Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 79850 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 399(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79850 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 399(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
“Of course,” I say with barely any strength left in me.
“Are you okay?” Dominik asks.
I nod as I push up from the chair. My back hurts. My head hurts.
My fucking heart hurts.
“I’m not coming in tomorrow,” I say bluntly. “I’d like to take a few days away from here. I think I’ll go visit some friends in New York.”
“Think you’ll come back?” he asks boldly.
I don’t answer him but instead twist Marianne’s ring off my finger. I hand it to him and he takes it without any hesitation. “Can you see that stays safe and gets into Bishop’s hands? It’s his mom’s ring.”
Dominik gives me what looks like a sad smile. It’s as if he’s watching the death of something beautiful. “Sure.”
“Thank you,” I say, and then turn for the door.
Chapter 31
Bishop
The plane is quiet and most of the guys are taking advantage of the five-hour flight from DC to Phoenix by sleeping in the ultra luxurious reclining seats. I’m sure I’ll drop off too, because it’s almost midnight and I’m exhausted in more ways than one, but right now I’m nursing my third bourbon because my brain won’t turn off.
“Would you like something to eat, Bishop?” Blue asks me from the aisle. I move my gaze from the window and past Erik, who sits next to me, to the bombshell flight attendant. We’d established early on that I’m “Bishop” and not “Mr. Scott.”
“No, thanks,” I say, and then tip the glass back to slug down the rest of the liquor. The ice chunks rattle and I hold the glass out to her. She reluctantly leans across Erik to take it. “But I’ll have one more of those.”
“Of course,” she says, and starts to turn away.
Erik calls out to her. “I’ll have something to eat, Blue.”
She ignores him and disappears into the front galley.
“Give it up,” I tell him. Erik had made the mistake on the flight that started this four-game road trip of propositioning Blue to “a night of singularly mind-blowing passion” or some shit like that. It was lame as hell and Blue rolled her eyes.
Then he made a terrible error in judgment. I know he was only teasing, but Blue didn’t appreciate it when he said, “Come on, Blue. You look like a party girl. Come out and party with me when we land in New York.”
Apparently Blue did not like being called a party girl, because she wheeled on him, leaned in close, and hissed loud enough that only Erik, Legend, Dax, and I heard it. “Don’t ever call me that again.”
Poor dude was taken aback, but I know he was trying to save face. He asked her, “So that’s a no, then?”
Blue had expended her energy, though. She merely stood straight, gave him a cool look down her nose at him, and said, “You’d have to mature by about twenty years before I’d ever consider it, you toddler.”
Dax and I started snickering, but Legend called him out. “Damn, boy…you just got your ass handed to you.”
Since that flight, Blue has steadfastly ignored Erik and refused to serve him. Case in point, another flight attendant comes up and says, “Blue said you wanted something to eat?”
“Nah,” Erik says with a wave of his hand. “Changed my mind.”
The woman merely smirks, because she knew what was going on between Erik and Blue. Hell, everyone on this plane did.
Unperturbed in the slightest, Erik rolls his head to look at me. “You okay, dude? I know the proverbial shit has hit the proverbial fan, but it will all blow over soon.”
“Yeah…I know,” I mutter.
But even knowing it isn’t enough to stop the churning of my stomach and the dread that feels like a lead weight in my chest.
I got a visit from Christian Rutherford to my hotel room early this morning. He asked me to step out into the hall and then proceeded to figuratively knock me flat on my ass.
Apparently things went to shit within the Vengeance organization yesterday. They got sued by Nanette for sexual harassment, specifically naming Dax, Erik, and Sebastian, and Nanette had gone to the press and revealed that Brooke and I had a fake relationship going on. I felt sick when Christian told me the story had first hit the local news stations last night, but the national news had picked it up this morning.
Frankly, I couldn’t give a shit about the sexual harassment suit. It was bogus and everyone knew it. Christian said Dominik Carlson wasn’t concerned at all, so I wasn’t worried.
But goddamn, I was so fucking worried about Brooke. Christian told me that Dominik had talked to her and given her assurances that this wouldn’t affect her position within the company.
I know Brooke, though.
She’s going to take this personally. In fact, I bet she’s blaming the entire lawsuit on herself. She’s done nothing but carry guilt around on her delicate shoulders from the start of this whole fiasco. While she finally stopped telling me she was sorry, I could still see it in her eyes at times.