Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 80572 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 403(@200wpm)___ 322(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80572 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 403(@200wpm)___ 322(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
God, I owe my cousin for building his dream car with military-grade safety features.
“It’s a miracle,” the doctor said, shaking his head. I’m not much of a believer in miracles. But the fact that I walked away from that accident with hardly a scratch… well, it gives me pause.
Mario didn’t fare as well, but he’ll be alright.
I laid in that hospital bed while they took my vital signs and called my family, and I knew that something monumental – lifechanging, even -- happened in that split second before the crash. When memories of my life flashed before me. Until now, I always thought that was a figure of speech, something out of a person’s imagination.
My life flashed before my eyes.
Literally. In that slim sliver between life and death, when one realizes how quickly finite existence passes… when one questions if they truly lived before they died.
And I knew then.
I knew that I wasn’t going to marry the spoiled Floridian princess. That I’d find another way to make marriage happen. That I’d fulfill the obligation to make sure my family is well-secured and Ricco has the time he needs with his wife. I knew that I’d get shit done, like I always do, but not in the way we planned.
I knew that whoever Eden’s married to doesn’t deserve a woman like her.
And I knew I wasn’t going to spend one more second on the sidelines, playing the gentleman when I’m a motherfucking wolf.
I’ll have to watch myself with her, I know it. I’ll have to proceed carefully and make sure she feels safe. If what Mario’s told me is true, Eden’s got a world to unpack before she can truly be herself. But I have another chance at life, and I’m not going to fuck this up.
I’m going after what I want.
And I. Want. Her.
So I fought my way out of the hospital. I was ready to pull a weapon, but fortunately Ricco knew some people and made some calls.
I had to come back.
Not just for my club. Not just to my family.
I came back here for her.
I open the door to my office. And when I see her, everything I planned on saying falls away. The lecture I planned to give her. The scolding for disobeying me. I can’t think beyond the image of the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, looking at me with eyes wide and trusting and full of hope and authentic remorse.
She’s innocence and light to my depravity and darkness.
She’s trusting and kind where I’m hardened and ruthless.
“I’m sorry I disobeyed you,” Eden says in a soft voice. Her dainty, pretty hands lay in her lap. “Please forgive me, Sergio.”
Goddammit.
Already done.
That quickly, my reservations evaporate like smoke and my words turn into vapor. I see her eager-to-please face and hopeful, trusting eyes. I remember what I realized in that hospital bed.
She opens her mouth and continues to talk. “I heard that you were in an accident. I heard that you were hurt.” When she blinks, a lone tear rolls down her cheek. “I hated the thought of disobeying you, and I didn’t come here because I was curious. I came here because I had to find out if you were alright.”
Eden was worried about me?
I cross the room, the blood pounding in my ears so loudly I can’t hear myself think. She was worried about me.
I lean on the edge of the desk to keep my hands still. I look at the frosted glass behind her, the panel that separates my office from the rest of the club. With one click of a button, I could show her everything that’s down there and more. I could show her a world she’s never known. I could show her what I long for, what I crave.
I could pull back the curtain and unveil my true self to her. I could show her…me.
When I don’t speak, she shifts uncomfortably in her chair. She opens her mouth to speak then snaps it shut and looks away.
I came back here for her. I fought my way out of that hospital bed and came back because I knew that she and I weren't done yet. I knew that I had to table any desire I had for her out of respect for her, even though that's not who I am. I've always been someone who's taken what I want when I want it.
I suspected she'd eventually disobey me. The temptation to see what lay beyond the walls of the kitchen would be too much to bear. But now I know she came to find out what happened to me. She's not testing me, or trying to disobey me, she was truly concerned about me.
But if she is who I think she is… Will she run?
I walk to my desk and contemplate my choices.