Total pages in book: 111
Estimated words: 105846 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105846 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
I use the quiet moment to step back into the corner of the room and text the one person I haven’t stopped thinking about since I got in her Civic and drove here.
Guilt sits heavy in my stomach as I hit send.
Me: Are you okay? I know I’m the last person on earth you want to talk to you right now…well, besides the idiot whom I won’t name. But I just wanted to say I’m sorry, Josie. I’m so, so sorry for what happened out there. I swear to you, I had NO IDEA that Clay was the chosen groom until this afternoon or that he was going to be a total asshat. Please don’t hate me. I love you.
I nearly drop my phone when an incoming text makes it vibrate in my hands.
Josie: I don’t hate you.
Me: You promise? Because I feel like a real asshole for putting you in that situation.
Josie: Promise.
Me: Breezy still with you?
Josie: Yeah. She brought some wine to distract me from killing Clay.
Thank goodness for Breezy.
I can tell by Josie’s short answers that she’s nowhere near ready to talk about what Clay revealed today. No doubt, she needs time to work through the myriad of emotions she’s probably feeling right now.
And I’m sure there’s a part of her that’s still pissed at me, but that’s okay. I can handle it as long as she hasn’t shut me out completely. We’ve done that once, for far too many years, and I never want to do it again. Josie means too much to me. She’s the only family I have now. Besides Bennett and Summer.
Funny enough, that thought doesn’t even scare me. It only makes me send my sister one more message.
Me: Just so you know, you made Summer’s day. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen that little girl so excited. She said, and I quote, “It was the best thing I’ve ever seen!”
Josie: I’m glad at least something good came out of it. Give her a kiss for me.
Me: I will.
Charlie’s voice grabs my attention again when she offers, “Ben, how about I sit with her while she sleeps? I’ll let you know if there’re any changes or if she wakes up.”
Bennett nods in agreement, kissing Summer’s hand and cheek one more time before rising to his feet. I follow suit when he’s gone, giving her two kisses on her forehead and brushing her hair out of her face as I do. “Sleep well, sweet girl.”
Charlie takes a seat in the chair next to Summer’s bed, and Bennett and I step out into the hall, pulling the door shut behind us.
I’m happy to be here, but there’s a part of me that wishes I would have gone home to shower and change first.
Wordlessly, Bennett takes my hand and walks us down the hall. I expect him to go to the kitchen or the living room, or even outside for some fresh air, but instead, we walk deeper into his old farmhouse, straight to his white bedroom.
“Bennett, what are we…”
“I don’t know about you, but I want a shower more than just about anything.”
A small puff of surprised air leaves my nose. “Yeah. A shower does sound nice. Do you want to go first, or do you want me to—”
“I want us to go together,” he interrupts, pulling me into his arms and then walking us backward to shut and lock his bedroom door.
“Ben…”
“I don’t want to be alone, but even more than that, I want to be with you.”
“I want to be with you too.” I don’t know how long I’ve ached and longed and dreamed about what it would be like to be truly with Bennett Bishop, but hell, I’m out of patience. Out of willpower. Out of everything but the acute, throbbing need I have for him.
The sound of my dress zipper sliding down my back is the only audible answer I get. The only answer I need.
Bennett walks me gently backward, thumbing the straps of my dress off my shoulders until it falls to the floor at my shuffling feet. We walk over it, his body heat directly engaged with mine as he guides me into the bathroom, and my lace bra rubs against his tanned, hair-sprinkled chest now that he has the top four buttons of his shirt undone.
The silence makes it all the more erotic, my heaving breaths and our racing hearts creating a soundtrack to the moment.
Bennett’s mouth finds mine just outside the shower, and it’s not long before his tongue finds mine too. I don’t bother to withhold access, and I don’t stop my back when it arches my stomach into his.
He feels good and real and so fucking manly I can hardly stand it. His hands are gentle, but the skin is rough with work and life and experience. He’s confident, but he’s not cocky, and the word rush isn’t in his vocabulary.