Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 73884 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 369(@200wpm)___ 296(@250wpm)___ 246(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73884 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 369(@200wpm)___ 296(@250wpm)___ 246(@300wpm)
“So, you want to date, but only for six months?”
“Yes, well no. I want to date you, but not as my girlfriend. As my wife. I want to date my wife.” He gives me an adorable, endearing grin that’s hard as hell to resist. “I want us to give this everything we have.”
“I already care about you. Six months with you, to let you go. That’s going to bring heartbreak and confusion, and a whole lot of messiness with our friends and family.”
“Baby, you have us divorced before we even try. Trust me, I know for certain if you kick my ass to the curb after six months, my heart will be in tattered pieces all over the living room floor. You’re worth the risk. I believe in what we could be.” He lifts my hand and places it over his heart. “You and me, Mrs. Lanigan. Six months.”
“What happens if in that time we’re still not sure?” I don’t need that long. I know my heart will be pulverized if I have him for any amount of time, only for him to walk away. But I’ve lived through worse. That’s the story of my life. That’s the way my book was written.
“I’m pretty sure that’s enough time to know if we’re falling harder than what we already are.”
“What does that look like? Us dating?”
“Married and dating. We live together. My place or yours, but you have more space. We sleep next to one another and share our lives with each other. I want you twisted in every fiber of my life, and my soul, Brogan.”
I want that. I want it all. Everything he just said, I want more than anything, but I don’t deserve it. Maybe I should just take what time I can get with him, and when he realizes I’m a mess of epic proportions, he’ll cut ties, and I can quietly lick my wounds.
“I don’t trust easily. I’ll drive you insane with all of my questions and the constant need for reassurance. I’m broken, Maddox. I’m working on it, but it’s a long road to travel.”
“Let me take that road with you.” His eyes are locked on mine. “Let me be the man who stands next to you and gives you all the reassurance you need. Ask me as many questions as you want. I’ll answer every single one of them with nothing but complete honesty.”
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” I tell him.
A slow, sexy smile tugs at his lips. “I need to hear you say it, baby.”
“Six months.” I nod, letting him know that I’m agreeing. My heart tells me this is a grand plan, while my head is full of the opposite. However, it’s my heart that’s leading this time, and the way it’s racing at the thought of Maddox being mine, even for a short amount of time, sets something ablaze inside me. Something a lot like hope infused with happiness.
“Six months what?”
“We date for six months.” I can’t believe I’m agreeing to this. It’s crazy, and not me at all, but it's not like he’s a stranger. I know Maddox; at least I’m pretty sure I do. Anxiety starts to kick in, but he rests his palms on my cheeks, bringing me out of my thoughts.
“Focus on me, baby.”
I nod again. “We stay married. Six months. Dating.”
He smirks. “We have one more decision to make.”
“What’s that?”
“Your place or mine?”
“I love this house. It was my grandmother’s.”
“Can I tell you a secret?” His hands are still cupping my face. His eyes, still laser focused on mine.
“Yes,” I whisper, like there are other people here to listen to our conversation.
“I love this house. I kept waiting for it to go on the market, but it never did. I saw that someone had moved in. I never could have imagined it would have been my future wife.”
“Stop.” I laugh.
“I’m telling you the truth. Ask the guys. I even told them when we were here for the first time for the girls’ birthday party back in the summer.”
“Well, I guess that means you’re my new roommate.”
“Husband, roommate, bedmate, secret keeper, question answerer, and whatever else you want me to be. I want you to be mine, Brogan. My everything.”
His answer is honest, and playful, and it feels normal for us, and what we’ve been to one another up to this point. “Does that mean you’re mine?” I hate that I ask the question, and I bite down on my bottom lip, pissed at myself for letting the question fall from my lips.
His eyes soften. “That’s exactly what it means.” He removes his left hand from my face and wiggles his fingers, his wedding band on full display. “Only you, Brogan.”
“Gah, are we really doing this?” I ask. I feel giddy at the thought, and if I’m being honest, I can’t believe I’m agreeing to this.