Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 88263 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88263 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
She keeps her back turned to me. “I can’t.”
Frustration starts to sing in my blood but I keep it in check. This isn’t the time for my famous temper to rear its ugly head.
“We’re at an impasse then.” Silence follows. She still won’t look at me. I want to know what she’s thinking, but that’s the curse. I can never hear her thoughts. “What are you naming this place?”
She half turns, surprised. “Excuse me?”
“The shop. Did you pick a name yet?”
“No,” she says, sounding distant, like she’s only half in the room. “We’re debating.”
“I say you call it Holiest of Holies.”
She rolls her eyes. “Oh, god.”
“Exactly. Donuts so good, it’s a religious experience.”
“Terrible.”
“How about just Treat Yourself.”
“Better, but still bad.” She’s half-smiling now. “You don’t get a say, you know.”
“When I’m an investor and your husband, I will.”
Her smile fades. “Not happening.”
I move toward her. “Think about that night. Can you really tell me you don’t want it again?”
She remains where she’s standing. Not retreating, but not inviting me closer, either. I keep coming. “One-night stands last one night for a reason.”
“The magic doesn’t have to end at sunrise. This isn’t a fairy tale.”
“There’s no magic. Only a blackmailing rich boy mad he can’t get everything he wants.”
“We both know what happened between us was something special.” I stop in front of her, staring into her eyes. “Tell me you don’t think about it.”
“That’s all this is?” she asks, looking into my face. We’re inches apart now. I can smell her lemony scent mixed with a floral shampoo. Fuck, she’s beautiful. “You just want to fuck me again?”
A thrill runs down my spine at the way she says it. “Yes, I do. But that’s not all I want.”
“It’d be easier if it was.”
“You think you could satisfy me?” I touch her chin, tilting her back. “You want to imagine you can fuck me right here and now, get it out of my system?”
“Maybe that’d be for the best,” she whispers. She’s breathing hard too. She’s as excited by the idea as I am.
“I’m not interested in getting anything out of my system. Tasting you again will only make me that much hungrier. There’s no sating the way I feel for you right now.”
“You don’t seem to get it. We’re nothing. We’ll never be anything. You can threaten me, ruin my life, do whatever, but I’m not going to marry you. I don’t care if that night was good—” Here, she pauses, clearly torn. “I don’t care if it was really good.”
“You still think about it.”
“Of course I do,” she admits, releasing a frustrating whimper. “Every day since it happened, I think about it, okay?”
“We don’t have to turn our backs on that. We can have it. I can give that to you.”
“But you can’t.” Though she doesn’t sound sure.
We stay like that, tension thick and terrible, buzzing down my spine. I want her so badly I could break. I lean forward, mouth parting. She doesn’t move, doesn’t run. I expect her to push me back, and instead, she lets out another one of those obscene whimpers.
I’m about to kiss her when the door bursts open.
“Hey, Keel, what are you—” Jamila stands in the doorway, her partner staring with her mouth hanging open.
Keely instant shoves herself back. “Jams, what are you doing here? I thought you weren’t coming in.”
“I figured I’d come make sure you weren’t stewing in misery.” A little smile crosses her face. “Looks like you’re fine.”
“Hello, Jamila,” I say, head tilted to the side. “Lovely to see you again.”
“Nolan. Did you come here to blackmail my partner some more?”
“Of course. But it’s not going well.”
“Can’t say I’m upset.” She glances at Keely and clears her throat. “Uh, is everything okay? I wasn’t interrupting?”
“No, absolutely not,” Keely says, cheeks crimson.
“Yes, you definitely were,” I say.
Keely glares at me. “Nolan was leaving.”
“No, I wasn’t.” I gesture at the forgotten coffee. “Would you like a drink, Jamila? Keely refused my gesture.”
Jamila shrugs and takes one marked black. “I feel like I just caught two teenagers about to dry hump each other.”
“Jams,” Keely says, rubbing the bridge of her nose. “It’s not like that.”
“It was definitely like that,” I say as I head toward the door. Jamila moves away, giving me space. “But I won’t keep. I suppose you two have some things to discuss.”
“Not at all,” Keely says sharply.
Jamila only stares at me. “She’s not going to do it, you know,” she says.
I pause. Keely told her about the marriage? I shouldn’t be surprised. It’s not like we could hide it. “She will.”
“This isn’t important enough. Be reasonable, make a better offer, but don’t think you can do whatever you want to my friend and get away with it.” All lighthearted teasing is gone from Jamila’s tone. I’m almost impressed.
I glance back at Keely. She’s standing there, cheeks red with embarrassment and fury. I smile at her, wishing I could’ve kissed her and given her a taste of what we might have together.