Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 55093 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 275(@200wpm)___ 220(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 55093 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 275(@200wpm)___ 220(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
“Ooh, there’s a card, lemme see.” She snatched the card from the mountain of flowers and I was too nonplussed to stop her snooping.
“Oh he’s good.” She held the card out to me with a big sappy grin as I read the words. ‘As beautiful and rare as these are, you have them beat hands down. Thanks for the most amazing weekend beautiful. See you soon. Jason.’
“I know what he’s trying to do, he’s trying to make me fall in love with him the bastard. Damn if I will.” There were tears in my eyes because I knew they were empty words. Bur I felt so stupid. Me, the one who was always the most level headed among my peers. How had I let this happen? How can I trust it?
“Too late for that.”
“What was that?” She mumbled it under her breath but I heard her loud and clear. Instead of an answer she rolled over on my bed stuffing licorice in her damn face.
I paced around my room trying to find the perfect place for the sixty or more flowers in the arrangement. I’d choose a place and then change it again, until I was making us both crazy.
“Oh, girlfriend you need to get out of the house; you’re going stir crazy.”
“I want to go see Jason. I should thank him for the flowers.” She gave me a knowing smirk and tugged me along out the door behind her. “Nope, we’re going to lunch and a little light shopping.”
“But…” I don’t remember if I’d promised him to stay in the house or not and said as much to her.
“You have a phone, that’s what it’s for.” We ended up going shopping before lunch and it was just what I needed. A couple hours of retail therapy. I spent most of it fighting her over the miniscule scraps of cloth she tried to convince me to buy. I’d never had much use for this type of lingerie before, but since she’d been right about everything else I took her word for it.
By the time lunchtime rolled around I was feeling much better. Still missing him, but no longer feeling like I was going to curl into a ball and die from the lack of his touch. He’d really done a number on me that’s for sure. Simone snatched my phone the third time I looked at it and put it away in her bag. “Oh you’ve got it bad.” She found my plight amusing.
After an extended lunch we headed back to my house; he was there. Pacing back and forth in front of the door with his phone to his ear. “Oh shit Simone, give me my phone.”
“Oops.” That wasn’t even a little bit convincing.
“Four missed calls, I’m so dead.” He was next to the car before I got my seatbelt off, pulling the door open.
“Where the fuck have you been?” Apparently he didn’t need an answer and I was shocked at his intensity when he pulled me into his arms and held me like I’d been lost at sea. His heart was beating out of time; racing, and I felt his fear.
“What happened, what’s wrong?” I ran my hands up and down his back in an automatic show of comfort.
“Nothing, shut up, let me hold you.” He pulled me back in roughly and I just held on.
“Where the hell have you been Emily? I’ve been calling you for hours.”
“I’m so sorry, Simone took my phone because I kept checking it to see if you’d called.” Which now that I think of it was dumb. I would’ve heard it ring if he had. He glared over my head at her and I felt his body relax finally.
JASON
I never want to live through the last two hours again. Maybe I was being irrational, so sue me. I’ve never been in love before, never known this gut wrenching fear when the woman you love just dropped off the radar like that. I’d called her as soon as my first meeting was over, dying for the sound of her voice. At first when she didn’t answer I thought maybe she was in the shower, or catching up on her sleep since I hadn’t let her get much over the weekend.
I’d even smiled at the thought. But the third time I called and got no answer my imagination went wild and I imagined all manner of things happening to her. I’d fielded a few phone calls from reporters wanting a scoop on our new relationship. I’d forgotten about the damn auction but apparently it was all over the airwaves. My first thought was for her and whether she too was being hounded by the jackals.
I’d sent my secretary out to pick up one of those stupid rags to see what all the fuss was about and there we were. Me climbing the stage and dragging her off. I didn’t need the headlines to spell it out; the picture really did say a thousand words. It was there for all the world to see; again.