Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 64366 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64366 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
Layla laughed and sat down at the table, pulling her legs up and hugging her knees to her chest. “Jamie actually did sell his soul to the devil.”
I leaned around Braden to glare at her, bristling at her self-satisfied smile. Braden ignored us and kept right on with his inquiry.
“Why was he here in the first place? Last I heard, he was going out with your model. Now all of a sudden you guys are best friends?”
“Guess so. You want some eggs and bacon?” I indicated the food on the counter behind me. “Oh, dammit, I forgot the biscuits.” I pushed past him and rummaged through the refrigerator until I found a can. Then I shoved past him again to preheat the oven and drag a cookie sheet out of the cabinet. “Could you put the biscuits on this pan for me, Braden? I need to get the eggs and bacon started.”
Braden took the pan and the biscuits reluctantly over to the table, and Layla screamed when he slammed the can to pop it open. I turned my attention to the stove, melting butter in one pan before breaking eggs into it, then laying out bacon strips in the other. As I washed my hands in the sink, realizing too late that I was probably burning Kage again, I tried to figure out how I was going to explain the situation to my friends. Nothing I came up with seemed quite plausible.
“Hey, Jamie, I have a question.” Layla sounded innocent, but I knew better. “Your fighter friend didn’t seem too thrilled with Cameron. Why is that?”
My shoulders sagged as I turned to face her. “That’s enough, Layla. This is not a fucking joke. This is people’s lives.”
I didn’t mind her fucking with me. In fact, it seemed she and I had settled into a new groove of giving each other verbal hell, and I kind of enjoyed it. Sort of like a sibling rivalry. But, like my actual sister, Layla needed to realize that her teasing words had the potential to hurt.
“Whatever.” She grabbed a raw biscuit, picking tiny pieces of dough off with her fingertips and popping them into her mouth. She took the hint, though, and was appropriately chastened if the subtle flush of her cheeks and the way she failed to make eye contact with anyone was any indication.
“Give me those biscuits before you eat them all.” I snatched the pan from her and slid it into the hot oven. Then I flipped the scrambled eggs and turned the bacon, jumping when a bit of grease popped out onto my forearm.
Braden picked up where Layla left off. “Why can’t we ask questions about what goes on in our own house? It’s not like we’re gonna go around telling Michael Kage’s business. We can be discreet.”
Great. He’s not going to give up.
I turned and faced them all, letting out a big sigh, hoping they’d get the idea that I was at the end of my patience with them. “Look, guys, I realize you’re all starving for drama, and my new friends and I are the closest thing you’ve got to that right now. But trust me when I say there is really no excitement here. Kage and Cameron are just new friends of mine. Hell, I don’t even know them all that well yet. As for the almost-fight last night, whatever bad blood there is between them is their business. I just didn’t want them fighting here and messing up our condo, that’s all. Now stop with all of the questions.”
God, what a web of lies I was weaving. If the truth ever did come out, I was going to look like an ass. Why had I ever told them I was dating Vanessa? That one detail was really screwing everything up. Otherwise, I could have just admitted that I’d interned for Kage over the summer. No big deal.
“Okay,” Braden said. “I’ll quit giving you the third degree if you’ll get Kage to sign something for me next time you see him.”
Yes! Now there was something I could work with.
“You can ask him yourself when he gets out of the shower. There can’t be much hot water left, so it shouldn’t be long.”
Braden blinked. “He’s here? In your shower? Are you telling me the Machine actually spent the night in our house?”
“Yes, the Machine actually spent the night in our house.” I caught myself sporting a goofy grin and realized I was letting pride get in the way of logic. If I wasn’t careful, Braden and the others would eventually figure out what was going on, and that was the last thing Kage needed. I had to give the impression that our relationship was casual. And new. “I told him he could crash here. No sense paying for a hotel room for just a few hours, right?” I avoided looking at Layla, who knew I was lying through my teeth.