Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 67982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Arturo Rodriguez is the most sought after center fielder in professional baseball. While Stacy does well by the handful of hockey players and few professional football players she represents, Arturo will definitely be the biggest feather in her cap. This pleases me, because it will give her more credibility in future negotiations on my behalf.
I twist the cap off my bottle and hold my beer out to her. She taps the neck against mine and I say, “Congratulations. That’s amazing.”
She offers a blasé shrug. “It helps that I used to date the cousin of his high school coach.”
“Bullshit,” I say with a stern look. “Your talent speaks for itself.”
Stacy puts her forearms on the counter, holding the beer bottle loosely. She looks up at me with a smile. “So, what’s new with you, Reed? Anything exciting going on in your life?”
I must hesitate too long before I say, “Not really,” because Stacy’s eyes narrow at me.
“But there’s a story there,” she says confidently.
She’s fucking right there’s a story there. I haven’t been able to think straight since Josie walked out of my house yesterday. My fucking big mouth goading her right into Aiden’s arms. I barely slept last night, and I must have looked out the front window a million times waiting for her car to come back. It never did, and it wasn’t there this morning either.
My gut says that Josie would never have betrayed me with Aiden. She was pissed when she walked out of here, but I can also tell she had not given up on me. She’s got far too much loyalty to let anger make her do something impulsive and stupid the way my doubts led me to push her out that door.
At least I hope that’s the Josie I know. And yet, I cannot pretend I am not bothered by the fact that fifteen minutes ago when I looked out the window again, her car still wasn’t outside.
“Spill it, Olson,” Stacy says with a pointed look. Then her voice turns soft and she says, “Tell me what’s wrong.”
I tip my bottle of beer up and take a few hefty swallows, enjoying the respite of an ice-cold pale ale going down my throat. I’m so bent out of shape with all the stuff with Josie that I’d really like to get shit-faced drunk, but I know that would not be a good thing. No telling what I would do.
With a sigh, I admit to her dejectedly, “Girl trouble. The worst kind.”
Stacy nods at me knowingly. “You did something stupid, didn’t you?”
I give a tiny bark of humorless laughter and nod. “I pretty much screwed up yesterday and pushed away a woman I’m confident is my soul mate.”
Stacy tilts her head and says, “Awww. That may be the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard you say.”
“Fuck off,” I say with a chuckle. “I sort of pushed her away because I didn’t think I was good enough for her, and she hasn’t come back home all night.”
Stacy’s eyebrows jet sky high. “She was living with you? Because that is huge, Reed.”
I shake my head. “She lived next door. But I actually spent most of my time over at her place.”
“So, what’s the deal? What does she do? Where did you meet her? At what point did you fall in love? And finally, at what point did you screw it up?”
I nod to the counter stool indicating that she should take a seat, because this story will take a while. Plus, I figure it can’t hurt to get a woman’s perspective on how I might fix the problem. Stacy pulls the stool out, sits down, and looks at me expectantly.
“Okay, so I met Josie—”
“Oh my God, that’s such a cute name. I love it.”
I glare at Stacy. “You going to keep interrupting me? Because we don’t have long before we have to get you the airport.”
Stacy holds her hands up in apology and says, “My bad. Please continue.”
I take a deep breath. “Okay, so the thing is—”
At that moment, my front door opens and my gaze travels past Stacy’s shoulder to see Josie walking into my home. Immediate relief as well as fear overwhelms me. I’m beyond ecstatic to see her safe and sound, but I’m terrified she’s here to tell me that Aiden is now the love of her life and that we’re over.
But that’s not exactly what happens. Josie’s eyes lock with mine for only a moment before she looks at Stacy sitting across the kitchen counter from me. I wince as Josie’s eyes narrow and travel down the length of Stacy.
I wince because I know what she is seeing and thinking. A tall, busty, beautiful blonde, but more important, a woman who looks like every other woman I was with before meeting Josie. The fact that she’s wearing an expensive, expertly cut business suit that hugs every curve of her body doesn’t make her any less sexy. I stand straight and set my beer down on the counter.