Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 74940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 375(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 375(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
Heather grins. “Easy. You kick her ass and take her place.”
“Are you kidding? Strippers are strong and athletic. How else can they do those pole acrobatics?”
“You’re athletic too, from what I can see. You’ve got a body to die for, a classically beautiful face, and you’re a damned lawyer, Sienna. You’ve got it all over her, whoever she is.”
I shrug again. “I don’t want to compete with a stripper for a man. I don’t want to compete with anyone for a man.”
Heather laughs out loud. “You do realize what you just said, right?”
I join in her laughter. A good belly laugh, because she’s right. My statement was ridiculous. What the hell am I doing here, then, if I don’t want to compete for men?
“If I go back for Lavonne, that doesn’t mean I’m going back to Leroy,” I say, more to myself than to Heather.
Heather nods. “I know. You remember that. And if you do decide to take him back, remember who you are. If you give him a second chance despite his mistake, it’s because you have a history that matters. Because you have feelings that matter. You’re not a woman taking him back because you’re afraid you can’t do any better. This island should have proved that to you.”
I nod. “What would you do if you were me?” I ask out of curiosity.
“You’d be amazed at how often I get asked that question. Something about bartenders and hairdressers makes people want to spill their guts.”
“So...” I prompt.
“Don’t overthink,” she says.
I inhale. “That’s what you tell your clients? That can mean so many things, Heather.”
“Let me break it down specifically for you, then.” She pauses a moment. “Don’t rationalize. You’re a smart woman. You’re trained in analyzing issues and arguing for your side. You can’t treat love that way, because love isn’t rational. Don’t try to fix a love problem with a tool that isn’t designed for it. Go with your heart. Even if you get hurt again and again and again, your heart will always lead you where you need to be.”
I consider her words.
And I know what I’m ultimately going to do.
EPISODE 71
SHADOWS AND STRANGERS
River
Twenty Years Earlier
The moon hangs high above me in the vast Montana sky, casting its silvery light over the sprawling ranch. I almost feel like it’s watching me, its luminous gaze piercing through the darkness of the night. A stillness fills the night air, a silence so deep that even the rustling of the grass seems to hush in reverence.
Brett left for home after polishing off his third beer, but I keep considering his words. He spoke them with unbridled certainty, as if they were a premonition rather than a simple statement.
One day I’m going to be so rich, this thing we’re about to do will be a distant memory. Something like a dream within a dream. One day, I won’t have to think about other people’s money, because I’m going to have so much of my own that I’ll never be able to spend it all in five lifetimes. And, Riv, I don’t care what I have to do to get it.
I have no doubt Brett will make his success happen. He’s the smartest guy I know, and his determination is unequaled. But his words have an almost frightening impact on me, as if somewhere within them is something dark, possibly even sinister.
Brett seems concerned about Jake, but not enough to call the whole thing off. In a strange way, I’m glad because I think Jake needs his share of whatever we get from Old Man Larson. He’s got a kid on the way, and his mother isn’t working. So much I still don’t know about that.
I breathe in as I walk off the porch and look upward.
The moon’s light bathes the world in a ghostly glow, casting long, haunting shadows that stretch across the land. The shadows feel like silent accusations, as if the moon itself is judging me, taking the place of my father who’d be so disappointed if he knew what the guys and I are about to do.
I’m almost thankful for my father’s incapacitation, though I’d give anything to have him back as he was.
Still, this will happen. It needs to happen. We all need it...especially Jake.
Present Day
Seriously? I come out here to try to relax in the damned hot tub after my run-in with Seb, and I find my best friend and—
Fuck.
The thought that went through my head was “my woman.”
She made it damned clear that a life on a ranch was no life for her. Just days ago I was unraveling what, if anything, I might be feeling for Rachel. Emily is not my woman.
Still, the words erupt out of my mouth.
“What the hell’s going on here?”
Emily jerks toward my voice, her blue eyes wide.
There’s no mistaking the look on her face. I saw it many times over the last twelve hours. Her eyes may be wide instead of heavy-lidded, but her cheeks are flushed, and her lips are parted.