Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 76381 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 382(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76381 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 382(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
“I think a partial wall would be a nice addition to the hot tub,” he declared as I approached.
“No one is going to be okay with you fucking chicks in the hot tub, man,” I shot back.
“It’s full of chemicals,” he said, shrugging it off. “What’s up? You’re all furrowed,” he said, glancing at me.
“I have a question.”
“Regarding a certain raven-haired beauty?” he asked as he leaned down to create even more lines on the ground around the square that already represented the hot tub.
“Yeah.”
“What’s the question?” he asked. “Smaller is better here, right? Forces things to get… cozy.”
“Depends on how many women you want to have in there with you,” I said, shrugging.
“Right you are, right you are,” he said, creating another fucking rectangle. Perish was going to have a conniption. “So, what’s the problem with the hot mom?”
“We had a, er, date,” I admitted. “Sort of.”
“Sort of?” he asked, brow quirking up.
“We had coffee at She’s Bean Around.”
“Okay. And you want to ask her out again?”
“Yeah, pretty much.”
“But you don’t want to be a fucking lame-ass who takes her out to dinner.”
“That’s about the way of it, yeah. She doesn’t get much time away from work and the kid to just be a person. I want to do something fun and memorable. Let her unwind a bit.”
“I’m assuming getting some shrooms and taking an erotic art class is off the table?” he asked.
I wanted to burst out laughing. But the fucker was serious.
“Yeah, how about I don’t have to get the woman stoned to have fun?” I asked.
“Don’t knock it, man. Alright. Well, no shrooms and art. So I’m guessing Molly and a rave are out too. How about… a nighttime kayak ride across the bay to one of those private sand bars?” he said. “It’s private. You bring food and a blanket. Play some music on your phone. Get sweaty under the stars…”
“How… how the fuck do you come up with this shit?” I asked. Even if I’d been given a fucking year to come up with an idea, I’d never have come up with that.
“I am a man of many layers,” he said, placing a hand dramatically over his heart to sell the joke. The thing was, though, that it was true.
When people looked at Sully, they saw a lot of surface. To be fair, he had a lot of surface to show. But there was a lot of shit underneath that. He just didn’t often share that with anyone.
“This time of year, you shouldn’t have to worry about anyone seeing you. Could pay off the local park rangers or cops if you’re worried, though.”
It was a great idea. Fun enough to make her feel young and carefree again. Tame enough not to have her worried that she was going to get locked up or some shit.
“Go on. Go invite the girl on the best date of her life. Just know, as you’re post-coital and happy, it’s all because of your friend Sully.”
“Christ, man,” I said, wincing. “That’s an awful fucking thing to put in my head.”
Sully’s laugh followed me back into the clubhouse where I made my way into my room, pulling up the text, then stressing the fuck out of how to word the invite.
In the end, I kept it simple.
Got any plans for Thursday night?
I knew she said Fridays were for her friend Britney. And with such a small support system, I didn’t want to cut into her time with her friend. Thursday night meant she still had work the next day, but, hey, who hadn’t pulled off a lazy Friday at work now and again?
I expected not to get an answer until she was home from work, but my phone beeped almost instantly.
Not a damn thing. Got any ideas?
Anticipation sizzled across my nerve endings, making me feel as giddy as a fucking kid about to go on his first date.
Meet me at the clubhouse at seven. Dress in layers.
And, just like that, I had a second date.
As I spent the next few days preparing for it, my excitement only grew.
Until, finally, I saw her SUV’s headlights turning into the driveway, where I had the kayak strapped to the top of the club SUV, the backseat set with a picnic basket and blanket, and my phone charged up and filled with mood playlists to use depending on the feeling of the date.
Nothing could have ruined it, I was sure.
Until, much later, the call came in, changing everything.
CHAPTER NINE
Sabrina
Things had been calm between myself and Daphne since I came home from the date I hadn’t known I was going on and eventually had to have the talk with my kid about setting me up with a man without my agreement, let alone knowledge.
It had been an admittedly half-hearted talk since the larger part of me was incredibly happy the interaction had taken place.