Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 62811 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 314(@200wpm)___ 251(@250wpm)___ 209(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62811 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 314(@200wpm)___ 251(@250wpm)___ 209(@300wpm)
Except for today, when he’d rather be alone with Sasha. Once filming started, they’d be busy, their hours would be crazy, and the eye-fucking she’d been treating him to all day would give way to concentration on work.
After seeing how Dash had treated Sasha the first time he’d laid eyes on her, Xander had made it a point to talk to the rest of his siblings, and thank God everyone had been cordial so far. Even Chloe, his protective sister.
He and Dash grilled the food while they looked out over the pool area where everyone spread out, talking, eating snacks, and sipping their drinks.
“Linc’s pretty mellow these days,” Dash said.
Xander glanced over to where Jordan was resting, her feet up on a recliner, her belly huge, Linc by her side. “He’s got everything he didn’t know he wanted.”
Hooking up and falling in love with his best friend had been a shock to Linc, as had finding out they were having a baby. But Xander had never seen his oldest brother more relaxed or happy.
Dash studied Linc, too. “I never thought he’d settle down. Not with Dad being such a dick. I thought we all figured we were better off on our own. Except Chloe.” She’d chosen a supposedly safe asshole who’d cheated and left her at the altar, leading Beck to rescue her drunk self on her almost wedding day. Beck, who just happened to be Linc’s nemesis, but they’d made peace and were working their way toward friendship again.
But Dash wasn’t wrong. Thanks to dear old Dad, they were all screwed up when it came to relationships. Their father had been a cheating son of a bitch, hence they’d ended up with a half sister they hadn’t known about until after Kenneth Kingston had died. But despite Dash’s view of relationships, Xander had always wanted to settle down with the woman he loved.
His gaze drifted to Sasha, who was laughing at something Aurora said while holding Leah up on her shoulder. At the sight of her with the baby in her arms, Xander swallowed hard. Fuck. He couldn’t look at her and think about things he wouldn’t have. Not with her.
“How do you pick just one woman?” Dash asked, his stare now on Beck and Chloe.
Xander blinked at Dash’s stupid statement. “You’re a dick,” he muttered. “And if you aren’t careful, you’re going to get yourself in trouble. Aren’t you tired of the groupies? Waking up hungover with a strange woman in your bed?”
“No.” Dash shrugged, then his shoulders fell. “Maybe. It’s complicated and hard to think about when everything else is falling apart.”
“Where are the guys?” Xander asked. Dash had gone home after they’d set up the backyard to see what was going on with his band.
“Went home. Dominic is done.” He cringed at the statement. “We all need to figure out what the fuck to do now that our drummer is out.” Dash ran a hand through his long hair and groaned.
“Cassidy’s brother’s a drummer,” Sasha said, sidling up alongside him. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to intrude.”
Dash was manning the grill now, so Xander stepped back and slipped an arm around her waist. She looked up at him with wide eyes and a shocked expression. He’d never said they had to hide things, only that whatever they were this time, it had an expiration date.
“Who’s Cassidy?” Dash asked, taking the last burger off the grill and shutting off the gas.
“My personal assistant and best friend. Her brother is Axel Forrester. He was with–”
“Caged Chaos. We met at Coachella a couple of years ago. I heard they broke up and he was going solo.” Dash cocked his head. “Can you get me his number? Maybe he wants to jam with us. See how we mesh?”
“Sure. I’ll talk to Cass later. No problem.”
Xander squeezed her side in thanks. She eased herself against him and his cock hardened even more in his shorts, which was saying something considering he’d been in a constant state of arousal since this morning. And again when he’d seen Sasha in that flirty outfit that rippled in the breeze and showed off all her tanned legs and gorgeous skin.
They ate dinner, everyone sitting at the long table he’d bought for just this reason. Chloe and Beck were by his brothers while Xander’s mom was near Beck’s parents. And Chloe, who, looked out for her brothers, had been friendly toward Sasha, but she was clearly wary, her gaze following Xander’s moves any time he touched or talked to her.
The saving grace of the day was Aurora. She’d been so excited to meet Sasha and kept her busy most of the day. Now, over dinner, the baby was sleeping in a Pack ’n Play inside, and Aurora had a monitor on the table. She sat across from Sasha, and Xander had finally settled into a chair beside her, coming in mid-conversation.