Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 24323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 122(@200wpm)___ 97(@250wpm)___ 81(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 122(@200wpm)___ 97(@250wpm)___ 81(@300wpm)
It was madness that had him sweeping everything off the counter so he could take her on the kitchen counter. Her legs hooked over his broad shoulders as he pleasured her with his mouth. His tongue. And later on, with his fingers pinching her nub to make his wife come so, so hard that she would eventually pass out in his arms.
Mine.
Mine.
You're mine, Cadence.
And at that time, Keiran had believed it would always be so.
But he was wrong.
Cadence
PRESENT TIME
I finally know what's inside the garment bag Keiran handed me earlier.
Because it's what I'm wearing now, and it's what has me pacing back and forth for the past five minutes.
He really wants me to wear this. Seriously?
The powder room in my restaurant has a full-length mirror, and my reflection on it has me alternately cringing and wincing.
This is just...this is just not enough to cover a human being, for crap's sake!
A red shimmery slip of a dress with spaghetti-thin straps, a deep V neckline that dips dangerously low, and a thigh-high slit on one side that makes me feel like I'm one wrong move away from a wardrobe malfunction.
Oh, let's just get it over with, Cades!
I march out of the room with my chin held high...and my entire staff does their best to snort back their laughter. Most supportive team ever? NOT.
"Knock them dead, boss," Gemma calls out from the corner.
Not if I die first, argh!
"But not Grant! I really think he'd die if he sees you in that."
Cripes!
I trip over my feet at the mention of Grant's name, but unlike before—-
Keiran isn't there to catch me, and I end up flailing my arms for several long seconds before finally managing to grab the back of a chair to keep myself from falling. Phew. I almost thought I'd end up kissing—-
"Let's get moving."
Keiran's already walked out of my restaurant by the time I recover, and Gemma rushes toward me with a guilty look on her face. "I was just joking, I'm sorry." She looks at me nervously. "Did I make your new boyfriend mad?"
"It's fine. He's not mad."
"And the bit about him being your new boyfriend?"
I shake my head, and Gemma's eyes widen. "But the others said—-"
Onesimus suddenly shows up, saying wryly, "He doesn't like to be kept waiting."
Oh, right, crap.
"Text me if there's any emergencies," I call out to Gemma even as I follow behind Keiran's chauffeur in a hurry. Once inside the limo, I turn to Keiran, intent on apologizing for making him wait—-
Gulp.
His handsome face looks as if it's carved from stone.
"You're still in touch with Poorly then."
Poorly?
Who's—-oh.
I clear my throat. "Grant's last name is Porely—-"
"That's not an answer to my question."
Oh, right, um...
I know I have nothing to feel nervous or guilty about, but that's exactly what his cold gray eyes is making me feel.
"He and Dad are business partners."
"Of course."
Is that...innuendo I'm hearing?
"But we're just friends."
"And does he think that, too?"
Keiran's mocking tone throws me off for a loop. Is he accusing me of being a flirt? Or am I allowed to think that Keiran is feeling jealous furious affected over hearing Gemma talk about another man?
"Uh..."
"If you need time to think about what to say, then that's all the answer I need."
My eyes widen. "No, that's n-not—-"
Oh.
I'm no longer able to speak when I realize we've already reached our own destination.
Harbour Locke Country Club.
My stunned gaze flies to him, but Keiran's expression reveals nothing.
Why?
Why bring us back here of all places?
What is he planning?
Keiran
THREE YEARS AGO
The pretentious laughter of Harbour Locke's wealthiest residents filled the dining room, but Keiran only had eyes for his wife. Cadence sat beside him, looking almost tragically beautiful in her luminous blue dress.
She looked as if she was about to shatter any moment, and it was all because of her half-drunk father, who had spent the past forty minutes doing his best to make Keiran feel humiliated.
"So there he was, fixing the cabinets in the club's old warehouse—you should've seen the dust all over him—and he has the audacity to ask about my daughter!" Marvin chuckled, swirling his expensive wine. "Can you imagine? The help thinking he had a chance with my daughter?"
Keiran didn't flinch. Let the bastard think what he wanted. But what pissed him off was how Cadence looked close to tears, her hands twisting nervously under the table, caught between loyalty to her father and her secret husband.
What kind of father was so willing to hurt his daughter just to put another man in his place?
"Dad, please," Cadence whispered.
"Oh, I'm just teasing," Marvin said with a dismissive wave. "Besides, I'm sure Keiran knows his place now, don't you, son?"
Keiran's smile didn't reach his eyes. "Absolutely, sir."
His place was beside Cadence, whether her father liked it or not. But for her sake, he'd play along with this charade a while longer. His hunt for Onesimus' abductors was coming to an end. He could feel it in his bones. And once that was done...