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)
I unclench my hand from June’s.
Brett.
My best friend has always been there when I needed him, and he’s shown up in the nick of time. I have questions upon questions for him, but just his arrival eases my stress a bit.
Only a bit, but it’s something. Even with his newfound confession about Jake that still has me reeling, Brett is still a calming presence for me. He always has been.
I point to the spot at the end of the table where no one is seated. “Here you go, bud.”
He clamps a hand on my shoulder. “Thanks, Riv, but I think I’ll take the other end. I mean, why would I want to sit between a cowboy and a rock star when I can be between two gorgeous ladies?”
I breathe in. Hold it a few seconds before I blow it out. Then I nod.
He’ll sit at the other end, with Ariel on one side…
And Misty on the other.
Misty, who doesn’t even know Brett’s alive.
Misty, who Brett thinks may be his link to Jake.
This has disaster written all over it.
EPISODE 107
A NEW POINT OF VIEW
Brett
Ariel looks gorgeous as she brings a succulent bite of lobster to that beautiful mouth of hers.
Damn.
She’s the one who struck my fancy first—those full pink lips are sexy as fuck.
But on my other side is beautiful Misty Holmes.
Misty, who everyone else thinks is a troublemaker.
I don’t disagree, but if she’s truly Jake’s half-sister…
She and Ariel were chatting when I sauntered over and sat down between them at the other end of the table, and she’s not giving me a look now.
I’ve got a lot to tell everyone. First, I don’t think Sienna is coming back. She’s still carrying a torch for her ex, Leroy, and from what I can gather, the feeling is mutual. Leroy did something stupid, and whether he can win back Sienna’s trust is up in the air, but that doesn’t change how they feel. I believe they’re in love, and I learned the hard way never to turn your back on love. Keeping feelings bottled up only leads to heartache. And sometimes circumstances intervene and you lose your chance. It’s always better to try.
“Enjoying the lobster, beautiful?” I say to Ariel.
“It’s scrumptious.” She wipes her mouth daintily with her napkin. “The chicken’s good too, but a little too spicy for me.”
“Too spicy for a southern sweetheart like yourself? I thought you all enjoyed food with a little bite.”
“We do, but those scotch bonnet peppers are killers. We put a little in our shrimp appetizer, but not nearly as much as Chef Desi put in his chicken.”
I give her a patented Brett Dawson smile. “You’ll have to bring me up to speed. I missed everything. So you made an appetizer?”
She nods. “Sebastian and I made grilled shrimp with a coleslaw garnish. It was yummy.”
Man, she’s adorable. I haven’t spent any time with her since the first night, when she begged me to fuck her on the beach. If she only knew how much strength it took to tell her no.
I’d decided not to do the actual deed with any of the women until I’d gotten to know each one, but I blew that with Sienna in the limo today. She and I aren’t meant to be. That was clear during our talk on the beach early this morning. She’s hung up on someone else, and while I’m not, I understand more than anyone what losing love feels like.
Not that Jake ever loved me as anything more than a friend. He looked up to me, and I felt an urge—more so than with the others—to keep him protected. Eventually it evolved into something I believe to this day was love, even though I’d never been attracted to a guy before and I still loved fooling around with women. He probably never would have returned my feelings, but because he’s gone now, there’s always the “what if” questions.
What if we hadn’t stolen from Old Man Larson twenty years ago?
What if Jake were still here?
I might have moved on, might have fallen for someone else. But because of what losing Jake cost me, I never let myself feel anything so deeply again.
And here sits Ariel… Beautiful and sweet and so endearing. With a pussy that tastes like heaven, too.
I could easily take her by the hand and lead her out of here. Except…
On my other side sits Misty.
Misty, who may be a link to Jake. Is she anything like Jake? Not that I’ve seen so far, but she wasn’t raised with him. She was born into riches, never went hungry a day in her life. Of course the two of them would be different.
Plus…for some reason, she seems stuck on River, who isn’t at all interested in her. Alex and Seb both think she’s bad news as well.