Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 74577 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 373(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74577 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 373(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
“What’d you forget my cell number?” he answered after the secretary put me through.
“I’m calling in an official capacity, so I figured I should do shit the right way.”
“Official capacity?” he asked, and I could practically see him sitting up straighter in his chair. “You want a security system?”
“It’s something I should have done a long time ago,” I said.
Kingston waited a beat, choosing his words carefully. “I’m going to assume you have a reason for this that involves AJ. And that you’re not going to tell me for the same reason.”
“Something like that,” I agreed.
“Alright. I was heading over there after a few morning calls anyway,” he said. “I’ll bring my tablet, and we can go through the options. Does AJ know about this?”
“Yeah. I asked her first. It’s something I should have done when I bought the place. AJ said there’s been some break-ins in the area.”
“Yeah, there’s always something going on. Alright. I’ll see you in a few hours.”
Then, before I even finished looking up local CPR certification courses, he was at the door, taking me with him around the house, throwing out his ideas on top of the ones I already had.
Like a lock for the backyard gate. One with an alarm. Which, he felt, played double-duty. Preventing anyone from coming in uninvited without someone knowing, and also making sure no one accidentally left it open and allowed Samson to get loose.
And a steel reinforced door inside of the garage since, apparently, garage doors were one of the biggest entry points for intruders. Sure, sometimes it was as simple as people leaving their garage door remotes in their car, granting people access to their homes. But it was also that garage doors were easier than you could realize to open from the outside, even without the code.
The interior doors into the house from the garage were rarely deadlocked, let alone had sensors or reinforcement.
“So, what do you think?” I asked as he stood in the driveway, looking at the house.
“I think it should cover it. You know me, if this was my woman, I’d change all the exterior doors, and insist on the tracker. But I get that you don’t want to freak her out, or make her feel trapped.”
I didn’t correct him.
That AJ wasn’t my woman.
Because little by little, day by day, she was starting to feel like mine.
And I didn’t exactly think that was one-sided either.
So what was the point of insisting otherwise when, for all I knew, she could actually be mine in a few days or weeks?
“Yeah. I mean… I’m here now. So, this should be fine.”
“You’re here now, huh?” Kingston asked, and I could feel his gaze on my profile.
Some part of me wanted to brush it off. Say You know what I mean.
But the other part, increasingly the larger part, just had me nodding. “Yeah. For the most part. I mean, I’m not done traveling. But… it’s nice being here.”
“If I’d known having a woman in your house would get you to stay, I’d have rented out sooner,” he said, shooting me a smirk.
“You’d have had to push me down a mountain to slow me down too.”
“Not gonna lie, Atlas,” he said, eyes bright, smile teasing, “there have been several times I’d have been willing to push you down a mountain.”
“Knew that Nice Guy routine was an act,” I shot back.
“So, when do you want this done?”
“As soon as you can get someone out to do it,” I said.
“Someone?” he scoffed. “I’ll do it myself. How about the next time AJ has an overnight? This way, I won’t make her feel weird about being around.”
“That works,” I agreed.
“I’m calling in Nixon and Rush,” he said. “We can whip it out faster all together.”
“Can’t wait to be fucking out of this thing,” I grumbled, looking down at my leg.
“Not long now,” he said, giving my shoulder a squeeze. “That’s… Wednesday, right?” he asked, trying to remember.
“Yep. And I’m gonna need a ride to a car lot right after,” I said.
“You buying a car?” he asked.
In the past, I’d always just rented a car at the airport to get me by while I was around. It seemed stupid to make payments or have insurance for something that I wasn’t around to use. Not to mention have a car sitting and starting to fall apart from not being run.
“Yeah.”
“Wow,” he said, shaking his head. “Think I might be telling Helen to set a permanent extra seat—or two—at her table,” he said.
“Starting to seem like it,” I agreed.
And, for maybe the first time in my life, the idea of staying put didn’t fill me with panic.
In fact, some part of me was starting to look at it like an entirely new kind of adventure…
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
AJ
There was a definite shift since I finally told him my story. And, to a lesser extent, since he told me his.