Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 55153 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 276(@200wpm)___ 221(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 55153 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 276(@200wpm)___ 221(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
“That’s where we’re going,” I say. “Some of the most expensive homes in the area are back there.”
“Does someone on the team know this movie producer?” Kylie asks.
“Our head coach is friends with him, and he’s a big fan. He’s actually not even in town right now, but he told our coach we can use his house here anytime, and he has staff who make all the food for us.”
“Staff?” Kylie arches her brows. “Wow.”
I stop to give my name to the attendant at the gate and we pull into the neighborhood. Within a couple of minutes, the first lavish homes come into view, and Kylie and Jasmine admire them as I drive.
“That one’s my favorite,” Jasmine says. “It looks like a castle.”
“I can’t imagine living in a house that big,” Kylie says. “Can you?”
I glance over and realize she’s talking to me. What she doesn’t know is that my parents own multiple homes and a couple of them are the same size as these. Or maybe she does know. We’ve never talked about my father being Nathan Bishop, and now I’m wondering what she thinks about that.
“They feel impersonal,” I say, thinking of the home I grew up in. “That’s not for me.”
“When I was growing up, Pike and I thought houses with basements were for rich people,” she says. “We just had a simple ranch. Everyone could hear everything in that house.”
I turn into the driveway of Dave Wellington’s house, and Jasmine gasps.
“We’re going in there?”
“Yep. We’ll mostly be out back, but you can wander around the inside if you want. They keep the private rooms locked.”
“Wow,” Kylie says softly.
The house is incredible. It has a modern design, thick brick columns supporting multiple sections of the roof with slightly curved shapes, the walls made of glass to maximize the views.
A valet takes the car, and a uniformed staffer opens one of the massive, carved wooden front doors for us, smiling in welcome. When we step inside, Kylie’s lips part as she takes in the two-story entryway, done all in white marble.
Jasmine lets out a little squeal from next to me and she takes off running. A large brown dog that looks more like a small horse is racing toward her, and instinct makes me race over and greet the dog before she can, to make sure it’s safe.
“That’s Grover,” a man in the same gray uniform as the one who opened the door says. “He’s our chef’s dog, and he’s very friendly.”
“Hi, Grover,” Jasmine says, her eyes bright with delight.
She pets him and hugs him, and he can’t get enough. When I feel Kylie walking up beside me, I turn to her and smile.
“Jasmine has a new best friend.”
Kylie shakes her head, her lips quirking up with amusement. “Now she’s going to want a Great Dane.”
“Mom, he likes me!” Jasmine cries, kissing the top of the dog’s head. “Can I take him outside?”
The man who greeted us steps in, saying, “Grover loves to play outside, and he loves to swim in the pool, too.”
Jasmine’s eyes get round with excitement and she turns to Kylie. “Can I take him to the pool, Mom?”
“Yes, but I’m coming out with you. And no running.”
Jasmine slips out of her shoes and leaves them on the floor, and Kylie scoops them up and drops them in her big tote bag like she’s done it a thousand times. There’s a tug in my chest as the two of us follow Jasmine outside, because there was a time when I thought I’d have this kind of life. A family life. Things took a turn, though, and now I’m a bachelor.
Seeing Kylie with Jasmine is a reminder that Kylie can never be with any man all the time; she’s first and foremost a single mom, doing her best to raise a good kid. I admire her even more for that, but it’s also the biggest reason I need to be careful.
My conversation with Hector is still swirling through my mind as I watch Kylie hug Indie and Pike once we’re outside. Protecting her and Jasmine from being hurt is more important than how deeply I want her. I thought she was off-limits because she needed more time to recover from her loss, but even if it had been longer and she was ready, I don’t think I’m able to be everything she needs and deserves in a man.
“There’s the peacemaker,” Eli says, coming up and shaking my hand, a cigar in hand. “How’s it going?”
I shrug, suddenly not in the mood to be around anyone. “Not much different than when you saw me this morning.”
“You’re a real ray of sunshine, man. You want a drink?”
“Yeah, that would be great.”
I get a Heineken and sit down with some teammates, lost in my own thoughts as they shoot the shit about our road trip. I’m on my third beer, watching Jasmine swim with the other kids and Grover while Kylie chats with the other women, before anyone says a word to me.