Page 1 of Knot a Chance in Hell

CHAPTER ONE – Nicolette

I stepped out from the still shaking deathtrap and onto the metal stairs leading to the small runway. My feet wouldn’t carry me fast enough. I’d never ride in one of those tiny planes again. Every second we were in the air, I was terrified it would succumb to the whipping winds and we’d die in a fiery crash.

It would look weird if I kissed the ground, wouldn’t it? Instead, I straightened myself and prepared to greet the Alpha who was supposed to claim me. Wherever he was.

Standing on the tarmac with the engines still loud in my ears and the cold nipping at my nose and cheeks, I scanned the small field for Kodiak Volkov. I didn’t see a single person waiting for me. The only men nearby were tending to the plane and unloading my luggage, and they were all Betas.

Worry that I was forgotten and alone twisted my stomach. Then anger flared that no one had shown up to meet me after I’d had basically given up my whole life and dreams to come here. Dreams of dancing and tropical beaches and a handsome, suave Alpha who worshiped me. Instead, I was in southeast Alaska on the coast of a forested island without a single beach. I knew because I’d looked it up online when my father told me he was sending me north.

I shouldered my small bag and marched toward the only building nearby. A dry heat blew over me as I entered the tiny terminal. No one was inside, not even someone working the small customer service counter. Didn’t anybody live on Mitkof Island? “Hello?”

Peeking into the single bathroom and the office behind the counter, I gnawed my lower lip.

The door I’d entered swung open and two Betas with my trunk and three suitcases hurried in. Outside, the plane was still roaring as if protesting being here too.

“Thank you.” I smiled as they set everything down by the counter. At least someone was here with me. I wasn’t alone.

The younger of the two rushed back outside while the silver haired man who was the co-pilot, John, rounded the counter and started to write in a logbook. “You’re welcome, Miss Lancaster. We made it here in good time. Enough so Troy and I can get back to the mainland before the storm hits. I hear it’s going to bring the first real snow of the season.”

A snow storm. My first ever time in the north when it was winter. I clenched my hands together so they wouldn’t shake. I wasn’t afraid of snow, but the isolation it could bring, that this place would bring... “Fly safely then. It already felt really windy up there.”

“We’ll be flying with the wind this time, so no worries.” John finished whatever he needed to do with the logbook and peeked out the front door. “Your ride not here yet?”

I shook my head, no longer feeling angry about not being greeted. Now it was the dark gray looming storm gripped at my nerves. “Do you know if Kodiak Volkov was supposed to be here? I was only told that I would be picked up at the airport.”

“Volkov is likely still out in the Tongass, and I doubt his father would come.” John pursed his lips and glanced out the door again. He then turned a sympathetic smile on me. “Someone will come. I have no doubt all of Petersburg knows you’re arriving today.”

“Maybe I should call for an Uber?” I suggested, digging for my phone in the side pocket of my shoulder bag.

John laughed. “There are no Ubers here. Petersburg doesn’t have much more than three thousand folks. It can seem busier in the warm months when visitors come to fish, but you’ll find it to be a sleepy town in the winter.” He headed to the door and gave me a nod. “Someone will come, don’t worry. It was a pleasure meeting you, Miss Lancaster.”

I thanked him again as he trotted out the door back to the plane, and then I was truly alone in the terminal as the heater clunked and breathed another dry burst of hot air.

Fiddling with my bag, I sat in one of three plastic chairs and tried not to let panic’s grip tighten on me. My father was one of those people who came to Mitkof Island every year to fish. The waters were protected by the islands and mainland, so it made for calm big sea fishing. He was excited I would be living just outside of Petersburg and promised to visit frequently. I loved my father, and he spoiled my sisters and I, but I’d be happier if he liked to do his fishing in Hawaii or the Caribbean.

There was no music playing. The bellow of the plane’s engines and the increasing storm winds made the terminal creak and moan. Even with that, it felt too quiet.

I stood and looked out the front door at the small lot. There was only one truck with the airport logo on the door. There wasn’t anyone else. Not even a single car drove along the nearby road.

People. I need people.

Fetching my phone, I texted my family that I’d arrived and was waiting to be picked up. Then I sent a message to my best friends, Kienna, Callista, and Aubrielle. At least the terminal had wifi because I got a response immediately.

Kienna: Heya! How’s the great white north?

I grinned as I sat back down and typed back,It’s pretty green actually. And empty. Like no one’s here.

Kienna: No one??? What about your hunky Alpha? Please tell me he wears flannel and has a big axe like cock!

Snorting a laugh, the tension in my shoulders eased.He hasn’t shown up yet. So I don’t know what he looks like.The Volkovs had zero presence online. I couldn’t find one picture of Kodiak. Then I added,And a storm’s coming.

Callista: Glad you got there safely. And it isn’t the size of the cock that matters. Just that he’s a sweet guy. Do you have a way of contacting him?

Kienna: Size doesn’t matter, yeah right. Says the Omega who has three well hung Alphas banging her day and night!

I giggled and bounced my knees. Callista had been claimed by three handsome Alphas two months ago in September when they protected her from a plot to kidnap and kill her. A plot orchestrated by her own father. Thankfully my father’s only plan was to build a lodge to stay in while he was fishing.

Callista: They are amazing. Jealous?

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