Total pages in book: 133
Estimated words: 126589 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 633(@200wpm)___ 506(@250wpm)___ 422(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 126589 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 633(@200wpm)___ 506(@250wpm)___ 422(@300wpm)
“Aye, I mean massive for something that’s supposed to be small. That thing is the size of my palm.”
“I think it’s a r-rain spider,” she confided on a horrified little whisper. “Apparently it’s harmless.”
He slanted her a skeptical look.
“The only solution I can see is you move or, I dunno, burn the place to the ground. But that seems a little drastic.”
“So you can’t help me with this?” she asked in a woeful tone of voice. She wasn’t proud of it but she added a pout for good measure and his eyes dropped to her sulky lower lip just as she hoped they would.
“Fine,” he said. The word was slow and drawn out, like he was preoccupied while saying it. “But if I do this for you, you’re going to owe me a favor.”
“What favor?” she asked cautiously. What kind of favor could he possibly need from her?
“We can discuss that later,” he said.
“How can I agree to something if I don’t know exactly what I’m signing up for?”
“It’s nothing crazy, you might actually enjoy it.”
“So you already know what this favor will be?”
“Aye?” The questioning lilt at the end of the word made her roll her eyes.
“Well, why not tell me now?”
He sighed in an insufferably resigned way that made it clear he thought she was being unreasonable, when she knew she was being perfectly sensible.
“My sister just got engaged. I need a date to her engagement party and I was hoping you’d help me with that.”
How bizarre. A guy like Gideon should have plenty of women to choose from, he didn’t need her help with something like this. Still, if it meant someone else battling the beast in her bathroom, she’d happily accept his terms.
“Oh. Well, I suppose I could put out some feelers. I know a few single women who—”
“Beth,” he interrupted her with more of that long-suffering stoicism in his voice. “I’m not looking for some stranger to go with me, I was wondering if you would be my date.”
Her jaw dropped. All the way to the floor. In fact, if she stepped forward right now, she’d probably trip over the damned thing.
“Me? B-but why?”
“Because my dad will be there. And my brothers. And, honestly, none of the women I’ve dated before really know about my family, or about how complicated my relationships with them are. You’re one of the very few people I’ve ever told about it. So you won’t be surprised by any weird vibes or anything like that.”
He looked so awkward and vulnerable; Beth felt her insides turn into warm slush. This man was not used to showing his weaknesses and she couldn’t help but respond to that.
“Why not just go stag?” she asked quietly, and he frowned, as if he wasn’t entirely sure how to answer that question.
“I didn’t want to go alone. Without someone in—” The frown became a full-on glower as his gaze turned inward and he choked on his words, as if they were only registering while he was saying them.
But despite the unfinished sentence, Beth knew exactly what he’d been about to say.
“You want someone in your corner,” she whispered, and a shade of dull red infused the sharp line of his cheekbones.
He didn’t reply. Instead he stared at her, naked pleading in his eyes. Beth was shocked by the amount of vulnerability he was willing to show her right now.
Shocked and touched.
“You’re looking for an ally,” she continued, and he swallowed audibly, his Adam’s apple bobbing with the movement before he nodded. A single, sharp, up-and-down jerk of his head. “Well, it’s not unprecedented for nemeses to team up against a greater evil.”
He chuckled gruffly, looking relieved by her lighthearted response. “I wouldn’t call my father and brothers a greater evil, but they’re something else alright. Does that mean you’ll go with me?”
“You know that I’m not a social butterfly, right? I don’t strike up light conversations with total strangers. You sure you want my socially awkward ass tagging along to such an important event?”
“I know it’s a lot to ask, but I honestly can’t think of anything I want more right now.” His voice was rough with sincerity.
She wavered for a moment before deciding, “Yes, I’ll go with you.”
“Thank you.” He grinned broadly, that big, perfect smile that lit up his face and made him even more breathtakingly handsome.
“Now, about that spider?”
“Yes, of course, a deal’s a deal—” He strode purposefully toward her front door and she stared in confusion. Not sure where he was going. Maybe he had some protective gear at home or something. She followed him, but he was already out the door and to her front gate before she even got to the open front door.
He stepped through the gate onto the sidewalk and then stopped and stared down the road.
Baffled by his bizarre behavior, Beth joined him on the sidewalk, wondering what had caught his attention. The cul-de-sac was quiet, it was nearly seven on a Wednesday night. The kids had all headed inside for dinner over an hour ago, most front windows were lit, there was flickering blue light coming from a fair number of those windows as people settled down to watch their favorite shows.