Total pages in book: 39
Estimated words: 36671 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 183(@200wpm)___ 147(@250wpm)___ 122(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 36671 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 183(@200wpm)___ 147(@250wpm)___ 122(@300wpm)
He wants me, for reasons unknown, and I can’t complain about that.
“How old are you, Olivia?” he asks, and I sense the hunger in his tone as well. I worry that admitting that I’m twenty-one might put him off. Maybe he’ll think that I’m too young for him. But I want to be honest with him after everything he’s done for me. I clear my throat.
“I’m twenty-one.”
“Twenty-one,” he repeats in a sultry growl.
I blush. Maybe that actually turns him on? Maybe he likes a younger woman like me, who will cling to his every word and idolize him. I wonder how many other women have come before me. A man as handsome as he is must have women constantly falling at his feet, which means that there’s plenty of competition. But I think I’d be willing to fight for a man like Elijah. I’m not usually that way, but something about him makes me think I’m capable of doing anything to keep his focus on me. I never want him to stop looking at me this way. His eyes seem to be memorizing every inch of my body, sending heat to my cheeks.
“You’re so young,” he says. “You’ve got your whole life ahead of you. What is it that you want to do?”
I blush. No one has ever taken an interest in my life before, and it seems so strange that a man like Elijah would care enough to ask.
I take a deep breath. “Well…I’ve always wanted to be a chef. I just love to cook. I think making good food for friends and family is like a gift to them. But to be honest…my main goal in life is to fall in love and have a family.
I’ve never really had a family of my own…I’ve sort of had to look out for myself. It’s been lonely. And now, more than anything, I’m ready to settle down, get married, have children…those are the most important things in life, in my opinion.”
There’s a pause, and I think Elijah has lost interest for a moment. But then I hear a low growl in his throat.
“I couldn’t agree more,” he says. “It seems like we have the same goals in mind.”
Before today, I’d always dreamed of a husband and children, but I’ve never found anyone that I’d be remotely interested in having those things with.
Now, the man of my dreams is standing in the same room. He has put a face to the man I want to spend my life with. I can’t believe I’m falling so hard and fast. I barely know a thing about this man, yet I’m envisioning the happiness we can have together if only we take the leap. It’s madness, but still, I want it.
“You’ve never married?” I ask carefully. I don’t want to seem like I’m prying into his life, but so far, Elijah has been far from an open book. It’s like he’s got his guard up, but he wants to let me in, little by little.
“No,” he says gruffly. “I’ve never found someone that I want to settle down with. I don’t believe in casual love. I think only someone truly special will ever be able to capture my eye.”
Again, he makes me blush. Is he talking about me? From the way he looks at me, I could make that assumption, definitely. It’s like we’re skirting around what we really want to say, being subtle in our approach to one another.
I might think he has his guard up, but I do, too, a little. I’ve been beaten and broken by this world. I have to be sure I can trust him before I let him in.
But he’s quickly making me feel comfortable. I feel like I’m safe here, something I haven’t felt in a long time. My fear is starting to feel like background noise. When I’m here with Elijah, it feels like the rest of the world doesn’t really exist. It’s just him and me.
“But I think I’m getting closer to what I want,” Elijah growls, his subtlety leaving the room.
I can feel my face now turning bright red. Now I know that he truly has his eye on me, and I feel so special. I’ve never been made to feel this way by any man before. He moves closer to me, so close that I can feel the heat of his body close to mine. I swallow, continuing my work on the pasta dish, but having him so close is distracting, to say the least. I want him to put his arms around me, press his body up against mine, and show me exactly what I’ve been missing all this time. I can barely breathe, anticipating his next move.
But he doesn’t touch me. Not yet. I clear my throat and continue with my work.