Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 78634 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 393(@200wpm)___ 315(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78634 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 393(@200wpm)___ 315(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
I thanked him, and as we started to leave the room my grandfather called, “We’ll see you both at six sharp for cocktail hour, out on the terrace.”
As soon as we got to our room, I locked the door behind us, and Embry turned Dusty loose. Both of us kicked off our shoes, and he filled the dog’s travel water bowl while I collapsed face-down on the bed. I hadn’t realized how tense I was until I finally got the chance to relax.
A minute later, Embry climbed onto the bed, hugging the bulging tote bag he’d brought along. “I already forgot everyone’s name,” he said, “aside from your grandpa and great uncle, who seem nice, and your brother, who’s even worse than I thought he’d be.”
“Yeah, Fallon was in fine form. I’m not sure why he thinks the money might go to him if I forfeit it. I can’t see Granddad agreeing to that.”
“So, he already got his inheritance?”
“Yup.”
“Did he have to get married first?”
“No. He got it automatically when he turned thirty.”
“How is that fair?”
“Granddad wanted something specific from me. I guess Fallon was already living up to expectations.”
“I never liked the fact that your grandfather put that condition on your inheritance,” Embry muttered. “It bothers me even more now.”
“Well, as I’ve said before, it’s always been my choice to accept it or reject it.”
“You have a good attitude about it, but I’m going to go ahead and be cranky for you.”
As he started to unpack the tote bag, I rolled on my side so I was facing him and asked, “What do we have here?”
“I made us a survival kit, with a side of holiday cheer.” He pulled out a tiny plastic Christmas tree, turned on its lights, and put it on the nightstand. “We’re both under a lot of pressure with trying to convince your family this is a real marriage, so we’ll probably end up hiding in our room a lot over the next few days. Not only will we want time to destress, but the less time we spend with them, the less chances of saying or doing something to trip ourselves up.”
“Very true. So, what did you bring?”
“I packed snacks, playing cards, board games, that sort of thing.”
“Great idea.” I sat up and leaned against the headboard, and he handed me a plastic storage container. It was full of star-shaped sandwich cookies, covered in sprinkles. “When did you bake these?”
“Last night. I’ve been so nervous all week that I haven’t slept much.” He opened another container and tossed a homemade, bone-shaped treat to Dusty, who caught it and wolfed it down.
Next, he unpacked three small stockings fastened to a long, red ribbon. Embry stood up and draped the ribbon over the frame of the landscape painting above the bed, so they hung in a swag. The stockings were hand-embroidered with our names and Dusty’s.
Embry yawned and flopped onto the mattress. “I need a nap. Please wake me up if I’m still asleep at five, so I have enough time to get cute before dinner.”
“I think I’ll try to nap, too. You can have the bed, I’ll sleep on the floor.”
I started to get up, but he grabbed my arm and pulled me back. “That’s silly. This is a king-size bed, and there’s no reason we can’t share.”
I couldn’t argue with that. We hadn’t shared a bed in Las Vegas because we’d been virtual strangers, but we were friends now. This didn’t have to be weird.
He moved the tote bag to the top of the dresser and took off his jeans before climbing under the covers. I felt self-conscious though, so I remained fully clothed.
Embry curled up on his side facing me and shut his eyes. After a moment, he murmured, “You know what I realized when I was embroidering those stockings? That our names start and end with the same three letters. How would we ever have a cute couple nickname, like Bennifer or Brangelina? We’d end up with Bry-Bry, or Em-Bry, which is just my name put back together again and mispronounced.”
“There’s always Em-Son.”
“That’s not cute, though. Emson is a boring kid who wears a bowtie to school and carries a portable chess set everywhere he goes.”
I grinned at that. “Poor Emson. You think he’s a dork.”
He grinned, too. Soon after, he fell asleep with that little smile lingering on his lips. I watched him for a few moments before rolling onto my back.
I put my glasses on the nightstand and scrubbed my hands over my face. What had happened earlier? We were supposed to be putting on a show, but I’d felt something when we kissed. A lot of something. There’d been a jumble of emotions, and… longing. For what, exactly?
I’d never found men attractive. Hell, I barely even wanted to be friends with most of them. Generally speaking, they were loud, aggressive, overly competitive—which was very unappealing.