Total pages in book: 178
Estimated words: 170884 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 854(@200wpm)___ 684(@250wpm)___ 570(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 170884 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 854(@200wpm)___ 684(@250wpm)___ 570(@300wpm)
Dave thought about my words. His expression went from mildly dumbfounded to spooked then finally settled on annoyed. “Because that’s not scary at all.” He picked up his beer and took a pull from it before signaling for another. “Thank you, Lexi.” He shook his head, his lips thin. “Thanks a lot.”
The glass of wine I ordered came, as Nikki asked an incredulous, “And you’re okay with being lied to?”
I held up my wine glass in salute. “Don’t ask, don’t tell.” I chugged that mothertrucker down, showing just how not okay I was with that.
Dave chuckled as I delicately wiped away a runaway drop of wine that was now trailing my chin. “Okay, enough about us.” He searched my face. “How are you?”
My brows furrowed and I spoke slowly. “My deceased ex-mafia boyfriend came back from the dead, lives across the street, and is now inside my house, in my space for at least eight hours of every day.” My brows dipped farther. “He makes sexual innuendos constantly and tells me he loves me a lot. He...” I took in a shuddering breath. “He’s being sweet, and funny, and he looks so goddamn good that half the time I’m imagining myself in bed with him.” My voice turned quiet as a small smile pulled at my lips. “And at this very moment, he’s camping out in my family room inside a blanket fort he made with his son, a son who loves him more than anything in the world.” I forced a smile, but my voice quaked. “So, you know, okay, I guess.”
Nikki’s eyes narrowed on me. “Oh my God,” she whispered.
My brows arched at her disbelieving tone. “What?”
Her eyes remained wide as she leaned in, her mouth gaping. “You fucked him.”
Dave gasped, putting a hand to his chest, his expression one of pure shock and, like the incredibly smart person I was, I just sputtered in astonishment. “How do you always know?”
Nikki leaned back, grinning, putting her arm to the back of Dave’s chair. Her shoulder jerked in a light shrug. “It’s a gift.” She grinned wider, looking extremely happy with herself.
Why were my friends assholes?
Dave blinked at me, his hand firmly planted to his chest. “I am shocked. Positively shocked.”
“I didn’t mean for it to happen,” I lied then sighed, setting the record straight. “Actually,” I started, my face falling, “it was kind of my choice.”
Another gasp escaped Dave, and I mock-cried, “You don’t know how hard it’s been to avoid him, to avoid how I feel about him, and I’m trying, but damn.” I sighed dreamily. “He hasn’t changed, not where it matters. Not in the bedroom.” Dave choked out a laugh, and my expression turned despondent. “I know. I’m an idiot.” I held my hands out to them. “I’m ready. Let me have it.”
Nikki shook her head. “I’m not going to yell at you.”
“I am,” Dave chimed in.
Nikki reasoned, “You have a huge emotional connection with this man, and, yeah, what he did was unforgiveable, but I know you, Lex. I know how much you loved him.”
“Well, I don’t know what you want me to say,” Dave uttered, exasperated. “It’s like youre inviting him to hurt you again. It’s fine that he’s being a good dad. That’s actually really great to hear. But he was not a good boyfriend.” He scoffed. “He wasn’t even a good human being.”
I knew this.
I knew all of this. But it was good to hear.
Nikki, ever the romantic, smiled. “He says he loves you, Lex. That’s huge coming from him.” Then she asked, “Are you going to give it another shot?”
Dave looked as if he was going to lose his mind. “No, she is not!” But when he looked at my hesitant face, his shoulders drooped. “Oh, God. You want that, don’t you?”
Ugh. All these questions and obvious observations had me anxious. “I don’t know what I want, okay?” I huffed out a long breath, running a hand through my hair. “I’m confused.” I was definitely that. “You guys haven’t seen him with A.J.” I smiled softly. “It’s the most adorable thing. He’s so good with him, in a way I never thought he could be, but he is.” Please understand. “He knows he made mistakes with me. He freely admits it. It’s like,” I tried to explain it in the best way I could, “he’s an advanced version of himself. He’s not Twitch anymore. He’s Twitch two-point-oh. It’s like his emotion chip has been upgraded or something.” I shook my head, feeling stupid. “I don’t know.”
The silence at the table lasted a while before Dave spoke, and he did it reluctantly. “Well, maybe if we did see,” he started. “Maybe if we could see this new and improved Twitch you speak of, maybe then all this wouldn’t seem so scary and we’d feel less anxious about the whole thing.”