Total pages in book: 139
Estimated words: 132892 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 664(@200wpm)___ 532(@250wpm)___ 443(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132892 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 664(@200wpm)___ 532(@250wpm)___ 443(@300wpm)
Shit.
I tried to pull away, but he tightened his grip. He was strong. I’d forgotten just how strong he really was.
“Um, do you mind letting me go?” I asked.
“Are you gonna ram my crotch again?”
“No,” I managed to say, feeling my cheeks flush. “I mean, you deserved it, but I’m also sorry. It genuinely was an accident.”
“I’m sorry, too,” he replied, and this time his smile seemed less forced. “But I promise if you stop beating me, I’ll take care of Mrs. Webbly’s broken toilet.”
“She has a broken toilet?” I asked, confused.
“Apparently. She left me four messages about it. Said she talked to your dad but he forgot to mention it. Did you ever set up a doctor’s appointment for him?”
“I’m taking him to see the specialist this week.”
“Tinker?” a young man asked. A young man with a very familiar voice. Looking up, I saw Jamie Braeburn smiling at me.
That would be Jamie Braeburn, the kid I used to babysit.
My sex tape costar.
Just thinking about it made me feel like a pedophile.
“Jamie,” I managed to say, the words squeaking out. I glanced between him and Gage, flushing bright red. Gage’s face was carefully blank, and I couldn’t tell if that was because he knew who Jamie was or because he had no clue. To the best of my knowledge, the video had never spread beyond the locals, but once something like that exists you never know who might’ve seen it.
“How are you doing?” Jamie asked, still smiling broadly. I hadn’t seen him since our . . . adventure. He looked good. Tall and buff, his skin carefully tanned and his hair perfectly styled just like someone in a motherfucking boy band.
I’m going to burn in hell for what I did.
“Hey, Jamie, I’m Gage,” my handyman said, offering his hand for a shake. Jamie took it, glancing between us. His eyes widened, and I realized he’d gotten the wrong idea.
“Gage is my—” I started to clarify, but then a loud voice cut me off. A familiar, hateful voice.
“Get the hell away from my boy,” snarled Flora Braeburn. “Haven’t you done enough damage already? Slut!”
Jamie and Gage stiffened as I slowly swiveled to find Jamie’s mother bearing down on us in all of her angry, beehived fury. She was still wearing her pink waitress uniform, face pale beneath her bright red lipstick and the blue eye shadow she put on with a trowel every morning.
“Mom, back off,” Jamie said, startling me with how firm his voice was. That was a man’s voice, and not a happy one.
“Shut up,” she snapped. “Go out to the car and wait for me while I set this hussy straight.”
“Sounds like you don’t have anything to say that Tinker needs to hear,” Gage said firmly. He stepped up behind me, which I have to admit gave me a little thrill. Or it would’ve if I weren’t in the middle of being called a slut by a clown woman in the middle of a grocery store.
“You’re just another of her gigolos, aren’t you?” Flora hissed. “She uses men and throws them away like tissues. Did you hear what she did to my little boy? Because—”
Jamie stepped between us protectively, facing her down.
Damn.
“I’ll leave town this afternoon if you don’t shut the fuck up,” Jamie said, his voice firm, but I could the restrained anger. “What happened is none of your damned business and I’ve had about enough.”
Then he turned his back on her, facing me as he raised a hand to touch my cheek gently.
“You doing okay?” he asked, eyes full of genuine concern.
“She’s fine,” Gage said, wrapping his arm around my waist. He pulled me back into his body hard, the gesture sending a very clear message. Something along the lines of him Tarzan, me Jane. Jamie crossed his arms, meeting Gage’s gaze.
“Wasn’t talking to you,” he said.
“Slut!” Flora hissed in the background.
And that was just about enough.
“I’m in a hurry,” I announced, reaching down to grab Gage’s arm and tug it loose. He didn’t budge. Seriously? “Let me go, Gage.”
“Take your mother and get her out of this store,” Gage said to Jamie, ignoring me. God, he sounded just like Brandon. Giving orders like he had the right. He didn’t. Nobody did.
“No,” I snapped, digging my nails into his wrist. “I can talk for myself, asshole.”
“We’ll leave just as soon as you let her go,” Jamie said, looking so tough and mature that I was starting to remember why I’d gone into that back bedroom with him.
Because you lost your fucking mind, my common sense reminded me firmly.
“This isn’t happening,” I announced. “Gage, remove your arm or I swear to God, I’ll evict your ass tonight.”
“That’s illegal,” he said, but when I dug my fingernails into his skin, he let me go. I reached for my cart, grabbing the handle to push it toward the front of the store, because fuck drama. That’s when Flora started shouting.