Total pages in book: 176
Estimated words: 167257 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 836(@200wpm)___ 669(@250wpm)___ 558(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 167257 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 836(@200wpm)___ 669(@250wpm)___ 558(@300wpm)
“Can I ask you a question?” I asked as soon as Rowdy was done perusing the menu.
He side-eyed me before saying, “Keep it brief.”
I rolled my eyes. “I was just wondering how you knew about this place.”
When he stared at me this time, it was an effort not to fidget under his assessing gaze. “Nah, be real with me, Atlas. That’s not what you wanted to ask me. You wanted to know if I’ve brought other women here before.”
“Have you?”
He seemed irritated when he looked away from me to glare at the laughing couple at the table in front of us.
They seemed to be having a great time. There was no tension between them. I was willing to bet my very limited funds that their night would even end with sex.
“No, Atlas, I haven’t.”
“Really?” I hated the insecurity in my voice. I hated how much I hoped it was true.
“Really. You’re not just the first girl I’ve brought here. You’re the first girl I’ve taken on a date. I don’t even know what the hell I’m doing. This shit is new to me, but I was hoping we could have a chill night, get to know each other, and figure it out together. Is that cool with you?”
There was no arrogance in his tone. Only the same uncertainty mirrored in mine. It was all it took to knock down the last of my walls. I didn’t allow myself to think twice before I framed his handsome face in my hands and pressed my lips against his soft ones. I still hadn’t forgiven him for Friday night, but this was a start.
“I’d like that.”
He grinned at me, and I let him kiss me again until his nasty ass tried to slip me some tongue.
“Hello. Welcome to Taste,” greeted the cheerful voice belonging to our waitress. “My name is Felicia, and I’ll be helping you with your dining experience today. Can I start you with something to drink?”
Rowdy ordered his usual—a glass of Hennessy—and to my utter shock, a Passion Sunrise while I begrudgingly asked for a boring glass of lemonade.
I was going to have some of his cocktail, and he would just have to get over sharing it. Felicia smiled politely and wrote our drinks down before disappearing.
Rowdy and I made small talk until she returned a few minutes later with our drinks. I wasn’t sure what had happened in the space of time our waitress was gone, but she was extra friendly with Rowdy as she took his order while barely acknowledging me when I gave her mine.
Felicia was slower to leave this time with a lingering look at Rowdy like she hoped he’d be overcome with lust and bend her over the table.
I’d only ever seen him lose his composure like that with me.
Even while out of his comfort zone and not knowing how to behave on a date, Rowdy wisely pretended to be oblivious. I guess me trying to cave his skull in with a golf club taught him not to play with me.
“Now it’s my turn to ask you something,” he said after taking a sip of his drink.
“Keep it brief,” I said, throwing his words back at him.
“Funny.” He licked his lips, drawing my attention to them. “Why did you need a break from school?”
My heart stopped as he patiently waited for what he probably assumed was a simple answer but was secretly laced with pain. “What do you mean?”
“Most girls your age are in college chasing some bullshit degree, studying abroad, or partying with their little friends. Why aren’t you?”
I stared at the clean white tablecloth so that he wouldn’t see me mentally struggling to keep the lid on the box holding all the memories of my father and shrugged. “Just some stuff.”
“Like what, baby?” I could tell it was an effort for him to remain patient while making it clear he wasn’t letting me hide anymore. I’d unknowingly traded my secrets when I agreed to this date with him.
“Well, you already know I, um, I caught my best friend and boyfriend together.”
Rowdy’s gaze searched my face, and I could tell it wasn’t what he expected me to say. My gut told me Roc had ratted me out to Rowdy. By now, I was sure all the Kings knew my father was dead. “They were fucking?”
A tear slipped free as I nodded, but I knew it wasn’t for Sutton and Sienna. Their betrayal was just another reminder of how alone I’d been before Idlewild and the Kings.
“I was already living my worst nightmare when I walked in on them. They were all I had left, and they knew it, but they still—” I drew in a deep breath and slowly exhaled. “They still did that to me.” I guess Sutton’s and Sienna’s feelings for each other were stronger than their care for me. “I couldn’t handle seeing them around campus together, smiling, happy, and in love like they hadn’t stepped all over me to get there, and I knew no one would miss me if I just disappeared, so that’s what I did. I dropped my classes, hopped in my car, and drove…here.”