Total pages in book: 35
Estimated words: 32845 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 164(@200wpm)___ 131(@250wpm)___ 109(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 32845 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 164(@200wpm)___ 131(@250wpm)___ 109(@300wpm)
I tried not to let the dread in my heart show, but when he peered down into my eyes, there was no way to keep my feelings from him. He gave me a tender smile, then pulled me to him for a brief hug before dropping a kiss on top of my head.
“Don’t look so scared. We’re gonna be fine.”
“We?”
He took my hand and led me to the parking lot and the truck he’d brought to pick me up. I wished he’d brought his bike, but the weather was a little more than I was prepared for. Christmas was in less than a week and things had gone from unseasonably warm to very chilly overnight.
“Yeah. We. Thought we’d already decided we were giving this a shot.”
“Oh. Well, OK.” I know I sounded young and childish, but I was so nervous I didn’t know what to say. And I was getting ready to have a very real adult conversation with a man I was equal parts terrified of and infatuated with.
He opened the door for me, and I climbed in. Once I’d fastened my seat belt, he shut the door and trotted around to his side. When he climbed in beside me, he reached over, finding my hand and giving it a firm, reassuring squeeze.
“Don’t look so scared. I’ll only take a bite out of you if you ask.”
I couldn’t help the way my body reacted to his words. I shivered and actually broke out into a sweat, gasping as my gaze jerked to his. He grinned and winked at me before starting the truck and heading back to the hotel.
As he opened the door to our suite, my phone chimed. I glanced at the screen to see my mother’s name, requesting a FaceTime. I groaned. I wasn’t sure I was ready to talk to her, but she’d be getting anxious and I didn’t want her to worry more than she already was.
“Go,” Cyclone said, urging me to the bedroom. “Talk with your mother.”
“I don’t know what to say.” I felt like a little kid who knew she was in trouble and was avoiding her parents for as long as possible.
He shrugged those brawny shoulders and gave me a reassuring smile. “Tell her whatever you want. Better to prepare her for us coming home. You do that. I’ll call Trucker and we’ll get this part of it over with.”
And just like that, all those pancakes I’d eaten threatened to come up. “Oh, God. NO! Do not call my father.” The phone had stopped chiming, but I knew my mother would call back in a few seconds. She always tried at least twice, knowing I was forever losing my phone.
Pulling me into his arms, Cyclone hugged me fiercely. “Honey, I have to. If he finds this out from anyone else, the ass beatin’ I’d get wouldn’t be just epic, it’d be catastrophic. Besides, I respect your father, though he’s not going to believe that when I tell him everything. By avoiding you all this time, I earned every single thing he’ll do to me when we get back. No matter if you want me long-term or not. I’m gonna be lucky to get out of this with my balls intact as it is.” He tilted my chin up with gentle fingers and kissed me briefly. “You talk with your mom. Let her know you’re good. Tell her everything. It will help you figure out how you really feel and what you want to say to me once these conversations are over. Because we still have things to settle between us.”
I took a deep breath. “OK. It’s just… I don’t want to disappoint my mom.” I couldn’t help the tears that dripped from my eyes down my cheeks.
“Honey, she’s your mother. She loves you more than life itself. She may not like some of the choices you make, but she would never be disappointed in you.”
As I stared up at him, trying to find the reassurance I needed, my phone started chiming again. Cyclone framed my face with his hands and kissed me once again before giving me an encouraging smile and moving to the other side of the suite and shutting the connecting door.
I took a deep breath and answered the FaceTime call. “Hi, Mom.” I gave her a bright smile, hoping like hell she thought I was happy to hear from her.
“Hi, sweetie. You hanging in there?”
“Yeah. I’m doing fine. Just contemplating how much weight my right foot needs to lose to keep this from happening again.” I tried to make a joke but had to stifle the wince.
“Cruise control will become your new best friend, huh?” She still smiled, but I could tell she was still worried.
There was an awkward silence between us that I’d never experienced with my mother. She’d always been a mother and best friend all in one. I told her everything in my life. Always had. Any time I’d ever had a problem, Mom was the first person I ran to.