Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 121460 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 486(@250wpm)___ 405(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121460 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 486(@250wpm)___ 405(@300wpm)
Monroe shoved me playfully. “You better not have told her that, Brodan Adair.”
“What? That I’m proud my niece stood up for her friend?”
“It’s not that simple, and you know it. She can’t go around smacking people in the face, no matter how much they deserve it.”
I grinned. “That’s a terrible rule.”
She rolled her eyes, shaking her head. “Anyway, I heard about it from Eilidh’s teacher. It was quite a moment. Apparently, the girl was stunned. And while we can’t condone physical violence, perhaps she’ll think twice about tormenting people who have less than she does.”
“Aye. According to Thane, Eilidh was just as surprised by the moment as anyone. She cried, the wee darling. She knows she did wrong.”
Monroe moved closer to me. “I love how you love her.”
The words Do you love how I love you? hung on the tip of my tongue, but I forced them back. It had been two weeks since I told Monroe I loved her. I’d said it once more, and she hadn’t said it back. While it stung, I understood. And I could wait.
“Dinner is ready.” I took the pan off the heat and spooned the chicken into the tortillas I’d laid out.
“Do you know how amazing it is to come home after a hard week at work to a sexy man cooking dinner?” Monroe teased gleefully as she threw toppings onto her fajitas. “Where did you learn to cook?”
“I played a chef in a movie once.”
“Oh, aye, I remember that one. It was a horror film, right? Kind of gross, if I remember correctly.” She wrinkled her nose.
An ache panged in my chest. Over the last few months, I’d realized from the bits and pieces Roe told me that she’d probably watched every single one of my films. I never teased her about it because if things were the other way around, I would have watched every one of her films too. And it would have killed me to see her but feel so disconnected.
I cleared my throat. “Aye, it was a horror about a sous chef my character hires who starts putting human—”
“Ick, don’t. Eating.” She took a massive bite of fajita to make her point, and I snorted.
“Anyway,” I said, following her into the living room with my dinner, “the director wanted me to take some culinary lessons, so I looked like I knew what I was doing. A top British chef trained me on how to slice and dice like a real chef, and I got him to give me some cooking tips and recipes. He said I was a natural.”
“Of course you are.” She sat down, her feet curled under her. “You’re good at anything you put your mind to.”
“Do you think so?” I asked in all seriousness.
Catching my tone, Roe swallowed her bite and asked, “What’s going on?”
What was going on was that I was ready to fully commit to Ardnoch, and sitting around waiting for someone to like the screenplay I’d written would not cut it as a job. I’d been busy this week and had made two very big decisions that I knew I had to run by Monroe. I hoped that she’d be sharing in them in some capacity or another. Then there was a third issue concerning her entirely that I needed to raise. “Three things. One is that I’ve been working with Thane for the past few weeks on drawings for a house.”
She stopped eating; her eyes widened a little.
I forged ahead, feeling more nervous than I thought I would be at this moment. “As part of our inheritance, Lachlan divided up some land in Caelmore so we’d all have a plot to build a house. My plot is close to Arran’s and Arro’s plots. View right over the water. The build will be in keeping with my brothers’ and sister’s homes. A large family home, modern design, lots of glass overlooking the water.”
Roe swallowed. “That’s … that’s … amazing.”
“You think?”
“Of course.”
“I’d … I’d like you to look at the drawings. I’d like your opinion.” Because I hope like hell this will be your home as much as it is mine.
She nodded slowly. “I’d be happy to look at them.”
“I really want your opinion, Sunset.”
Whatever she saw in my expression made realization dawn in hers. Her lips formed an O. Then the breath whooshed out of her. “Brodan … I … you know I haven’t decided to stay …”
Hurt flared, but I tried not to show it. “Aye, I know. But just in case you do.”
At the sudden, sad uncertainty on her face, I changed the subject. “Two, Lachlan and I looked at our holdings, and we think we’ve found some land that would work well for a distillery. Lachlan wants to go into business with me, and so I’m gearing up to do all the research.”