Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 62923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 315(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 315(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
Still humiliated after years had passed, Remi closed his eyes and tried to calm his nerves enough to cool his heated cheeks. Yes, he still blushed when he remembered how Ryder had coolly rejected him. Even worse than that was that he would beg Ryder again if he thought it would do one damn bit of good.
Irritated, he stood up and decided to go to the store. The cat would need things. He guessed. He didn’t know a damn thing about cats, other than they hated him. Scooping up his keys, he said, “Be good. Don’t tear my room apart while I’m gone. You have a litter box, so use it. I’m going to grab you some food and toys.” He knelt in front of the ugly cat and said, “Don’t think for one minute that I won’t hold what I buy you for ransom if you don’t start behaving.” The cat blinked slowly, its goldish green eyes showing not one ounce of fear or intimidation. Remi tried a staring contest. Lost. “Okay, you won the first and second battle. I get it. Cat=two. Human=zero. Just don’t rip anything up with your claws,” he muttered as he exited his bedroom suite.
He’d already bought the cat some food and toys. The trip was nothing more than a ruse to try and keep himself busy. He had to do something to stop thinking about Ryder or, even worse, Gary’s murder. Anything. He’d spent the last several days pulling every trick in the book to keep his body awake. He’d drank more caffeine than the surgeon general recommended. He’d swam. He’d hunted cats. He’d been ripped apart by cats. He’d gone to the library. He’d swam some more. His body was running on fumes…but he was afraid to sleep. It was when he slept that the dreams could come get him.
Obvious solution—don’t sleep.
Chapter Two
“What’s up with Remi, Cassie?” Ryder asked when he finally managed to corner her in the kitchen, away from her friends and the endless noise that always accompanied them. He knew he was only thirty years old, a mere six years older than Cassie and her crew, but he felt ancient whenever he was around them. Between the ear-piercing music that seemed to be a common occurrence in the house, and the way the small group always seemed to be operating like they were thirty minutes behind schedule, scampering around like lost puppies, Ryder feared he would lose his marbles every time he visited. It was one of the two reasons why he tried not to visit often. Seeing Remi was the other reason.
If he was planning on boarding a cruise ship for a three-week long vacation in exactly four hours, he would be packed, luggage waiting at the door, and would have been in bed a minimum of four hours ago. Cassie’s group had somehow determined the proper etiquette for cruising was to not go to bed at all, throw everything you owned into luggage a few hours before leaving, and, of course, play drinking games until the car service arrived to take them to the port. Good plan. It was no fucking wonder he felt ancient around them.
Cassie frowned and motioned for him to follow her down the hall. Thankfully, she was taking them further and further away from the music—toward the wing where the bedrooms were located. She pulled him into her bedroom and said, “Start shoving all the clothes on the bed into one of these suitcases, Uncle Ryder. We can talk while we work.”
Ryder’s eyes widened when he looked at the enormous pile of clothes on Cassie’s bed. “Are you kidding me, Cas? Do you really think you need to take everything you own? I’m sure there will be a laundry service on board the cruise ship.”
She laughed. “Uncle Ryder, you know damn well this isn’t nearly all the clothes I own. Don’t be silly. Start shoving,” she placed a pile of clothes in his arms and pointed toward the Louis Vuitton luggage. “Now…about Remi,” she began as she worked alongside him to pack for her trip. “He’s okay…I think. He’s so upset that you were at the hospital the other night. He says you already disliked him but now you hate him because you think he’s on drugs.” She nudged Ryder’s shoulder. “It destroyed him. You know he’s had a huge crush on you for years. Poor thing has been devastated with worry since that night.”
Remi had a crush on him? Did that nonchalant comment mean that Remi had never told Cassie about their encounter? More importantly, did it mean Remi could even consider them hooking up again? Shit, that wasn’t what needed to happen. Was it? A bubble of excitement exploded in his gut, but he quickly squashed it down. There might only be six years between them in age, but it was dog years when it came to living. On top of that, when Ryder had lost his beloved brother, he’d vowed that Cassie would be the only other living soul that would hold his heart again.