Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 88456 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88456 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
My parents met when my mother found a picture of her boyfriend’s engagement photo online and then tweeted my father to crash the wedding with her. Well, that worked out so well they ended up not even going to the wedding but planning their own. “I want to know this relationship is going somewhere and I’m not wasting my time with him. Like, are we in this forever or is it just for the moment? Am I being selfish by giving him an ultimatum? I guess you can say that, but let’s not waste anyone’s time.” I’m trying to give myself a pep talk without giving myself a pep talk.
“You’re not being selfish.” Zara tries to make me feel better. Our mothers are twin sisters and we are both named after the other sister; it is what makes our bond so unique. I mean, all of my cousins and I grew up more like siblings than cousins, but Zara and I, we were always just the two of us. “And you're right. If you don’t know what you want after two years, then he’s the problem and not you,” she says softly, watching my face. “So how did you end it?”
“I ended it with, perhaps we need time and space away from each other. You do your thing, I do my thing, and we’ll see if we are really meant for each other.” I say the words as my stomach tightens.
“For how long?” She asks the loaded question I’ve been asking myself all night long.
“I never said.” I pick up my cup of coffee again, my mouth going dry. “I waited a whole five minutes for him to talk me out of what I was saying.” I swallow down the coffee that was hot but is now warm. “But he said nothing and just stared at me. It was more of a me saying this and more of him nodding and not saying anything. I mean, I gave him time, and when he didn’t say anything, I just got up and left.”
“You what?” she shrieks, and I have to admit that me leaving shocked even me. “Did he chase you?”
“He did not,” I admit sadly.
“Fuck him,” she snaps. “Fuck him and his bullshit horse he rode in on.”
I laugh because it doesn’t even make sense, but it makes enough sense to me that I get it. “Since he’s in finance, I think he rides the bull down on Wall Street.”
“Well, whatever he is riding, it’s not going to be you.”
I point at the screen. “He is definitely not riding me anymore.”
“Okay.” She takes a deep inhale. “How are you feeling, for real?”
“Sad,” I admit, blinking away the tears that threaten to come on full force. “I mean, I came home and took a bath with a bottle of wine.”
“Oh my God.” She puts her hand to her mouth.
“And then I cried for about two hours straight. I almost busted out Celine Dion’s ‘All by Myself,’ but I refrained,” I say proudly.
“You should have busted out Beyoncé and the ‘Hold Up’ song where she smashes everything with a bat.”
“I should have,” I agree, “but now it’s said and done.”
“I’m shocked he didn’t even come to your place after you left him in the restaurant. I mean, maybe he was in shock, but when the shock wore off, he should have chased you home,” she replies to me hopefully, and I just shake my head. “I mean, what a dick. Even if he did, you wouldn’t answer.”
“I would have.” I don’t bother lying to her. “I would have. I one hundred percent would have opened that door and taken it all back. If he gave me even one inch of indication he wanted me, I would have.”
“We should go away this weekend,” she says. “Go away to a spa.”
“We are already leaving in a couple of weeks for our annual family vacation,” I remind her, and she groans. “Exactly. We need to conserve all our energy for that one.”
I’m about to say something else when I see a text come through on my phone. It goes away after a second, but I think my eyes are deceiving me.
I click on my messages and see his name right away. Nash.
Nash: Hey, Zoey, I have a question for you. Call me when you get a chance.
My head literally spins at his message. Nash and I met a couple of years ago when he crashed one of our family vacations. He tagged along with his brother, Caine, who had just married into Matty’s, my cousin, in-laws’ family. To say I spotted him right away would be the understatement of the year. He had one of the best bodies I’ve ever seen, and most of the men in my family play professional hockey, so I’ve seen my share of good bodies. But it was his crystal-blue eyes that were mesmerizing. I could picture myself just being sucked into them. I won’t even tell you about the number of tats all over his arms. The minute he shook my hand, I got butterflies in my stomach, which I thought was the stupidest thing ever. Then I did what any normal woman would do when they meet the hottest man they’ve ever set eyes on—I avoided him the rest of the vacation. Over the years, we’ve passed each other once or twice, and each time, I’ve tried not to spend any time with him. But every time I’m around him, I’m drawn to him, which I try to one thousand percent ignore.