Total pages in book: 184
Estimated words: 188108 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 941(@200wpm)___ 752(@250wpm)___ 627(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 188108 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 941(@200wpm)___ 752(@250wpm)___ 627(@300wpm)
“But you have to give up your job! It’s too dangerous!”
“Mum, I’m fine. I’m careful. I promise.” Salem kissed his mother’s forehead, then stood and made his way back to sit next to Tamsyn. “Everything will be all right.”
His mother looked upset. Was she worried about him? His job did hold some danger. She knew that better than most.
“I can’t believe this!” Sara cried. “Twenty-three hours, I was in labor with you and you can’t do this one thing for me.”
“Sara,” Jad said sternly. “Leave the lad alone. He’s doing what he needs to do.”
Twenty-three hours?
Yikes.
“I don’t like this. I don’t like it at all,” his mum said.
Tamsyn leaned into him. “You should do what your mother wants.”
“I should?” He stared down at her with one eyebrow raised.
“Yes.”
“And why is that?” he asked.
Oh. She wasn’t expecting follow-up questions.
“Because she is your mother. She spent twenty-three hours giving birth to you. That sounds very painful. So you should give her this.”
“See, Tamsyn understands!” Sara said, smiling at her.
“Tamsyn doesn’t get to decide this,” Salem said firmly.
“But surely she gets a say,” Erica said. “Since she’s your girlfriend now. I mean, I wouldn’t want my Con risking his life every day.”
Con glanced up. He looked a bit like an overstuffed chipmunk with his full cheeks. He also had a smudge of dip at the corner of his mouth. He hastily tried to swallow and started coughing.
Oh no!
She jumped to her feet when no one seemed inclined to help him, rushing over to pat him on the back. He coughed a few more times, then swallowed. Turning, he gazed back at her as she went to give him a last whack.
Just to be sure he was okay.
“I’m all right!” he cried, holding his hands up. “All good now.”
“Are you sure?” she asked.
“Uh-huh. Yep. You, um, you’ve got quite an arm on you,” he told her.
“I do?”
“She lifts weights with me,” Alexei said. “Come back here, Bunny, before Con gets scared that you’ll hit him again.”
“I was just trying to help him breathe. He seemed like he was choking.”
“Oh, he does that all the time,” Erica said, waving a hand dismissively.
“I don’t think you have to worry about him joining, um . . . joining the army anytime soon,” David said, looking flustered. Had he meant to say something else? “Pretty sure they like recruits who know how to swallow their food.”
Con gave his brother the middle finger.
That seemed a bit rude.
“Asshole,” Con muttered.
“Both of you, remember we have a guest,” Jad said sternly. “And if Con didn’t put so much food in his mouth at once, he’d be fine. Not to mention that he shouldn’t be eating before our guest.”
Con, who had been reaching for more food, drew his hand back.
Jad turned toward them and stared expectantly at her. “Would you like something to eat, Tamsyn?”
Oh. Her? Was that okay? She turned to Salem, who gave her a small smile. “Go for it, baby. Just remember to save some room for dinner.”
“This isn’t dinner?” she asked, amazed.
“No, this is an appetizer, a starter,” Roman explained.
All right. She reached over and grabbed a cracker. Roman kneeled on the floor next to the coffee table and cut off a piece of cheese, then placed it on her cracker.
“Try this. Delicious.”
She was aware that everyone was staring at her again. So she tried to hide behind Salem once more. She wasn’t sure what she was doing that was drawing all of their attention. If she knew, she’d stop.
She ate the cheese and cracker. Yum.
“Can I have more?” she asked Salem quietly as everyone picked up some food and ate it. “Or is that rude?”
“Of course you can,” Salem replied. “Would you like me to get it for you?”
She nodded. This time he grabbed a cracker with dip. And instead of holding it out for her to take, he held it up to her mouth. His free hand was cupped under her mouth to catch any stray pieces. Which she appreciated since her top was white. She didn’t want to get any stains on it.
“Ohh, look at that. Con, why aren’t you ever that romantic?” Erica asked. “You never feed me.”
“What?” Con asked with a full mouth again.
“You should be more like Salem,” Erica scolded.
Salem sighed.
“If you wanted Salem, you should be dating him,” Con huffed.
“You cannot have Salem. He’s mine and I’ll fight you to the death to keep him,” Tamsyn stated.
Erica gaped at her for a moment, then she grinned. “It’s all right, I don’t really want Salem.”
“Oh, good. I really didn’t want to have to fight you. It would have gotten messy and I don’t think you’d be much of a fighter.”
“Um,” Erica said.
“Again. We really need that chat, Bunny,” Alexei warned.
“I can do romantic things,” Con huffed.
Everyone stared at Con. The poor guy started to grow red. “Salem was a bedwetter until he was seven!”