helen has done it again. She winds you up and weaves a web of intrigue.”
~Vicki Smith, Amazon
FOLLOW ME SERIES
“Hardt spins erotic gold...”
~Publishers Weekly
“22 Best Erotic Novels to Read”
~Marie Claire Magazine
“Intensely erotic and wildly emotional...”
~New York Times bestselling author Lisa Renee Jones
“With an edgy, enigmatic hero and loads of sexual tension, Helen Hardt's fast-paced Follow Me Darkly had me turning pages late into the night!”
~New York Times bestselling author J. Kenner
“Christian, Gideon, and now...Braden Black.”
~Books, Wine, and Besties
“A tour de force where the reader will be pulled in as if they're being seduced by Braden Black, taken for a wild ride, and left wanting more.”
~USA Today Bestselling Author Julie Morgan
“Hot. Sexy. Intriguing. Page-Turner. Helen Hardt checks all the boxes with Follow Me Darkly!”
~International Bestselling Author Victoria Blue
STEEL BROTHERS SAGA
“Craving is the jaw-dropping book you need to read!”
~New York Times bestselling author Lisa Renee Jones
"Completely raw and addictive."
~#1 New York Times bestselling author Meredith Wild
“Talon has hit my top five list…up there next to Jamie Fraser and Gideon Cross.”
~USA Today bestselling author Angel Payne
“Talon and Jade’s instant chemistry heats up the pages...”
~RT Book Reviews
“Sorry Christian and Gideon, there’s a new heartthrob for you to contend with. Meet Talon. Talon Steel.”
~Booktopia
“Such a beautiful torment—the waiting, the anticipation, the relief that only comes briefly before more questions arise, and the wait begins again… Check. Mate. Ms. Hardt…”
~Bare Naked Words
“Made my heart stop in my chest. Helen has given us such a heartbreakingly beautiful series.”
~Tina, Bookalicious Babes
BLOOD BOND SAGA
“An enthralling and rousing vampire tale that will leave readers waiting for the sequel.”
~Kirkus Reviews
"Dangerous and sexy. A new favorite!"
~New York Times bestselling author Alyssa Day
“A dark, intoxicating tale.”
~Library Journal
“Helen dives into the paranormal world of vampires and makes it her own.”
~Tina, Bookalicious Babes
“Throw out everything you know about vampires—except for that blood thirst we all love and lust after in these stunning heroes—and expect to be swept up in a sensual story that twists and turns in so many wonderfully jaw-dropping ways.”
~Angel Payne, USA Today bestselling author
WARNING
The Gems of Wolfe Island series contains adult language and scenes, including flashbacks of physical and sexual abuse. Please take note.
PROLOGUE
ASPEN
Buck and I get married at Luke and Katelyn’s beach house.
I was surprised Buck agreed to it, but he and Luke seem to have finally come to an understanding between them.
Katelyn and I are ecstatic about it. Because we’re besties, the four of us will be spending a lot of time together.
Katelyn is, of course, my maid of honor, and Buck’s sister Emily is my bridesmaid. Coming back to this house couldn’t have been easy for her, but she did it for Buck and for me.
Buck has two best men. His brother, Johnny, and his fellow SEAL, Leif Ramsey. Also known as Phoenix.
I’m dancing with Phoenix later. He’s tall and muscular, like Buck, but there the similarities end. Leif is blond and blue-eyed with light skin.
“Thank you for being here,” I tell him. “For Buck. It means everything to him.”
“I’ll always be here for Buck,” Leif says. “We’re brothers.”
His phone buzzes.
“Do you mind?”
“Of course not.”
He leads me off the dance floor and looks at his phone.
“Oh, shit.”
“Is anything the matter?”
“I need to talk to Buck.”
“Leif, this is our wedding day. Please…”
“I know, Aspen. And I’m sorry.”
Buck is on the dance floor with his sister.
Emily and Luke seem to have made their peace as well, and for that I’m grateful. Emily is radiant—she looks like Buck in female form—and she seems ecstatic with her significant other, Scotty, a half-Hawaiian surfer boy who’s now studying to be a licensed psychologist.
A moment later, Buck is leaving the dance floor with Leif. They go inside the house.
I wait.
And I wait.
Only a few minutes have passed, but I can’t take it any longer. I head into the house to find them.
They’re deep in conversation when—
“Aspen, baby.”
“Exactly what’s going on?”
“I’m so sorry,” Buck says, “but I need to go back to New York.”
“All right. In two weeks. After our trip to the Virgin Islands.”
“I promise you, baby, we will have the honeymoon of the century. But we have to put it off for a little while.”
The spoiled little girl inside me wants to stomp and hold my breath, but I don’t. This is Buck. The man who loves me. And he wouldn’t make me postpone my honeymoon unless it was very important.
He is who he is. He’s Buck. He saves people. He wouldn’t be the man I love if he didn’t do that.
“Why? What is it?”
“It’s another one of the women from the island.” Buck shakes his head. “Opal. She’s in trouble.”
I swallow. “Kelly?”
Kelly was different. She used to get jealous when someone was chosen over her. None of us understood her. Of course, none of us tried to understand anything while we were there. We were simply trying to keep our own heads above water.
“Yeah,” Phoenix says. “A threat has been made against her…by another woman from the island.”
1
LEIF
Cheating Buck and Aspen out of their honeymoon wasn’t on my to-do list, but the Wolfe family pays us big money to take care of these women and keep them safe.
They even sent their private jet to bring us back from LA to New York. Aspen insisted on coming with us, and even though Buck and I both tried to talk her out of it, that woman has a mind of her own.
Buck is worried for her safety, and so am I, but from what I can tell, the woman can take care of herself. She’s tall, strong, athletic. Gorgeous with dark hair and eyes. She and Buck will make beautiful kids.
Damn.
Kids.
I can’t believe Buck is married. That last tour of duty fucked both of us up so bad, I wasn’t sure either of us would be able to have a decent relationship, but Buck defied the odds. He and Aspen are perfect together.
As for me? I’m not looking. I don’t think I’ll ever look. Definitely too fucked up. Torture and violation… We’re prepared for it during training, but can you ever be truly prepared?
No.
You can’t.
Buck and I are meeting Reid and Rock Wolfe at their office this morning, and of course Aspen is tagging along. Once we get through security in the Wolfe building, we take the elevator to the main office and check in with the receptionist.
“The Wolfes are expecting you,” the receptionist says with a smile. “Have a seat, and someone will come get you soon.”
I plunk my ass down on a comfortable couch in the reception area. Buck and Aspen sit across from me on another couch, Aspen twiddling her thumbs.
Buck and I both rise when Reid Wolfe, dressed in his signature navy-blue tailored suit, walks out to greet us. Fatherhood suits him. He looks more at ease these days. When I first met Reid, he was a stiff businessman who had no time for anything but work—unless it was a quick fuck with his woman du jour. Now he’s a devoted family man, married to one of his father’s victims and a father himself to an adorable infant girl.
“Buck, Leif.” Reid shakes our hands, and then his gaze falls on Aspen. “Ms. Davis, I’m glad you came along. You may be able to offer some insight.”
Aspen shakes Reid’s hand. “It’s Mrs. Moreno now.” She smiles. “But Aspen is fine. And that’s why I’m here. I want to help.”
“I know we’re asking a lot of you and your new husband, postponing your honeymoon for a little while, but we think this might be serious.” He nods to the receptionist. “I don’t want to be disturbed during this meeting. Not at all.”
“Yes, Mr. Wolfe.”
Then to us, “Follow me.”
Buck, Aspen, and I follow Reid through the winding hallways to one of the conference rooms. I’ve been in this particular room many times, but it always leaves me in awe. It’s huge, of course, with a solid cherry table that seats up to twenty. The chairs are cushioned with blue and gold brocade, but the most iconic part of the room are its walls. They’re home to a triptych of paintings by Roy Wolfe, and whenever I look at them—abstract in blues, golds, grays, and whites—I see something different. Today I see the ocean…but perhaps that’s because I was just in LA at a house on the beach for Buck’s wedding.
When we enter, Rock—Reid’s oldest brother and chief executive officer of Wolfe Enterprises—stands.
He looks a little rougher than Reid, who always looks refined. But there’s no mistaking the resemblance between them. Only their eyes are different—Reid’s are blue and Rock’s are green. But they both have the same determination in their gazes.
“You all know my brother Rock.”
Rock shakes hands all around. “Good to see you. Thank you for coming. My wife, Lacey, will be here in a minute.” He gazes at the doorway. “Here she is now.”
Lacey Wolfe is blond and blue-eyed, and she’s just starting to show a baby bump.
“Mrs. Wolfe,” I say, “nice to see you again. And congratulations.”
“Thank you, Leif. And please call me Lacey.”
