Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 75770 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 379(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 253(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75770 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 379(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 253(@300wpm)
He cups my cheek. “Seems we’ve both learned something during our short stay on the island. And I wonder if that shouldn’t be part of the purpose of this adventure.”
“I thought the four of you were looking for love matches,” I offer.
“Oh, we are.” He turns and gazes toward the slowly receding island coastline. “Then again, you can learn from every experience. Every failure.”
“Do you expect this event to be a failure?” I can’t help asking.
He smiles. “Of course not. But even if it is, I’ve already learned a lot.”
I tentatively touch his cheek and scrape my fingers over his light-brown stubble. “I have, too. From you, Brett.”
Though I expect him to inquire further, he doesn’t, and we spend the rest of the short ferry ride in silence.
When we arrive and disembark, a limousine awaits us, the driver standing with a sign that says, “Mr. Dawson and Ms. Costello.” Strange, since until an hour ago, River was the one scheduled to escort me, but these men have more than enough money to get something as simple as a sign changed.
The driver opens the back door. I slide in, and Brett quickly gets in next to me. I gaze out the window, taking in the swaying palm trees, resorts, and small beachside communities, as the chauffeur moves us along. Once we’ve gone a few miles, the scenery morphs into lush rolling hills and mountain ranges with dense and vibrant vegetation.
We don’t talk much, and I have my hands clenched together.
I’m doing the right thing, going home to see Lavonne. Of that I have no doubt.
Leroy, though, is another story. I’m being tugged at both ends.
“You okay?” Brett finally asks.
I simply nod.
“You sure? Your knuckles are tense and white.”
I unclench my hands and wiggle my fingers. “I’m fine, Brett.”
He takes one of my hands. “Look at me.”
I meet his blue gaze.
“You’re conflicted. I can see it in your eyes. I could feel it in your kiss on the boat.”
“I enjoyed the kiss, Brett.”
“I know, but I’ve done a lot of kissing in my life, and I know when a woman isn’t wholly into it.”
“Did you think I was into it last night?” I ask coyly.
“Oh, you were all in last night, Sienna.” He squeezes my hand. “But a lot has happened since then—for both of us.”
He’s talking about my call from Leroy. Lavonne’s accident. But what does he mean when he says, “for both of us?” Sure, he admitted to me early this morning on the beach that he had loved and lost, but that happened long ago. What has changed for him since last night? I open my mouth to ask, but before I can—
“As long as you have breath in your body,” he says, “there is still time to make things right.”
I stare at him a moment. Is he talking about me or about himself?
No time to ask, though, because we’ve reached the airport.
“We’ve arrived, Mr. Dawson,” the driver says through the intercom.
Brett pushes the intercom button. “Could you pull into a parking spot somewhere and then leave the car for a few moments?”
“Yes, sir.”
I wrinkle my brow. “What are you—”
Brett quiets me by placing his fingers gently on my lips. “Trust me.”
Once we’re parked and the chauffeur has exited the limo, Brett turns to me and slides a hand behind my neck. “I thought a goodbye kiss might be nice.”
He leans toward me, but I hold him back. “Why? Why kiss me if you know I’m not all in?”
He sighs, stroking my cheek. “Because we get each other, Dancing Queen. Two broken hearts. Two halves that don’t make a whole, but we can ease each other’s pain.”
I melt into him then, and our lips meet. The kiss turns from gentle to raw in a flash. Our lips slide together roughly, and our tongues seem to be in a sword fight for control.
I’m in now. In for some… I don’t know what. Brett isn’t fucking anyone anyway, so why not kiss him? Maybe I’ll get another orgasm out of it.
He breaks the kiss abruptly and pulls a condom out of his pocket.
I gasp. “Brett? You said—”
“Yeah,” he interrupts me. “I have my rules. But the thing about rules? Sometimes they can be broken when it makes sense to do so. I’m not in love with you, Sienna, and you’re not in love with me. But like I said, we get each other. And I don’t know about you, but I sure could use a good hard fuck right about now.” His lips come down on mine once more.
A fuck.
Alex and I fucked, and though it started out great, it ended without an orgasm for either of us, which may be just as well since he didn’t use a condom. I’m protected, but nothing is a hundred percent.
The kiss is passionate this time as well as urgent, and I resolve to let Brett take what he seems to need from me…because I need it as well.