Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 80930 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 405(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80930 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 405(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
"It’s not my fault your food looks good all the time," I reply, grabbing the piece and biting it. The garlic sauce hits my tongue, and the sausage just explodes. "Next time," I say, chewing. "I want that one." He shakes his head at me. "You can have some of mine," I tease, knowing he hates pineapple on his pizza.
"I’ll pass," he says. "Spoke to my father." I look over at him, stopping mid-chew. I know how close he is with his family, and being away from them is hard on him.
"He’s on his way to LA," he shares, and I groan. "My mother and sisters are going for some retail therapy."
"Don’t remind me," I say, and he looks at me weirdly. "I’m so bummed I had to cancel."
He puts down his piece of pizza and looks over at me. "You were going to LA?" he asks me, shocked.
"Yeah, they invited me last month," I confirm, grabbing the pizza and taking a bite. "Why didn’t you order fries?"
"Hold on a second." He puts his hands up. "You were going to LA to shop with my family?"
"Again, yes," I say. "But then I canceled."
"Why?" he asks, and I shrug. I'm not sure I should tell him the truth, even though I know he will see right through me. When I lie, I never look at him in the eye, and he knows it.
I pick off a piece of pineapple, avoiding his eyes. "Who wants to sit around in a plush robe in the morning and order room service and then buy clothes that I’m never going to wear?”
"You canceled because of me?" he asks, his voice going low, and I look up at him. Seeing the softness in his eyes.
"Well, yeah, I wasn’t going to leave you alone to eat good pizza and watch a crappy movie." I lean my shoulder into him and blink away the tears. "I just don’t want you to feel like you let anyone down." I look over at him.
"How did you know?" he says, looking at me and then away. "I just told my father this.”
"Because family is your biggest thing. Anyone who knows you should know this."
"Yeah, my father said the same thing. I’m just worried about the girls …" His voice trails off.
I turn and face him, trying to spin his stool so he looks at me, but he’s heavy. He laughs when I grunt and then turns to face me. "You are the best dad I’ve ever met," I say. "And the girls are going to flourish when both parents are happy."
"I know," he admits. "I can’t believe you canceled your trip."
"Me either," I say. "Did I mention plush robes?"
He laughs, and I know he feels better. He turns to look back at his pizza. "Remember when you took a week off one year and didn’t change out of your robe?" he asks, laughing.
"I like robes," I defend, turning back to my own pizza. "Remember when you went on vacation in Florida and decided it wasn’t a good idea to wear sunscreen and came back looking like Sebastian the crab."
He throws his head back and laughs. "I’ll never do that again." He looks over at me. "Thanks, kid."
I don’t say anything. All I do is smile and eat my pizza. We spend the day watching the stupid movies I know he loves. He walks me to my car, and I take my time driving home.
I pull into the five-car garage and smile at my two-story house. It’s big enough for a family of five, but it has the big backyard I craved, and for that, I was willing to pay the extra money. I walk up the stone pathway that leads to my big brown door and see a huge cardboard box addressed to me.
"What the hell?" I say, opening the front door and turning off the alarm. I dump my purse and take off my shoes before turning back to get the box.
It’s so big I can only bring it in the front hallway. I close the door and walk into my home office to grab a letter opener.
I slice the box down the front, and when I open it, a white envelope with my name on it sits on top. White tissue paper conceals it. I turn it over and take out the card.
Hope this makes up for it.
Kid
I slide the sticker off the tissue paper and find a plush white robe. "Oh my god," I say, grabbing it and then finding another one under it. There are five robes all together with a note at the bottom. I take it out, and I can’t help the laughter that escapes me.
Couldn’t pick just one.
C
Chapter 5
Cooper
I dial her number as I get into the SUV. "Cooper Grant." She singsongs my name, making me laugh. "It’s four o’clock on a Friday."