Total pages in book: 56
Estimated words: 50561 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 253(@200wpm)___ 202(@250wpm)___ 169(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 50561 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 253(@200wpm)___ 202(@250wpm)___ 169(@300wpm)
Nothing had scared me in the business world. I’d gone after bigger fish than me and won. In fact, not since my parents died leaving me an orphan at the mercy of the state’s foster care system at the age of six, had I ever really feared anything. After the first few years of the state’s hospitality you tend to grow immune to the shit life has to offer.
I’d pulled myself up and never looked back. Fear was something I had no time for, and the words ‘I can’t’ were never part of my vocabulary. But each time I think of how my life could’ve been fucked had she not walked into it, I get a hollow feeling in my gut.
Oh, I would’ve beaten Jen at her own game eventually. I have no doubt that the mask would’ve cracked sooner or later and I would’ve seen beneath the façade, but not before she’d taken me for a fool. Now I understood why she’d been so standoffish. It was so that I couldn’t read her too well.
I smirked at the very idea of what she’d had planned. I can do that now, but had things turned out differently, had Ashley not come between us, I may very well be singing a different tune. I unlocked the bottom drawer of my desk and looked at the box I’d hid there. I’d never so much as looked at a ring when I was contemplating marriage to Jen. The morning after, I’d taken my baby girl for the first time, I’d had hers picked out and delivered.
Knowing her pain in the ass tendencies, she’d probably gripe about my high handedness in choosing her ring, but I’m from the old school of thought. The man should pick out the ring he meant to show the world that he’d claimed his woman.
Our time together hadn’t been spent entirely on her aunt and her bullshit. After the first night when she’d revealed that shit, we’d spent the rest of our time either making love or getting to know each other. She brought something to me I didn’t know was lacking. It was as if through her I could regain the part of myself I’d lost since the day I was left alone in the world. I could still kick myself in the ass for almost giving that up by hitching myself to this viper.
I see now that I’d just been going through the motions. Making money had taken the place of having a family. I was for all intents and purposes, dead inside. That’s why it had been so easy for Jen to pull the wool over my eyes. I couldn’t wait to see her reaction when I burst her bubble, which should be any minute now.
I heard the click of her heels against the floor outside and gathered the evidence to put it away for now. I’d thought of a million ways to do this, there were so many to choose from. In the end I’d chosen to go with the scenario that would get me some of my own back. Lucky for her, her niece had begged for leniency, we’ll see how this shit played out in the next few minutes. I hadn’t made any promises.
She came through the door all smiles. She was good. I still didn’t see it. “You’re back.” I got up from my seat and approached her, turning my cheek at the last minute to avoid her kiss. I patted her shoulder cordially before moving away again and saw the first sign of unease.
“Is everything okay Simon?” She pulled her gloves off and watched me pace. I thought I knew how I wanted to play this, thought I could remain calm and unattached. But now that she was standing here all I felt was rage. “You tell me. How was your trip?” I turned to face her to gauge her reaction, to see if she’d give herself away just a little bit.
She was one cool customer, because not by so much as a flick of an eyelash did anything change. Was she so sure of herself that she’d fooled me so completely, that it never entered her mind that I would’ve found out? Seems like it. If the way she stood before me looking so innocent was any indication.
“My trip was fine what’s going on? You seem, distant.” That fucking deceitful smile flitted across her face. Instead of an answer I walked around behind my desk and removed the folder I’d just placed in the drawer. Throwing it on top of the desk I waited as the top fell open to reveal what I had there.
That was when I saw the first chink in her armor. She swallowed deeply and took a step back and I could see the wheels turning as she tried to come up with an explanation for what we were looking at.