Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 143382 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 717(@200wpm)___ 574(@250wpm)___ 478(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 143382 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 717(@200wpm)___ 574(@250wpm)___ 478(@300wpm)
There were illuminated, fake evergreen boughs looped the entirety of the upper walkway. At the top of each loop at each post on the railing, there was a big, red velvet bow.
The annual flowers in the planters had been switched out to poinsettias or baby pine trees, and those had Christmas lights too.
The green and red plaid, giganto baubles in one corner of the courtyard were mimicked by giganto red-and-green striped baubles in the other. These were illuminated from the inside.
There were elegant, life-sized white deer positioned here and there, and they had lights in their antlers.
There were lit wreathes with red bows attached to all the standing light fixtures.
In the big trees that shaded the place, there was an abundance of Christmas lights, and even if the trees were tall, the lights were everywhere, trunk to tip.
There was also a massive Christmas tree—seriously, it had to be at least sixteen feet tall—festooned with white lights, red baubles and red berries with fat, cascading red ribbons waving down from the huge-ass bow at top, towering over the north side of the pool.
And down one side, there was a gold Menorah that had to be at least three feet high, five feet wide, with none of the candles lit because Hanukkah hadn’t started yet.
It was a holiday wonderland, Phoenician style.
Man, Bill and Zach could work it.
I saw the renos on the pool had begun again after the Thanksgiving break, and the pebble finish had been sprayed that day. So once that cured, and the cool deck was installed, we’d have our pool back.
Last, at one of our new, fancy outdoor tables sat Luna, Raye, Harlow, Martha, Alexis, Daisy, Shirleen, and gracing us with her megastar presence was Stella Gunn.
Oh, and Jacob was pacing angrily.
They all stood at our approach, and we barely made it to them before Jacob clipped, “What are you women into?”
But Harlow hit me like a rocket.
I went back on a foot, but luckily didn’t go down before I wrapped my arms around her.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
She leaned back but didn’t let me go. “Are you?”
No.
I was not.
My brother was a dick.
“It was my brother. He was trying to teach me a lesson in vulnerability.”
She screwed up her face in anger, and totally. Jinx was right.
She cute.
Shirleen got to me, and with a hand at my back, she led me to the table, murmuring, “Come sit down, child. Linda’s bringing hot chocolate.”
“I’ll go tell her to make an extra couple mugs,” Alexis said, and dashed toward Linda’s door.
I sat down, assuring them all, “I’m fine.” I looked among my girls. “And the bitches are right. Mountain is muy guapo.”
“Oh my God, you met him?” Luna asked.
“Yep,” I answered, my attention having been taken by Eric, who’d left me and was having a seemingly intense conversation with Stella by the plaid Christmas baubles.
“Who’s Mountain?” Daisy asked.
“He’s a street vigilante,” I told her.
“Ah,” she said, entirely unaffected by this information.
“Jesus Christ,” Jacob bit off, then tramped to where Eric was with Stella, probably to ask what Eric was doing about my insane life, rather than asking me, seeing as it was my insane life.
Men.
“I’m thinking there’s something we don’t know about you girls,” Martha stated, her eyes pinging indignantly between all of us.
No one said anything.
Martha harrumphed, but surprisingly didn’t push it.
Guess there were advantages to being abducted.
My eyes strayed back to Eric and Stella.
Jacob was striding toward Linda’s apartment, but Eric and Stella were still at it.
“Don’t you worry, sugar bunches of oats,” Daisy said, reaching out to pat my hand.
“Worry about what?” I asked.
She jerked her blonde coif toward Eric and Stella, it trembled seismically, and she said, “Ain’t nothin’ but a thing.”
“What are you talking about?” Luna asked Daisy.
Raye had her lips sealed tight, which meant Cap had told her about Eric and Stella’s history.
“Eric and Stella used to date,” I announced.
Harlow gasped.
Luna shot wide eyes to me.
“Your man used to date a rock star?” Martha asked.
I decided against telling them the undercover part and just shrugged.
Daisy waved a bedazzled-tipped hand in front of her enormous bosoms. “It was eons ago.” She leaned into the table. “Stella’s havin’ flashbacks. The least fun part of the Rock Chick ride was getting kidnapped.” She paused to consider. “Also nearly crashing over a bridge onto a highway during a high-speed chase. That wasn’t a barrel of laughs.”
Martha stared at her and did the sign of the cross, and as far as I knew, she wasn’t Catholic.
Linda, with Alexis and Jacob in tow, showed with a tray of hot chocolate.
Linda was a retired schoolteacher, the oldest Oasis resident, both in her time spent renting there and her age, and she was a sweetheart.
I adored Linda, and not just because she spooned a mound of marshmallow fluff on the top of her hot chocolate.