Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 82265 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 411(@200wpm)___ 329(@250wpm)___ 274(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82265 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 411(@200wpm)___ 329(@250wpm)___ 274(@300wpm)
“Hush you.” He points the spatula at me, then gets to work placing the burgers on the grill.
“I’m going to go make us a couple of salads,” I tell him as I make my way inside.
“I don’t have salad,” he says, following after me.
“I know. I stopped at the store. I also grabbed buns.”
“I have buns.” He opens the cabinet where he keeps his bread and pulls out a pack of buns. He flips them over, and you can see the mold growing.
“How long ago did you buy those?” I ask him.
“Not sure.”
“Which is why I stopped.” I point to the new package of buns I left out on the counter. “I also grabbed some potato salad.”
“You know what else sounds good?” He reaches into another cabinet. He holds up a can of baked beans. “I’ll warm these in the microwave.”
“Check the expiration date,” I tease.
“One time,” he fires back. “One time, we ate expired beans.” He shakes his head, barely containing his laughter.
“I told you they smelled funny.”
“Are you ever going to let me live that down?”
“Nope. Don’t worry. One day when you finally find your other half, I’ll be sure to make sure she knows that she should be in charge of food preparation so she doesn’t eat moldy buns and expired baked beans. Or even worse, eat a hamburger on two slices of bread. That’s just a shame, Sterling, and you know it.”
“I’ll be sure to tell your future husband that you’re a bread snob.” He chuckles, and I laugh right along with him. “I’m going to go check on the burgers,” he says, stepping back outside.
I get to work making our salads while he goes outside to man the grill. The microwave beeps, so I pull out the bowl of baked beans and place them on the stove. I get everything set up for us just as Sterling comes back inside with a plate full of burgers. The smell makes my mouth water. It doesn’t take us long to make our plates and head back outside to eat on the patio.
“How was your day?” I ask, taking a huge bite of my burger. Sterling grins. Covering my mouth with my hand, I mumble, “I told you I was hungry.”
He nods. “It’s over. I made sure to put in my time off request too.”
“You’re lucky that you don’t have to wait for the approval.”
“Well, I kind of do. I need to let my boss know, but yeah, he’s cool. As long as we have the time and there aren’t a bunch of other people off at the same time, he’s good with it.”
“I really need to find a new job.”
“I’ve been telling you that for years. How much shit did she give you?”
“Not as much as I was anticipating. Dr. Jones being there helped a ton. I know she wasn’t happy that I made her sign both copies, but she’s burned me before.”
“That was a smart move on your part.”
“I’ve learned how to deal with her over the years. I wasn’t willing to take a chance of missing this trip. It sounds like so much fun.”
“Of course it’s going to be fun. You’re going with my family and me. We are the kings of fun.”
“The kings? Really?” I ask, amused.
“You know it. Did you take off an extra day?”
“Yep,” I reply proudly. “Now I wish I’d have taken off Monday too, just to get caught up on laundry and whatnot, but all I should have is what I take on the trip. I’ll be able to get caught up on Wednesday before we leave.”
“I’ll call my brothers this week, and we’ll figure out driving arrangements. I don’t mind driving, and I’m sure Declan will take a carload in his Tahoe.”
“I can drive if I need to,” I tell him.
“No. You’re riding with me. I don’t know if I’m driving or if we’re riding, but you’ll be with me.”
I don’t argue with him. I know my best friend well enough that when he’s made up his mind about something, he’s stubborn as hell until he gets his way. Sterling has always been protective over me. It doesn’t matter who we’re with, he wants me close to him so he can, as he says, “watch out for me.” I don’t know how many times we’ve had this conversation, that I’m an adult and can take care of myself. He doesn’t care. He’s got it in his mind that he’s my protector, and that’s that.
I can’t tell you how many dates I’ve been on where he lectures the guy. You’d think he was my dad or my older brother, not my best friend. I stopped trying to convince him that I don’t need his overbearing protection a long time ago. Instead, I decided that Sterling will always be a part of my life. A huge part of my life. If the hypothetical guy I’m with can’t handle my best friend looking out for me, then he’s not the man for me. Plain and simple. I know Sterling feels the same way. We’ve both had relationships that have ended due to how close we are, and that’s okay. One day the right one will come along. Until then, we have each other’s backs, no matter what.