Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 82940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 415(@200wpm)___ 332(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 415(@200wpm)___ 332(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
Well, Nick wanted proof. He couldn’t think of anything better than this. He pulled out his phone and tapped through it.
“It kills me to do this,” Jay said. “I can’t even believe I’m showing you.” Then he had to close his eyes as he pushed the phone toward Arch. “Read this.”
Arch took the phone and stared down at it. “What is this? Are you trying to pitch me a project? Now?”
The other three gathered around to look over Archer’s shoulder and Damien said, “It’s a screenplay.”
“I know that, genius,” Arch snapped, “but why do I want to read a screenplay now?”
Nick, who was the most computer savvy of them all, began flicking the pages forward. “It’s a romantic comedy.” Now the four of them were silent, all skim reading. “It’s about us. Our family. And Jay and Erin.” Nick sounded like he couldn’t believe it. Then all the brothers stared at Jay.
Stunned surprise dripping off every word, Arch said, “No way did you write this.”
“I did. It started out as kind of a love letter to Erin, but now the two of us are working on it. Together. We just figured out the ending last night.”
Archer and Damien stared at each other. “He’s not bluffing,” Archer said. “He never puts his clients in romantic comedies. If he’s writing one for Erin, he’s got to be in love with her.”
“That’s what I keep telling you. I love your sister and she loves me. Deal with it.” And as they all stood there, looking more like they wanted to laugh at him than kick his ass, he said, “Can I have my phone back?”
He had done everything he possibly could here and had nothing left to give. Jay said a curt good-bye and left the room, wondering if Arch would ever speak to him again, never mind let him represent him any longer.
He was almost to the door when Archer yelled after him, “We’re watching the video of the Scottish wedding tonight at seven. Make sure you and Erin come.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
Erin could barely swallow her coffee, she was so nervous. She played distractedly with a button on her linen shirt, losing track of the conversation entirely. She thought Tessa was talking about her painting, but then realized she was trying to persuade Mila not to spend a small fortune on a pair of gold sandals. But once Mila got an idea in her head there was no talking her out of it, so she tuned out the conversation again and let her thoughts to return to Jay and her brothers. She’d nearly fallen out of bed with fright that morning when she saw his note and realized he’d gone over to Archer’s to sort things out between them.
For the last hour, Tessa and Mila had been trying to calm her down, but for about the seventeenth time she said, “Do you think I should go over there? I feel like I should go and make sure everything’s okay.”
And for about the seventeenth time, Mila said, “No. You are not going to run to a grown man’s rescue. He’ll be fine.”
Erin stared at her sister. “Okay for you—Hersch isn’t in danger of being beaten up by four of the strongest men in Carmel-by-the-Sea. The odds aren’t on Jay’s side.”
“They’re not going to beat him up.” She took a bite of an apricot pastry and then swallowed. “At least, not very much.”
Erin jumped to her feet and just in time, Mila grabbed her hand. “Joking, joking. Sit down. Have you even met Jay? That guy could talk his way out of a firing squad. He’s going to be fine.”
“Why don’t you tell us about the two of you to take your mind off things?” Tessa suggested. “What’s really going on with you and Jay?”
Despite her anxiety, Erin found herself beaming. “I love him. That’s really the whole story. I could not be more shocked that I fell for someone so brash and loud, but I did.”
Tessa nodded, looking delighted. “You’re just glowing with it. I remember you saying not so long ago, when Mila suggested you hook up, that you thought you’d get lost when he was around. But you don’t. You stand up to him and he listens. And when you told Damien at breakfast to shut up and sit down, it was amazing.”
“I thought I heard angels sing,” Mila agreed.
“I surprised myself,” Erin admitted. “In a good way. I guess I’ve been surprising myself a lot lately.”
Mila looked so smug it was maddening. But Erin supposed she had a right, since the idea of Erin and Jay had been hers first. Finally, Mila couldn’t hold it in anymore. “Didn’t I tell you? I told you so!”
Erin had to laugh. When she was with her sister, sometimes it was like they were teenagers again. “You did, and I didn’t believe you. But you weren’t the first. Jay said Mom got there before any of you. She told Jay she’s known we would get together for more than ten years.”