Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 73506 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73506 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
Worth it.
But when she gets to the gift cards, she swipes at her eyes, as if she's crying.
My heart surges as she buries her head in her arms and weeps. I know she's crying by the way her shoulders shake.
She needs to be held. Comforted. She needs to stop being so alone.
Is she mourning her husband?
I wish I had the answer.
CHAPTER FOUR
“GETTING TO KNOW YOU…”
Dani
Days pass. I get a few more customers, and business is beginning to pick up. Reviews online are strong, and word of mouth is doing its thing.
But all day long, every time the doorbell blares…I wait for Ricco.
And he doesn’t come.
I know I should be doing something else to bring new customers in, but a part of me is afraid they’ll take up the time I want to devote to him. Plus, the last time he came in here, he gave me a tip so big it wouldn't matter if I got any new customers or not for a while.
But that's not why I want to see him.
Last night, someone dropped off groceries again. It was good stuff, imported cheese, English walnuts, snacks for Emmy, peanut butter.
I started imagining that the person who brought me these is like my fairy godmother.
I don't like pity, and can barely even stand sympathy, but this just feels…different.
I eat my lunch and check in on Emmy's school video cam. They have an option where I can see little snippets of them throughout the day. It makes me sad when Emmy looks sad, and it makes me sad when she looks happy, because I want to be the one that brings a smile to her face.
Yeah, I’ve got issues.
"Who do I have to kill to get a spot tonight?"
My body knows who it is instantly. I swallow and give him a coy smile. “No one. I reserved this slot for you."
Wait, was that too forward?
So much for playing hard to get. I don't want him to think I'm sitting around pining away for him, even if I am sitting around pining away for him, because no one needs a big head and let’s be honest, I hardly know the man.
"Thank you," he says, obviously touched. "I've been traveling for days, and just got home. The airplane wrecked my back because we had such a long delay in Philly. Can you do your magic?"
“I can absolutely do my magic. Go on in and lay on the table, please. You know the routine.”
When he turns to me, his eyes are smoldering, his grave face serious. “I do. I'll go strip."
A flare of arousal throbs in my core.
Yikes.
He walks past me, his shoulder so close to mine that I can feel his body heat. I tell myself all the things I should—why I can't be interested in him, why it's too much. That I'm a single mother and a widow.
"Come on in," Ricco says from the other side of the door. "I am suitably naked. Wait, can I say that?”
I snort to myself and shake my head.
“You can’t. Take it back.”
He gives me a sidelong look. “You want me to get dressed again?”
“Wise guy,” I say with a wink. “This will go much better if you don’t.”
If I want to get to know more about Ricco, I need to start asking some questions. “Are you in a chatty mood today?" I ask.
“As a matter of fact, I am.”
“Oh good. The more I know about a client, the better I can serve them.”
“Uh huh.”
I know it's probably not a good sign that when he comes in here, my heart throbs, and my spirits rise. I have never in my life felt this way about a man.
“What can I do for you today?” I ask, as I take my position beside him and lay my hands on his shoulders. A powerful force of electric energy surges through my palms and winds me. I swallow and blink, pretending that didn’t happen.
Did he feel that, too?
"Wish I could do the Full Monty again, but just a basic massage today. Going to go pick up my son from preschool.”
His son.
"Oh wow, you have a kid too.”
My heart races even faster. His kid! Oh, dear God, he has a child! He's a dad. I pretend to be professional, even though I'm definitely not.
“I do. My wife died of cancer a few years back.”
My belly tightens. I swallow the knot in my throat.
“I’m so sorry to hear that. My husband also died fairly recently.”
He stiffens. “I’m sorry to hear that, too.”
Did he wonder? I need to change the subject, but he beats me to it.
“So, tell me about your daughter.”
“Emmy’s four. Started preschool this week. It’s not the first time she's gone, but it’s the first time in… a while I put her back in class. She loves it."
"But you miss her.”