Total pages in book: 50
Estimated words: 47521 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 238(@200wpm)___ 190(@250wpm)___ 158(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 47521 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 238(@200wpm)___ 190(@250wpm)___ 158(@300wpm)
“I’m sorry, Cass. He’s the one missing out.”
I nod. “Yeah, I know. It’s fine. Trust me, I’ve had a long time to get over it.”
There’s a brief silence, and I hate it. I’m feeling all the feels as I think about my dad and all that, so I plead with him, “Can we change the subject? Let’s talk about something else.”
He nods and doesn’t even have to think about it. “Let’s talk about Roger.”
I scrunch my nose up and shake my head. “Do we have to?”
His hand goes to my shoulder. I’ve never met a man like him before, but he’s definitely touchy-feely. It seems that he just wants to have his hands on me at all times. His fingers trail across my collarbone. “He’s seen you. I mean, seen you seen you.”
I roll my eyes. “He is my doctor.”
He nods. “Yeah, and he wants to date you.”
I laugh and snort at the same time. I cover my face up, embarrassed, as he laughs with me. “I love that… I love when you laugh and don’t hold anything back.”
I roll my eyes. “You mean snort.”
He pulls my hand from my face. “I love it. Don’t cover your face from me.”
I nod in agreement. “Yeah, he’s seen my hoo-haa, and he wants to date me. That’s weird, right?”
He shrugs. “I don’t like it.”
I open my mouth, but he interrupts me. “Hear me out. I don’t like the idea of any man seeing you.” He holds his hand up when I start to talk. “But I know… he’s your doctor. But it’s different knowing he’s attracted to you.”
I nod. “I agree.”
He searches my face. “So I think that if you want to keep the doctor, I’ll go with you to your next appointment.”
I bark out a laugh. “You want to go to my gynecologist appointment with me?”
“If you’re going to him, yes, I do.”
I can’t help but laugh, but he doesn’t join in. He’s serious. I should probably hate that he’s so protective of me, but it actually gives me a warm gooey feeling inside. “Well, we have almost a year before my next appointment, so we’ve got time to figure it out.”
He seems satisfied with that answer by the way he leans back against the couch. I scoot back and pull my hand from his. “We should probably talk, Baker.”
He tenses. He sits up straighter, pulls his shoulders back, and looks at me with curious eyes. “We can talk about anything.”
I nod and try to figure out what I need to say. “So… what are we doing here? What is this?”
He starts to reach for me and then stops himself. “I think you know what this is, Cass.”
When I get nervous, I ramble, and it seems today isn’t any different. “Honestly, I wish things were different. I wish we could get to know each other and not have to worry about my mom, your dad, my sister, our families. It’s just too much, and it adds too much pressure.” I jump up from my seat and move across the room to pace. “Maybe we should just talk about the carnival. That’s what we came here to do, right? Let’s just do that. I need to figure out what my class booth is going to be. I was thinking maybe a fishing booth or something. You know where they put a magnet on the end—”
“Cassie. Stop. Breathe.”
I stop pacing and take a deep breath.
He stands up and comes for me. He’s walking slowly and deliberately, and I tense up the closer he gets. I already know that I’m weak when it comes to Baker. We are not a good idea. I know we’re not, but I don’t know if I’m going to be able to resist him. Or if I really want to.
He stops in front of me, toe to toe. I lean my head back to look up at him, and he’s searching my face. I’m almost scared of what I see in his eyes. He’s bringing out all my emotions, and I’m not sure what to do with them.
CHAPTER 10
BAKER
I can’t stay away from her. I know she’s struggling with the fact that she’s my stepsister, but I just can’t walk away from her.
I want her, and I haven’t hidden that fact from her. Heck, my dad knew that first night. But it’s more than that. I want to protect her, to spend time with her and get to know her. I want to be able to hold her hand and kiss her anytime I want.
She’s peering up at me, and with her unguarded expression, I feel like I’m the king of the world. She doesn’t realize it, but her eyes reflect exactly how she’s affected by me. She wants me, but it’s more than that. She trusts me, and it makes me want to give her everything her heart desires.