Total pages in book: 39
Estimated words: 36476 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 182(@200wpm)___ 146(@250wpm)___ 122(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 36476 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 182(@200wpm)___ 146(@250wpm)___ 122(@300wpm)
“What diner guy?” Travis butts into our conversation.
“The one that’s been coming to see your sister every day at the diner,” JJ answers for me. Not that I wasn’t going to; she just beat me to it.
“Every day?” Travis' mouth forms a straight line. I can tell he’s not a fan of this news.
“First off, I'm a grown woman, and I can do what I want,” I tell him. “And secondly, people have to eat every day, and he’s not from here, but he’s thinking about relocating.” I say that last part a bit defensively.
“Was he in town because he was thinking of relocating or did he see a girl in a diner and then thought about relocating?” JJ smirks at her own question. It’s actually a good one, and I’m a bit curious to know the answer too.
He wouldn’t move here for me, would he? That’s crazy. But if I’ve learned anything about Ivan in the time I’ve gotten to know him, it’s that he’s different, and that might not be so ridiculous for him. I don’t know why it pops into my head about last night and Ivan being in the back of the bar. The man Rick had admitted to wanting to buy the bar. That can’t be a coincidence. I really can’t see Ivan in the bar business. He was out of place sitting there.
“Does that matter right now? As everyone can see, I’m fine. I left my phone on the counter and forgot to text you. That’s all.” I point with my thumb over at it. I realize my mistake the second I do it. The leftovers from dinner last night are still left out, and it’s clearly for two.
“You eat that with her?” JJ asks Travis, who shakes his head no.
“I didn’t get home until around three.”
“What were you doing out till three?” I can point fingers too.
“I'm a grown man, and I can do what I want.” Travis tosses my own words back at me.
“Wrong.” JJ and I both speak at the same time. His ass is on probation for the shit he pulled with his job. There is no end in sight for how long he owes us an explanation on his whereabouts on the daily.
“Hey.” He holds his hands up. “I was actually—” He stops speaking when a sound comes from my bedroom. Crap.
“Is he in your room?” JJ whispers.
“This motherfucker is here?” Travis stands up taller. He already towers over me. He stole all the height genes or something when we were in the womb, but he’s lanky. He’s still not taller than Ivan, though.
“Don’t!” I grab his arm, but it doesn’t really matter because my bedroom door swings open and Ivan steps out in all his shirtless glory. I lick my lips at the sight of him. Damn, the man is fine. At least he put his jeans on.
“Holy shit,” JJ gasps from beside me. I know he’s handsome and all, but did she have to openly ogle him and say holy shit? She’s got her own husband to stare at. I’d demand Ivan go back into the room and get a shirt, but I’m wearing his, and he’d never fit into one of mine.
“That’s my… Holy shit. You have your own... holy shit.” It’s unlike JJ to stumble over her words. I glare over at her, but as I stare at her face, I’m starting to realize it’s one of not only utter shock but recognition. She somehow knows Ivan. And when my gaze goes to him, I see the same expression on his face. How the heck?
“Mrs. Jo-” Ivan pauses to correct himself.
“Castillo,” JJ corrects him immediately. Her having a new last name is new for us all.
“You can just call her JJ.” My eyes bounce between the two of them. “You two know each other?”
“Know each other.” JJ laughs. “Frosty Lawson.”
“Frosty Lawson?” Ivan repeats, as confused as I am.
“It’s what I dubbed JJ’s old boss. He was, well, frosty,” I explain to Travis.
Anytime JJ talked about her boss, he sounded cold and as though he had a stick up his butt. She would bitch about him sometimes, but she did always say he was fair, just hard to please. That he always expected perfection. I hated that he was like that, hence the nickname. People are human, and they can’t always be perfect.
“Rae, that’s him. My old boss. Ivan Lawson. Frosty Lawson.” She speaks slower and louder so it’s clear what she is saying. I stand there blinking, my brain trying to process what’s happening here.
“Did you know I was friends with JJ?” Was this some big coincidence? I do recall her saying that her boss had given her the plane ride to the city that day I’d called needing her to come home. It was that next day I’d met Ivan at the diner.