Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 97836 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 489(@200wpm)___ 391(@250wpm)___ 326(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97836 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 489(@200wpm)___ 391(@250wpm)___ 326(@300wpm)
My heart began to pound, and my head filled with helium. I reached out and clutched Foster’s arm to keep from toppling over in shock.
“Oh god,” I murmured under my breath.
“He sure is,” Foster muttered back. “My straight bestie goes to Vegas and pulls a hotter man than I ever could. Doesn’t seem fair, if you wanna know the truth.”
“Shut up,” I hissed. “Help me. I don’t know what to say.”
Foster looked Silas up and down with his assessing gaze at the same moment Silas’s eyes fell to where I was gripping Foster’s sleeve. If it was possible, Silas’s gaze got even more intense.
Foster chuckled. “Not so sure talking’s what he’s got on his mind, Waylon. I’m outta here. Ping me later and let me know how it goes.” He clapped me on the shoulder before pausing. Then, he leaned in to press a long kiss to my cheek.
My face flooded with heat. What the hell was he doing? We might’ve been cousins and best friends, but Foster Blake had never once kissed my cheek. As he pulled back, he shot me a knowing grin. “Don’t look at me, look at him,” he said softly before tipping the brim of his hat at Silas and leaving the building.
My eyes flashed to Silas in time to see his nostrils flare and his jaw clench. I didn’t appreciate feeling like the rawhide chew tossed between two feral dogs, but there was something about that possessive look in Silas’s eyes that shot a hook deep down inside me… and settled in for the long haul.
FOUR
SILAS
Just get the man to sign the papers. Just get the man to sign the goddamned papers.
It should have been an easy job. I had the papers in hand, and I had to assume, as mayor of this place, Way would have access to a notary public to witness the signatures. Quick and easy, and then we’d be on our way toward freedom.
But when I saw that big-ass law enforcement officer put his hands and mouth on my… on Waylon, I couldn’t help but see red.
“You told me you were straight,” I snapped.
His eyes widened. The man was even more beautiful than I remembered. “I am straight.”
I waved his hat in the direction of the tall fucker in the uniform shirt and duty belt, trying hard not to remember whiskey-flavored kisses on the dance floor. “All your local cops kiss their mayor like that?”
I bit my tongue against my pique. I hadn’t come here to lecture this man about anything. And at this rate, I was going to anger him right into refusing to sign the papers. I needed him docile, not annoyed. “Sorry,” I clipped. “None of my business.”
“Well…” His lips curved up a little. “You are my husband.”
Surprisingly, the word husband didn’t bother me coming from Way like it had when Kenji said it. In fact, hearing it now, I felt an odd sense of weight lifting. His tease reminded me of how easy I’d been in his company that night, how comfortable I’d felt around him.
“True,” I said, stepping closer and studying him. He looked tired and a little worn down. His eyes were wary, as if he was bracing for the difficult conversation ahead of us. “Uh… hi.”
This was incredibly awkward. I wanted to touch him in some way, reach for his hand, give him a hug, or… hell… press a kiss over the same spot on his cheek if only to wipe all trace of that other man’s kiss off him.
“Hey,” he said, face softening to a grin that made my stomach clench. “You sure showed up fast.”
I lifted one eyebrow. “Would’ve been even faster if you hadn’t run out yesterday morning and made me track you down.”
“I… I had to get back. Mayor stuff.” Way winced. “And… yeah, I guess I might’ve been a little freaked-out. What do you say to the man you accidentally married?”
His honesty made my annoyance soften further. “Ended up being a little more than a casual encounter, hmm?”
Way laughed and rubbed at the back of his neck. “You could say that.”
“Yeah,” I said stupidly. I glanced down at the papers in my hand and cleared my throat. “I, ah… I figured we could knock this out before I fly back east.”
Way glanced down, too, and quickly lost his smile. “Oh. Is that…? Yeah. Well, uh…” He seemed hesitant, which immediately set alarm bells ringing.
“You do want to dissolve this marriage,” I pushed. “Correct?”
“Yeah, yes! Of course I do. It’s just…” He looked around as if remembering we were still standing where others might be able to hear us. “Come in my office.”
I followed him past an empty desk and into a private office. The sign on the door read Mayor Waylon H. Fletcher, and I had to bite back a snicker that someone this young and somewhat naive was the mayor of anything. It was a testament to how tiny this town was. It had a sum total of six stoplights as far as I could see, and several heads had turned to stare at me outside as if it was obvious I was new in town.