Total pages in book: 50
Estimated words: 46716 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 234(@200wpm)___ 187(@250wpm)___ 156(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46716 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 234(@200wpm)___ 187(@250wpm)___ 156(@300wpm)
When Dane emerges from the bathroom, he’s fully dressed. I’m sitting on the bed in his clothes, tugging awkwardly at the jeans. They’re too tight to zip, but at least I got them over my thighs.
“Come on.”
“We’re leaving now?” I ask, unable to keep the disbelief from my voice. “It’s really late. Maybe it would be better if I stayed over and just went back tomorrow.”
“No.”
Dane leads me outside. It’s cold, but at least his plaid shirt is warm. We walk in silence and I stay close to Dane, inhaling his deep musky scent. I can still smell the sex on his skin and thinking about it makes me flush.
My pussy is so sore that it almost hurts to walk, but I’m relishing it. Whenever Dane pauses to check his GPS, I press my thighs together and shiver at the sensation. My clit is still tingling and I want Dane to stop walking and take me right here in the woods.
I wonder what he looks like without a beard? Not that I mind facial hair, but I bet he’d be even hotter if he didn’t look quite so unkempt.
“Here.”
Dane’s deep growl stirs me from my thoughts and I look up to see the lights of the town below.
“If you walk this road, you’ll wind up in the center of town.”
I swallow nervously and nod. “Okay.” When I look around, I realize I know exactly where I am. Dane was right – I had no idea how close I was. The thought is both frightening and a little comforting at the same time.
When I turn to Dane to thank him, he’s gone – he slipped off silently, without a trace. I blink into the woods for a moment, trying to listen for him. But there’s no sound save the occasional hoot of an owl.
Taking a deep breath, I pull out my phone and snap a photo of the crossroads.
You know.
Just in case I ever want to come back.
4
Dane
Three years ago.
* * *
“Welcome to Xander Corp., how may I help you?”
I grunt at the seemingly innocuous question. The new secretary gives me a confused look and blushes.
“I’m the CEO sweetheart,” I drawl. “But thanks for the offer.”
Her eyes go wide.
“Oh my god, Mr. Lowe, I’m so sorry, I had no idea. This is my first day,” she apologizes, but I’m already walking down the hall and her voice trails off. It’s no trouble. Everyone makes mistakes.
I grin as I walk through the beautiful office. My partner, Jason, and I just had it redecorated and it looks every inch the perfect space for making even more money than we already have. We’ve been in business together for years and I just know this one is going to be the best yet.
When I reach my corner office, my secretary, Susan, smiles up at me. “Hello, Mr. Lowe,” she says. “Will you be having your usual this morning? Mr. Hadley is stopping by in a few minutes, he’s asked me to tell you that this afternoon’s meeting has been canceled.”
I frowned. “Did Jason say why?”
“No,” Susan replies. She shakes her head. “He didn’t. Would you like breakfast?”
I shake my head and walk into my office without answering her. I can’t figure out why Jason would have canceled the meeting with the shareholders. I sit down at my computer and start scanning through my email, in search of a clue.
When Jason strides in, he’s got a huge grin on his face and I narrow my eyes at him.
“You’re looking awfully satisfied with yourself,” I say. “Why the hell did you cancel the board meeting?”
Jason smirks. He closes the door to my office behind him and flops down on the leather couch. “I have a better idea,” he says. “We should go out and take a long, long lunch. A very long liquid lunch,” he adds, raising an eyebrow at the last word. “That’s a hell of a lot better than sitting around with old assholes for the afternoon.”
“Those assholes ensured our venture capital,” I say slowly. “And I don’t think it’s a good idea to go against them.”
“Fuck ‘em,” Jason says. He gets to his feet and rolls his eyes at me. “Dane, lighten the fuck up, man. Come on – what happened to you? You used to be fun.”
“I used to be a dumb irresponsible kid and now I’m a man with a company,” I say, raising an eyebrow. “And I’m not even married like you are.”
Jason smirks. “Yeah, well, maybe when you’re married you’ll understand that long liquid lunches are a goddamned necessity. And wait until you have a kid, god, it’s like the torture never ends.”
I smirk back. “I’m never getting married,” I reply. “Why get married when I can fuck any woman I want?”
“That sounds more like the Dane I know,” Jason says approvingly. “Come on. Lunch today. Shareholders tomorrow.”