Total pages in book: 30
Estimated words: 29003 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 145(@200wpm)___ 116(@250wpm)___ 97(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 29003 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 145(@200wpm)___ 116(@250wpm)___ 97(@300wpm)
Everything goes. Rum, Gin, Beer—even the Peppermint Schnapps that someone gave me at Christmas a few years ago. I gather all of the empty bottles and cans in a garbage bag, carry them outside, and dump them into the recycling bin.
There’s zero hesitation. No doubts at all.
I have Ruby now. I don’t need anything else.
My cigarettes go next. I grab the packs I have, open them all, and then run them under water as I think of Ruby’s beautiful blue eyes. I shiver, remembering the way she was looking at me with such trust and admiration.
I don’t deserve her respect, but I’m committed to earning it one day. This is just a start.
I toss the soggy tobacco into the garbage, tie it up, and bring it to the garbage bin outside.
Once it’s in, I stand back and have a tremor of doubt. Can I do this?
“You can do anything,” I whisper to myself. “You got through SEAL training and that’s the toughest test in the world. You’ve been through hell in jungles, deserts, and war-torn cities. You can do this. You will do this, for her.”
I steel my nerves, trying to scrounge up some of that bold macho fortitude that came so easily in my twenties. I squeeze my arms, feeling some of that masculine tenacity returning into my hard biceps and flexed shoulders.
I’m not going to fail. I’m not going to let her down.
I’ll be the man that Ruby deserves and the sharp proficient protector she needs.
Every time I crave a drink, I’ll do fifty push-ups. Every time I want to light a smoke, I’ll do fifty burpees.
I’ll let my cravings be my trainer. I’ll turn my weaknesses into physical strength.
With my mind set, I head back inside.
My mother always said I was too stubborn for my own good. She said that once I had my mind set on something, the entire US military couldn’t stand in my way.
Well, my mind is set on this.
I’ll stay clean for Ruby. I’ll try every day to be worthy of the way she was looking at me.
The bath is draining when I walk back into the house.
My chest gets all tight when I hear the door open and those soft footsteps coming down the hall.
“Jesus…” I whisper when I see her in the T-shirt I gave her to sleep in. It’s green army camouflage, but it’s doing nothing to hide her curves. I swallow hard when I see the way her round breasts are pushing out against it, the shape of her firm nipples in view. I drop my eyes to the ground, not wanting to tempt the hungry beast inside me.
But even as I look away, I can still see the image of her bountiful chest burning in my brain.
“Thanks for the shirt,” she says as I squeeze my hands into fists at my side. “They took all of my pajamas.”
I’m shaky all over as I force my eyes up to hers. Her blonde hair is wet and she’s no longer wearing any makeup. I suck in a sharp breath when I see how beautiful she is. She’s stunning.
The ultimate temptation.
I could just go to her now, pull that shirt off her head, and she’d be completely naked and at my mercy.
Fuck, I curse myself as I tear my eyes off her.
If my best friend could hear the thoughts in my head right now… He’d probably come back to life just to end mine.
“I’m going to bed,” she says in that soft innocent voice that’s like candy to my ears.
My eyes dart back to her as she makes her way over. My shirt ends halfway up her thighs and those long bare legs look so enticing it’s hard to breathe. Even her feet are a work of art—long slender arches with perfect little pink toes. I could spend hours massaging them without wanting to stop.
She stops in front of me and a whiff of coconut soap fills my lungs. She smells so good. So fresh and pure. My mouth waters as I look down into her eyes.
“Thank you for everything, Jack,” she whispers. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
That tiny hand touches my chest as she rises on her toes to kiss my cheek. Her soft wet lips touch my stubbled skin and I fight back every intense urge ripping through my body.
It takes everything I have to keep my hands to myself.
She drops back down onto her heels and smiles shyly at me before tucking a strand of damp hair behind her ear and turning away.
My eyes are on those long gorgeous legs and on her round ass as I watch her walk back down the hall. She disappears from view and my legs buckle.
I grab onto a kitchen chair and slump down onto it with my body aching.