Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 78249 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 391(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 261(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78249 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 391(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 261(@300wpm)
I took a big, deliberate bite and watched as his hand tightened almost imperceptibly around his pen.
Why was pushing his buttons so fun?
I chewed my sandwich as I wondered to myself if Orion was the only one getting too distracted in this arrangement. As much as I loved this new job and wanted to fit in, I had to admit I was far more preoccupied with teasing Orion than I should’ve been.
It wasn’t as if I was falling for Orion like Kora continued to insist. I was just… having fun interacting with him. Taking things beyond “fun” would turn my revenge scheme into something a lot more complicated than I bargained for.
So all I had to do was not fall for Orion Foster.
15
EMBER
"You haven't given Cole any dirt yet?" Kora asked, her eyes wide with disbelief as she lounged on my ratty couch. "None at all? Hasn’t it been like a month since you started at Foster Real Estate?"
I paused my aggressive assault on a bag of low-calorie popcorn the size of a body pillow to shoot her a guilty look. " Five weeks. And I've been busy actually working. And I mean really working. Did I tell you about Eleanor Golding? She was this super tough client nobody could crack, but then I noticed she had this one ceramic duck on her desk during a video call. Turns out she collects them. So I sent her one, and now she calls me just to chat about her collection."
"That's... great?" Kora said slowly. "But what does that have to do with getting revenge on Cole?"
"Nothing. I just... I don't know. I kind of love this job? I think Orion put me in client relations because he wanted me to fail spectacularly, but it turns out I'm good at it. Like, really good. I'm doing something that matters for the first time in my life. I'm not just plugging numbers into a spreadsheet or proofreading meeting notes. And Moira—my terrifying vampire boss—actually smiled at me yesterday. Well, her lip twitched. But for her, that's basically a hug and an invitation to be bridesmaids at each other's weddings."
Catman chose that moment to materialize from whatever dimension he spent his time in, hopping onto the coffee table to give me his signature one-eyed stare of judgment.
"Don't look at me like that," I told him. "You're still my favorite undead creature." I scratched his wrinkly cheeks. "I know what I'm doing," I added, though I wasn't sure if I was trying to convince Catman, Kora, or myself.
"Do you, though?" Kora asked, reaching for the popcorn satchel. I surrendered it reluctantly. "Because Cole texted me today asking if you were okay. Apparently, you've been dodging his calls."
I flopped back against the couch cushions. "Ugh. I know. But every time I see his name on my phone, I just..." I made a gagging sound. "There’s so much going on every day. I've even been bonding with Orion's sister, Remmy, too. She invited me to dinner tomorrow night, and she's going to teach me to paint!"
"Uh-huh," Kora said. "And how's working with the devil himself? Still making him crazy?"
"Orion? Oh, he's... fine. I mean, he's still ridiculously uptight. Last week, he got out a ruler to check my skirt for dress code like I was back at boarding school or something.”
Kora smirked. “You went to boarding school? How am I just learning this?”
“Yeah, well… Some might say I’m a handful, and my parents had enough after middle school. So, yeah. I spent my high school years at Primington’s Academy for Troubled Youth in upstate New York.”
Kora rolled back and clapped her hands as she let out a shrill laugh. “Oh my God. Troubled youth? Now that you say it, I can totally picture it. Was this before or after juvie?”
“Shut up,” I said, smiling. “I wasn’t actually troubled. I just thought it was funny to talk back to people. And play minor pranks. And occasionally get into trouble…”
Kora gave me a look, so I threw a few pieces of popcorn at her.
“Anyway!” I said loudly, changing the subject. “Like I was saying. Orion is hilariously uptight. Yesterday he went on a five minute rant about the size of the margins on a client report I sent him. Who even notices that? And he's always lurking around my desk with his stupid perfect suits and his stupid perfect hair, probably plotting new ways to try to catch me breaking his ridiculous rules..."
"Sounds awful," Kora said, failing to hide her smirk.
"It is! He's impossible. And he has this thing he does when he's annoyed where his jaw ticks and his nostrils—" I caught myself. "I mean, not that I notice things like that. I just happen to have eyes. In my head. Which sometimes see things. Completely normal, non-obsessive things."