Total pages in book: 27
Estimated words: 25031 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 83(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 25031 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 83(@300wpm)
I was about to tell him how fucking ridiculous that idea was when our team captain—and starting quarterback—Prentice walked up and shot Colt a disapproving frown. “Don’t do something stupid like getting engaged to a random jersey chaser. You’ll have a fuck of a lot of explaining to do when you finally find your woman.” He turned his intense gaze on me and raised an eyebrow. “And you’d be seriously fucked if you’re still married to someone else.”
I nodded, acknowledging that I’d heard his advice loud and clear. He returned the gesture and stalked to the exit, probably off to meet his wife and child. A small trickle of envy sifted through my veins, but I shook it off.
I wasn’t going to marry just anyone in order to secure the endorsement. I’d have to figure out something else.
2
Skye
As a budding chef, I was particular about my ingredients and was happiest when I could use the best of the best. Unfortunately, my budget didn’t allow me to indulge often, except for when I was cooking on someone else’s dime. But every so often, I treated myself to a mini splurge. And as a coffee aficionado, the least expensive way to get in a little gastro-pampering was with a trip to one of the amazing cafés in the city.
Waiting in line, I stared at the bakery case, debating if I should shell out several extra dollars for one of the scrumptious pastries. It would mean that I’d need to live off ramen for the next week, so I decided against the additional splurge. Although I spruced up the cheap packets a little with homemade broth, green onion, egg, and sriracha, one decadent slice of lemon loaf wasn’t worth the sacrifice…no matter how delicious it looked. Four dollars went further at the grocery store than people thought when you made everything from scratch. I could’ve made a batch of beans and rice that would have fed me for days with that much money.
Of course, it wouldn’t have been such a big splurge if my roommate hadn’t just up and decided to move in with her boyfriend, leaving me with a rent payment I could barely afford since the lease was in my name. New York City was beyond expensive, and things were always tight, but paying the full rent meant not having much left over for food.
When I reached the front of the line, I reluctantly dragged my gaze away from the baked goods and smiled at the barista. “Good morning, can I get a small lavender cold brew latte please?”
“My favorite,” she chirped at me with a smile. “They’re brand-new on the menu and amazing.”
I hoped she wasn’t exaggerating how good the drink tasted. Handing over six dollars for a twelve-ounce drink made me cringe, so it had better be worth the ingredients I could’ve bought with it instead.
Luckily, after waiting for a good five minutes for my tiny cup of coffee, I discovered that she hadn’t been overselling the new menu item. Just walking through the door of the café had been a treat to my senses but lifting my to-go cup to my lips for that first taste of cold brew was the absolute best.
I was savoring it so much that my head was still in the clouds when I headed outside with my treat. That was the only possible explanation for how I ended up crashing into a huge guy only a few steps onto the sidewalk.
He had to be a full foot taller than me, so I had no excuse for missing him. Not that I was really surprised. The kitchen was the only place where I felt graceful, so I was used to being clumsy when I wasn’t cooking. But at least it was just me who normally paid the price for my lack of coordination instead of other people. Until this poor guy got drenched in coffee, courtesy of my clumsiness.
“Crap,” I muttered as my delicious lavender latte knocked into his cup of hot coffee, both drinks practically exploding as they smashed against his broad chest before falling to the ground.
And what a chest it was…which I didn’t fully realize until I was patting all of those muscles with a napkin. One that wasn’t doing any good because it was already covered in my cold brew since it had been wrapped around my cup to keep the condensation to a minimum.
My cheeks heated as I lowered my hand to my side and stared up at my victim. With his auburn hair, dark blue eyes, and muscular body, he was probably used to women gawking at him on a regular basis. Although the hot coffee bath was likely a new experience for him.
“I am so sorry.” My gaze dropped back down to his chest, and I grimaced as I cleared my throat. “At least mine was a cold brew. Please tell me that yours had the chance to cool off before I crashed into you. I’d hate to think that you’re hiding burns beneath that shirt.”