Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 90827 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 454(@200wpm)___ 363(@250wpm)___ 303(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90827 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 454(@200wpm)___ 363(@250wpm)___ 303(@300wpm)
They either didn’t notice us, or deliberately kept their eyes averted as they walked toward the fire pit.
“Enough for you?” Mack asked, his hands sliding away.
My tongue felt glued to the roof of my mouth.
“The gift was too much,” he said, taking a step back. He ran a hand over his face. “But any man that says you’re too much has a small dick and an even smaller brain.”
I swallowed hard and met his eyes.
“You hear me?”
“I hear you,” I rasped.
“Good.” He cleared his throat and gave me a nod, then he walked toward the edge of the building like he hadn’t completely just rocked my world.
“What the fuck was that?” I whispered to myself, reaching up to rub my fingers against my sore lips. They were swollen and tender, and my chin stung from beard burn.
“Where did she go?” Lily’s voice carried through the night as she and Leo came toward me. “She went to get drinks forever ago.”
“Didn’t see her inside, Dandelion.”
“Well, I’m thirsty,” she replied.
“Let’s get you a drink, then,” he said. His voice dropped, Lily giggled, and I knew if I didn’t make my presence known, there was a good chance they’d find a place in the darkness beside me to do whatever he was whispering in her ear.
“Hey,” I said, taking a step forward.
“Shit,” Leo said as Lily yelped. “Where the fuck did you come from?”
“I think I’m gonna head out,” I replied, ignoring his question.
“But it’s early still,” Lily replied, obviously forgetting that she and Leo had just been on their way to spend the next couple of hours alone.
“I know,” I said, letting her tow me toward the back door. “But Will said he’d give me a ride home and I don’t want them to wait on me.”
“Fine,” she replied as we strode inside arm-in-arm. “But you’re coming over tomorrow, right?”
“Why do I have to help you paint your bedroom?” I grumbled. “Why can’t Leo do it?”
“Leo doesn’t paint,” Leo said from behind us. “Leo will demolish and remodel whatever his woman wants, but painting is where he draws the line.”
“It’s creepy as hell that you’re talking in the third person,” I said, glancing at him over my shoulder.
“Nice beard burn,” he replied, grinning. “Where’d you get it?”
I narrowed my eyes at him, glad that Lily was rambling on about something and hadn’t heard his question. I wasn’t quite ready to talk to anyone about what had happened with Mack—especially not my drunk best friend, who couldn’t keep her voice at an acceptable level.
“Will’s by the bar,” Leo said as we walked into the main room, his voice laced with amusement.
I scanned the bar and found my big brother at the far end. Talking to Mack. Sonofa…
“Look at Molly,” Lily laughed, pointing at my sister-in-law. “Good thing you’re ready to leave, or Will probably would’ve left without you.”
My sister-in-law was clearly hammered. She was leaning heavily against Will, looking up at him with stars in her eyes, and her hand was up his shirt all the way to the elbow. Even though I really didn’t want to face Mack yet, I headed their way, laughing. Molly was seriously the best drunk I’d ever been around. She went from prim and proper to wild and dirty in the space of a few drinks, and I swear to God, she could never control what came out of her mouth and barely remembered anything the next day. It was fantastic. I couldn’t wait to tease her about molesting my brother in plain view of my parents.
“Hey, you ready to head out?” Will asked, calmly placing his hand over Molly’s roaming one on his chest. “Need to go get Reb and head home.”
“Yeah,” I replied, refusing to look to his left, where Mack was standing. “Let me say goodbye to the ’rents. Where’s Tommy?”
“He and Heather pitched a tent outside and disappeared an hour ago.”
“No need to say more,” I said quickly. “I’ll be right back.”
“If you want to stay later,” Mack said, making my heart jump, “I can give you a ride when I leave.”
Half of my brain was stuck on the fact that he’d just offered to give me a ride, and the other half was screaming silently at him to stop looking at me while my brother watched us.
“I’m ready to go now,” I said as we made eye contact, my voice squeaky and high. Before I could start rambling, I spun and headed toward my parents to say goodbye.
Good grief. If I thought being around Mack was hard before, I was kidding myself. Looking at him now, knowing the feel of his skin and the taste of his mouth, was infinitely more mind scrambling. I was just glad I hadn’t stuttered or blushed.
“I’m leaving,” I sang when I got close to my parents, internally shaking my Mack fog away.