Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 95393 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 477(@200wpm)___ 382(@250wpm)___ 318(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95393 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 477(@200wpm)___ 382(@250wpm)___ 318(@300wpm)
“You’re at Koda’s?” He raises his eyebrows. “On a school night?”
“Cut the shit,” I tell him.
“I’m not the one who has to cut the shit.” I can see the humor in his eyes. “I got a very interesting phone call from my darling sister today.” I roll my eyes. “And she was just, you know, asking me how I was, and then imagine my surprise when I find out that you went away for your bye week?”
“I always go away for the bye week.”
“Oh, I know, but you always tell us where you’re going and then send us your stupid thirst trap photos of you running on the beach or in the water looking to the side.”
I throw my head back and howl with laughter. “So you went to Turks?”
“I did.”
“By yourself?”
“No, I went with Koda.”
“Interesting.” I shake my head.
“What do you want to know?”
“Everything.”
“You are such a Nosy Nancy,” I point out. “Koda and I are together.” I don’t know why I’m expecting to feel guilty about it, but for the first time, I don’t.
“Explain. How are you together?”
“I’m at her house on a school night,” I say. “My clothes are in her closet. My stuff is half here and half at my house.”
“Does she have stuff at your house?” I tilt my head to the side to think about it.
“No.” I look over my shoulder at the empty hallway. “She doesn’t.”
“You paying for her house?” he asks, and the pit of my stomach gets sour. “Oh my God, are you leeching off your girlfriend?”
“I am not leeching off anyone,” I refute quickly. “The girls are here, and it’s easier.”
“You know if you move them into your house, it’ll be easier.”
“I’ll think about it,” I say just to appease him, and truth be told, I really am going to think about it because there is no way my woman will pay for our house.
“But seriously, you and Koda?” His tone turns serious.
“Yeah, me and Koda,” I confirm, my chest getting full when I think of her, “and the girls.”
“Obviously.” He scoffs. “It’s a package deal, everyone knows that.”
I hear footsteps behind me and look over my shoulder, seeing the woman who has my whole fucking heart. I mean, not the whole time, the girls have it also, but she’s got it in her hand. “Hey, my brother is on the phone giving me a hard time,” I tell her, and her eyes go big in fear, and she stops. “He says I’m leeching off you.”
“You aren’t leeching off me.” She shakes her head, and I motion with my head for her to come to me. She walks over, wringing her hands in front of her, something she does when she’s nervous. “Why don’t we spend time at my house?”
“Um,” she says, “you’ve never really asked me over.”
“Oh. My. God,” Dylan chides. “What a dick.”
I glare at the phone but then turn back to see Koda smiling. “Baby, you want to go to my house, let’s go to my house.”
“I don’t want to go to your house, Christopher.” She ignores my brother’s snickering. “I want to be invited over to your house.”
I shake my head. “Why are you shaking your head?”
“Because I thought you didn’t want to come over to my house.”
She folds her arms over her chest. “How? Have you ever asked me to go to your house, and I said no?” I swallow down. “Even after all that ‘you won’t kiss me in his house,’ never once did you invite me over to your house to kiss me.”
“Alex,” my brother calls his wife, “get over here.”
“I’m letting you go.”
“No,” Dylan says, “I’m invested in this conversation.”
“No, you aren’t. You’re waiting to hear what she says so you can gossip with Michael.”
He doesn’t even try to deny it. “You should be focusing on Koda and not on me. Answer her question.”
“I didn’t really ask him a question,” Koda says softly from beside me. “It was more like a statement.”
“All I heard is you’re a dick and you never invited her over to your home,” Dylan goads, “and you are making her pay for you to live in her house.” He shakes his head. “Dude, I’m never, ever going to let you live that down.”
“Eventually, we’re moving to my house anyway,” I say to Dylan, and I think maybe I should have had this talk with Koda before my brother. “I mean, not now. The girls just moved from their house to this house,” I backpedal, “so I didn’t want to step on toes, but—”
“Move to your house?” she asks.
“Well, yeah,” I say, “this house has four bedrooms.”
“You sleep in my bed.”
“Oh my God, this guy didn’t even buy the bed,” Dylan groans. “Did we not teach you anything? Koda,” he calls her name and she comes over. “On behalf of the Stone family, I want to apologize for him being this way.” He shakes his head. “Dad is going to kill you.” He turns his eyes on me.