Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 146417 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 146417 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
His home had been fairly utilitarian. Not that it wasn’t nice, but it lacked the comfort of décor and plants and pictures. Not so with his office. His office was beautifully masculine, with a big dark wood desk and elegant bookshelves that contained a combination of fiction and reference books.
“When he takes a break, he tends to read,” Charlotte said. “He always volunteers to work late if we need someone here at the office. I think he spends way more time here than he should, but then he’s been lonely.”
Charlotte could clear up something she’d been thinking about for days. “He really hasn’t dated? He told me he hasn’t…been in a relationship since we were last together.”
Charlotte’s eyes lit up like she loved to gossip, though Kim rather thought she would only do it in the kindest ways. “Beck goes to the club and he’ll scene, but that scene never involves sex. I’ve known some Doms who won’t have sex with subs, but Beck won’t even get one off, if you know what I mean. Sorry. I’m not sure how into the lifestyle you are.”
“I’m not completely ignorant,” she admitted as she strolled around his office. There was a warmth to it she hadn’t expected. As though Beck was at home here and his actual home was merely a place to sleep and eat. “And I’m sure you’ll find out that he’s bringing me on Friday. We have a bargain, he and I.”
Those eyes lit up even brighter. “You have a sex bargain? Because those are the best bargains. It’s harder when you have kids, but trust me, you can make it work.”
She let her eyes roam across the books on his shelves. He still liked reading historical books and thrillers, but it looked like he’d added in a bunch of self-help books, and that didn’t seem like the Beck she knew. A lot of them seemed to deal with anger. “He thinks I’ll forget all the years before if I spend three months with him. But I have to do it quietly because I don’t want to confuse Roman.”
“Like I said, kids are resilient when they’re loved,” Charlotte said.
“Mom?” A teenaged girl stood in the doorway, her hair up in a high ponytail. She held a bejeweled cell phone in one hand.
Charlotte smiled at her daughter. “Hey, sweetie. Come in. I want you to meet someone. This is Kim Solomon. Do you remember I told you how she helped find you when you were a kid?”
Tasha’s smile dimmed a bit, and it almost seemed like she forced herself to come into the room. She held a hand out, but it was a practiced thing, something she knew she had to do. “Hello, Ms. Solomon. It’s lovely to meet you.”
Any accent she’d had as a little girl was gone. There was something about the way Tasha was looking at her that made Kim’s instincts flare. This girl didn’t like her.
Still, she shook Tasha’s hand. “I was very happy to help find you.”
Tasha dropped her hand and turned back to Charlotte. “I wanted to let you know I called the bakery and they’ve set everything up for Dad’s cake. Also, I asked them not to deliver it. I said you would pick it up. You know if we have it in the house for too long we’ll find Travis’s fingerprints on it.”
“Smart girl,” Charlotte said, her arm going around Tasha’s shoulders. “My youngest has his dad’s sweet tooth but none of Ian’s self-control. You’ll have to come to the party, Solo. It’s Ian’s birthday, and we have a big house party planned at the lake house we share with Sean and Grace. Adam’s brother and sister-in-law run this amazing bakery in uptown and they’re making all the sweets. Sean’s catering the whole thing.”
“And we’ll get a bouncy house for the kids,” Tasha said, looking happy for the first time since she’d walked in. “And Dad will decide to jump in it and then he’ll complain bitterly about his back and how old he is and he’ll throw us all in the pool.”
“He probably will,” Charlotte agreed. “Are Kenz and Kala helping in the daycare?”
Tasha started telling her mom about how the morning had gone, but Kim didn’t really hear them anymore because her gaze had stopped on Beck’s desk. It was neat, with pens and pencils in a mug and his paperwork stacked up.
But it was the single framed picture that caught her eye. Their wedding picture. She hadn’t worn a big fluffy dress. She was in a simple emerald green sheath and a strand of Tiffany pearls, her hair around her shoulders because Beck had loved it that way. He was in a dark suit that set off his eyes. It had been taken by the Vegas chapel they’d gotten married in as part of the “package.”