Total pages in book: 16
Estimated words: 14980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 75(@200wpm)___ 60(@250wpm)___ 50(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 14980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 75(@200wpm)___ 60(@250wpm)___ 50(@300wpm)
Paul looks at me with confusion and suspicion all over his face. I force myself to meet his eyes, as though I wasn’t just inside his daughter two minutes ago. God, this is awkward.
“What’s wrong with you?” Paul asks, craning his head to peer over my shoulder with narrowed eyes. He goes to step forward for me to let him in, but I stand firm, refusing to move.
“Uh, nothing,” I lie, cursing myself for not being a better liar in the one moment it matters most.
“Is there a body or something on your couch you don’t want me to see?” he jokes, and honestly, that might be easier to explain than the truth.
“No bodies,” I say, trying to laugh.
Paul casts his gaze over me, and then his eyes widen almost comically. “Rhett Collins, do you have a girl over?”
“Yes,” I say, grateful to be able to tell a little bit of the truth. “Yeah, I have a girl over.”
Bet you can’t guess who?
“Why didn’t you just say that?!” Paul laughs, slapping me on the shoulder as his suspicion turns into a huge grin. “Fucking finally, mate. It’s about time!”
I force myself to smile back, trying to relax my posture but failing miserably. Lying to my best friend is not something I’m accustomed to, and it feels like shit. But I care about Rayna far too much to blurt our secret out to her father like this. She matters more than anything or anyone else in my life.
I love her, and I will never do anything to jeopardize how safe she feels with me.
“Yeah, yeah,” I snark back, rolling my eyes at him. “You’re kind of ruining the mood, though.”
Paul laughs again, and the guilt doubles. “Fair enough,” he agrees, backing up as though in surrender. “We on for Friday, yeah?”
“As always,” I agree, giving him a wave as he turns to go to give me and my girl privacy.
The second he’s out of sight, I close the front door and triple-check the locks.
“He’s gone, baby!” I call out, giving Rayna the all-clear.
She appears from the bathroom, wrapped in a towel to cover her lingerie, her eyes wide like a deer in headlights. I walk up to her, wrapping her in my arms, offering her comfort while needing it in return. The second she’s in my arms, the stress melts away from my body a little, making everything feel better.
“Fuck that was like something out of a horror movie,” Rayna murmurs, shaking her head as she pulls back a little to look up at me.
I laugh, for real this time, and drop a kiss on her lips, unable to resist her. “I know, I thought I was gonna have a heart attack,” I admit, leading Rayna over to the recliner and pulling her onto my lap.
“We nearly got caught,” she breathes, cuddling up to me.
“We did,” I echo, blowing out a breath. “Are you okay?”
Rayna nods, chewing her bottom lip. “Yeah, I’m alright, but we need to tell him soon. I can’t go through that panic anymore.”
I nod, knowing she’s right. “We’re meeting up as usual on Friday. What if you come with me, and we tell him then?” I suggest.
“Let’s do that,” Rayna nods, her shoulders relaxing a little. “It’ll all work out, right?”
I hold her close, kissing her as I promise, “Yeah, baby, everything will work out just fine.”
The bar is busier than usual at this time when Rayna and I walk in. Immediately, I spot Paul in his usual place and give Rayna a reassuring smile as we make our way through the tables towards the bar. Both of us know that this is the right thing to do, and we’re both in agreement that we don’t want to keep hiding our love, but that doesn’t mean we’re not both nervous as fuck for what’s about to happen.
“Got your usual,” Paul greets as we get closer, sliding a drink towards me. I don’t sit, though, instead standing by Rayna, who clearly is even more nervous than me from the way she’s half hiding behind me. I clear my throat, mustering courage, and Paul frowns. “What’s going on?”
Rip the band-aid off, Rhett, I tell myself, meeting my best friend’s eyes. “I thought you should meet the woman I’m in love with,” I say as matter-of-factly as possible.
Paul looks around comically. “Well, where is she?” he asks happily before his eyes land on his daughter. “Oh, hi darling, what are you doing here? Lovely to see you but you didn’t text me saying you were coming!”
I glance at Rayna, her cheeks bright pink and her gaze flicking from me to her dad over and over. I take her hand, encouraging her to lean against me, entwining our fingers and squeezing her hand, hoping to reassure her.
For a long, drawn-out moment, nobody says anything. Paul blinks at us, his gaze dropping to our hands, taking in how his daughter leans against me in a way that’s far more than just friendly. His eyes widen, and he takes a long gulp of his drink, coughing a little as he sets the glass down.