Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 122578 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 613(@200wpm)___ 490(@250wpm)___ 409(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122578 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 613(@200wpm)___ 490(@250wpm)___ 409(@300wpm)
I sent her what had to look like a manic grin.
“Uh-oh, why do you look like someone pissed in your favorite pair of boots? Wait, no.” She held up a finger. “You stabbed someone and you’re here to take me up on the promise that I would always help you bury the bodies?”
“I just about had to take you up on it.”
A frown cut across her brow. “Did you not get the job? I thought it was basically a done deal?”
“Oh, no, I got it.” At least for the time being since it seemed I was on some sort of probationary period, which was ridiculous. I was a hired trainer, not an employee who was supposed to jump at his beck and call.
“Then why are you making that pouty face?” Dakota asked. She started rambling around behind the counter, taking out the ingredients for her famous strawberry iced tea.
She knew it was my favorite.
“Is it a win when you get a job to work for the world’s biggest asshole?” I was going to have to get him a customized mug. Was it too early to whip out my Christmas list?
She winced, a perfectly waxed brown brow arching as she poured the pitcher over muddled strawberries. “How bad was he?”
“Well, I’m still alive and not buried in a shallow grave somewhere, so we can at least be grateful for that.”
Which was kind of surprising because at one point, I was sure the guy wanted to murder me. Wrap his hands around my throat and choke me out. Or maybe just bend me over his knee.
Who knew.
“Well, that sucks,” she drawled as she set the glass in front of me. “I was only teasing this morning. I can’t believe Ryder’s cousin could be that bad.”
“Seriously,” I agreed, taking a sip of the strawberry deliciousness. “But the dude was literally the biggest jerk I’ve ever met. The only saving grace is the horse is gorgeous and the little girl is adorbs. As long as I only have to deal with the two of them, I’ll be just fine.”
My gut told me there weren’t enough stars in the heavens to wish on to make that dream come true. And the really sad part was I couldn’t shake this feeling down in my bones at the thought of seeing him again.
“I was wondering what he would be like. You have to be loaded to buy a place like Hutchins Ranch,” she mused as she leaned down into the display case to my left.
She plated a bunch of her yummy pastries, an apple croissant and a blueberry tart and something covered in powdered sugar.
I hummed with a nod. “Rich prick to a T. He pretty much fired me on the spot because I couldn’t possibly be good enough to be around his pompous ass, then when I went to take off, he told me to stay, and then he turned around and threatened me that I had one more chance.”
“What do you mean by one more chance?” Leave it to Dakota to catch it, her pouty, clear-glossed lips ticking up at the edge.
Clearly, she’d come to the quick sum that I’d gotten myself into a mess the way I liked to do.
I cringed, lifting a single shoulder to my ear. “Well, I might have accidentally backed into his Range Rover when I was coming out of the grocery store this morning.”
Somewhere along the way, I’d realized it was likely my fault, but it wasn’t as if I’d done it on purpose. I’d been blinded by the sun.
Amusement traipsed through her features. “Tell me you didn’t.”
“But of course, I did. It wasn’t a big deal. Just a little bump, but he definitely held it against me when I showed at his place and he realized it was me.”
Unease twisted through me at the memory of the way he’d kept accusing me of being reckless. It felt like he wanted to wrap that little girl in bubble wrap, and not in the normal concerned parental way. It was like he was truly terrified something bad was about to happen to her.
“Only you could make such a glowing first impression, Paisley Dae.” A tease wound its way through Dakota’s tone, the corners of her brown eyes crinkling with affection.
“Well, believe me, his was just as glowing. The second he got out of his car, he started firing off accusations.”
Well, after he asked if I was injured, but I’m pretty sure he was just covering his ass to make sure I wasn’t going to file a suit or something.
A giggle rolled up Dakota’s throat, and she shook her head. “I can only imagine your face when you realized it was the same guy.”
“I was shocked, that’s for sure. He didn’t come close to being what I expected. I figured he was Ryder’s quiet, older, reclusive cousin or something.”