Total pages in book: 21
Estimated words: 20048 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 100(@200wpm)___ 80(@250wpm)___ 67(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 20048 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 100(@200wpm)___ 80(@250wpm)___ 67(@300wpm)
“Don’t fucking do anything stupid. She’s not worth it. I might not want you chasing after my woman, but that doesn’t mean I don’t believe you have a future ahead of you.”
“I won’t. She’s not getting the best of me again. I don’t need to waste my time anymore. I’m sorry to both of you. Good luck.” He tugs himself free and walks out.
“You?” Owen says as he turns back to me. “You and I have a lot to talk about.”
“I need to get my dad’s medicine first.”
“I’ll wait.” He follows me to the counter, and I give the pharmacist my dad’s information.
Owen stands behind me with his arms crossed, waiting patiently. Once we’re done, he leads me to his vehicle and helps me inside. “Does your dad need these this minute or can he wait a while?”
“He has enough for the next couple of days.”
“Okay good. We’re going to the house.”
“What about my car?”
“We can pick it up later, but we have things to deal with and I refuse to wait.” He drives us in silence, and we arrive at the construction zone where the crew is working. He leads me up the stairs. “Please don’t bother us,” he informs them. “This is the master bedroom.” Owen opens a door and inside is a massive room that’s three times the size of a normal room. My mouth falls open as I stare at all the windows that line one wall. There are two doors, one is a double door, and another is a regular.
“We can talk about the design later, but first we need to clear the air.”
“The design?” Does he mean?
I turn around to stare at Owen and he takes my hand in his, and the fall sun is beaming through the room, casting a perfect glow over his handsome build. He then puts both my hands into one of his strong ones and then caresses my cheek. “I get that you’re dealing with abandonment and trust issues from that fuck and your mom, but I’m not them. Autumn, I’ve fallen in love with you.”
“You love me?” The smile on my face must be a mile wide right now.
He nods. “Yes, I do.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because you’re my first for so much. We might be moving fast as hell and I’ve never felt this way before, so it’s hitting hard. You were my first too, Autumn. I’ve only had one girlfriend in high school, and she only dated me because she was trying to make her ex-boyfriend jealous.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yes, so it was pretty pathetic. Until you, I’ve never had these urges, needs, and the moment I saw you, I wanted everything a man could desire. So yes, I’m madly, obsessively in love with you.”
Tears fell from my eyes because he means so much to me. “Owen, I love you too, and it scares me. This is intense… too much.”
“Marry me.”
“What?”
“Have all my babies and marry me.”
“You’re insane.”
“Maybe so, but I’m serious.”
“Okay.”
Chapter Eight
Owen
It’s Thanksgiving and the women are in the kitchen preparing dinner while Gordon and I have a glass of whiskey in his den. He’d been giving me strange looks since I arrived, so I knew he had something to say. The second he handed me the glass, he let it out.
“My daughter is an adult so I can’t say much but I can’t pretend I don’t know what’s going on between you two. The small-town talks and it won’t be long until rumors start flying again. I don’t want my little girl’s heart broken.”
I smiled and tried to give my future father-in-law a little peace of mind. “It won’t be sir. Let’s just say this Orchard is staying in the family.”
“How can you be so sure?” he asked me. After his bitter divorce, I suppose it had to be hard, but Autumn’s a way better person than her mother ever was, and that’s not just my opinion. Every single person I’ve spoken to has mentioned how sweet of a girl she is.
“Like I said before I’m a man who makes up his mind and doesn’t change it. I love your daughter. You might not believe it, but I’ve always believed in love at first sight. My family does as well and as soon as I saw Autumn I knew she would be the woman I’d marry.” I pulled the ring out of my pocket and showed it to him. “I made a show of purchasing it in town yesterday.”
“So we will be getting married. That’s good news, my boy.” A massive grin spread across his face, reminding me a bit of Autumn. She definitely got her spite from him. Not that I blamed either of them because the town could be a bit much.
“Fellas, it’s time to eat,” Noelle calls out from the hall.
“So is there anything going on between you and the little nurse?”