Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 87940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 440(@200wpm)___ 352(@250wpm)___ 293(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 440(@200wpm)___ 352(@250wpm)___ 293(@300wpm)
He slips the ring on and then admires it thoughtfully. I’m dazzled by the brilliance and my heart even flutters a little, wondering exactly how Brienne will feel. The romanticism of it all hits me, which is very weird. Romance got obliterated from my vocabulary when I broke up with Peter four years ago. I erected a wall so it never entered my mind again after he left a dead cat on my porch.
“What do you think?” he asks.
My gaze goes from the ring to the tray and then back to the ring. “It’s beautiful.”
“It’s too old-fashioned,” Drake muses, nodding to the tray. “Let’s try one of those square-shaped diamonds.”
Bella’s eyes shine with amusement, grabbing two for him to consider. “This one is a princess cut and this one is an Asscher cut.”
We spend an hour trying on rings, Drake carefully studying each one on my hand. In the end, he ends up choosing a four-carat, radiant-cut diamond that’s dazzling to behold. It’s set on the most delicate platinum band with small diamonds crusting it and of course, nothing but the best clarity and color grading. It ended up costing him $132,000 and I was breathless just from the adventure of it.
The jeweler is going to hold the ring until Drake is ready to propose, more for safety reasons, given the cost.
“You have time to grab an early lunch?” Drake asks as we walk back to the parking garage.
I glance at my watch. I took the morning off from work, which isn’t a problem. Given my position is remote, I can set my own hours as long as my work gets done. Not only that, I work in the evenings a lot, having a much easier time reaching my patients via phone.
However, I do have plans this evening. Bain and I have kept in contact via text this past week he’s been gone. It’s been easy conversations and hot sexting. We’re able to transition back and forth. No actual phone calls, though. Pretty sure that would proclaim a deepening of the relationship that both of us have sworn not to go near.
At least I think that’s how we both feel.
I’m not sure because we haven’t talked about it, nor do I think we will.
All I know for sure is that Bain’s last text to me was right before Drake picked me up for ring shopping. It was an order, really, but I didn’t mind in this instance.
I’ll be there at six. I expect you to be naked and ready.
Just thinking of what the evening will hold has my belly fluttering. Equally as exciting as the pleasure I know both of us will dole out tonight, I’m curious to see if our playful conversations continue outside the text realm. While Bain slept over for two nights before this most recent road trip, I have no expectations that will occur tonight. It’s just as possible he’ll roll straight out of bed after we’re done and head home. I’m perfectly fine with either.
“Yeah… I can do lunch,” I say to my brother, mentally calculating the work I need to accomplish before Bain comes over. Anything I don’t finish this afternoon I can surely do tonight after he’s gone.
Or, if there’s time, I could cook dinner. That’s a friendly thing to do. Doesn’t mean anything other than we both need sustenance, right? Of course, that means I really need to get my work done before Bain comes over.
“A short lunch,” I amend. “I’ve got a ton of stuff to do today.”
Drake loops his arm around my shoulders and drags me into him as we traverse the sidewalk. He squeezes hard and presses his lips to my head. “Thanks, sis. For all your help. I love you.”
He releases me and I tip my head back. “I love you too.”
The smile on his face radiates pure joy and happiness. His future is nothing but sparkling promise and adventure and I’m here to watch it all go down.
CHAPTER 13
Bain
Christ… Kiera is hot as fuck tonight and I’m having a hard time keeping my eyes off her. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, but I’m sure that logic applies to lust as well. By the end of our seven-day road trip, I was obsessing about Kiera, or more accurately, obsessing about fucking her.
I got back three days ago and I’ve been with her every night. Our return to Pittsburgh started an almost unheard-of seven-day break in the schedule. While we have some practices to stay sharp, it’s an amazing amount of time off for the team. Some of the guys asked me to go out and party with them last night, but I declined. Merely told them I had other plans, which included rolling around with Kiera in her bed until we fell into an exhausted sleep.