Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 24935 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 83(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24935 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 83(@300wpm)
“Huh?”
“Move in here.” I walk over to her and take her hand in mine, linking our fingers. “You’ve been practically living here anyway, and I like it. Besides, you said before that you’ve always had your eye on this unit.”
“I’m not moving in with you for the view.”
“Okay, move in with me for the sex.”
She snorts, and I lean down to kiss her.
“Then you can sell your condo and pursue your new business.”
I lean in for another kiss, but she plants her hand on my chest, stopping me.
“What?”
Chapter Seven
Cherry
“What did you just say?” I demand, backing away from him.
“That once you sell your condo to move in here, you’ll be able to use the equity to start your business.”
“I don’t know how many times I have to say this tonight, but I’m fine with how things are. If I sell my condo, it’s because I’ll have bills to pay here when I move in with you. And right now, that’s a big if.”
He presses his fingers into his eyes and sighs loudly. “Do whatever you want, Cherry. Work at the school, make candles, or start walking tours through town, I don’t fucking care. I just want you to be happy and do what fulfills you. But you won’t be paying any bills here, I can tell you that right now.”
I blink at him for five full seconds. “Are you a caveman?”
“No, I’ve already got the bills covered. I don’t need you to pay them.”
“I don’t need a sugar daddy.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake.” He begins to pace, clearly frustrated. “Wanting to have you with me all the time is a crime? Wanting to take care of you?”
“I don’t need—”
“You’ve made it abundantly clear to me that you don’t need me, any more than I need you to function as a productive member of society. That’s not what this is about. I want to do those things because I care about you. Damn it, I’ve managed to fall in love with you over the past few weeks, and I want the partnership.”
“No.” I shake my head, my frustration waging a war inside of me. “You want to decide how I live my life, with a new business and not paying any of my own bills.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he mutters, hanging his head. “If that’s what you think about me, you don’t know me at all, Cherry. And we’re just wasting our time here.”
My heart is pounding. I know that I’m saying all the wrong things, totally sabotaging this, but I don’t know how to accept love and help, and I don’t know how to fix it.
“I just mean—”
“I get it,” is all he says, interrupting me. “Look, maybe we need to take a night off, you know? Simmer down a bit.”
My mouth drops open, then closes again. “You’re kicking me out?”
“Let’s just take the night.” He moves to walk past me toward his bedroom. He doesn’t touch me as he passes. He doesn’t even look at me.
And I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that I’ve just fucked it all up.
* * * *
“You look like hell,” Montana says when she picks me up to go to girls’ night out at the inn. “What happened?”
“I didn’t sleep,” I reply and buckle my seat belt. I tried to get out of going tonight, but Montana wouldn’t hear of it and insisted that we ride together. “I should drive myself because I don’t know how long I’ll stay.”
“That’s perfect because I can’t stay late either. I have an early dentist appointment tomorrow. Did you bring your candle samples?”
“Shit.” I unbuckle the belt. “Be right back.”
“Need help?”
“Nah, it’s fine.”
“Cheer up. We’re going to have fun.”
But I don’t reply as I walk back up the stairs to my condo, key my way inside, and grab the small box of goodies that I brought for Luna to try out. If she buys stock to put in all of her guest rooms, that would be a huge sale for me.
On my way back out, I run smack dab into Zeke, and my heart gives a little lurch in my chest.
“Hi,” I say softly.
He looks like he doesn’t want to reply, as if he thought he’d already missed me, but he nods.
“Hey. Let me get that.”
Before I can object, he takes the box from me.
“Montana and I are going to that girls’ night out thing at the inn.”
“Should be fun.” I hate how short he is, how distant, and I wish with all my might that I knew how to fix this.
When we reach Montana’s car, he sets the box in the back seat and makes a move to leave.
“Zeke.”
He stops and turns to me, one eyebrow raised in question, but I don’t know what to say.
“Can we talk later?”
He licks his lips and looks away, but then he nods. Hope fills me. “Text me when you’re home.”