Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 100628 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 503(@200wpm)___ 403(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100628 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 503(@200wpm)___ 403(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
“Pay attention to the road,” he yelled, pressed against the passenger side door.
I stopped swinging with a huff, but I couldn’t keep the answering smile off of my face. He drove me crazy, but I loved the little turd and I was in a seriously fantastic mood. I’d gotten in. After a year of saving and months of waiting to make sure I’d get a spot, I was finally going to start school again. I was almost giddy.
“Nana’s making a cake,” Bird said with relish, bouncing a little in his seat. “Pop’s at the club, but he’ll be stoked when he gets home.”
“She must’ve been sure that those letters brought good news,” I said, laughing.
“We never doubted it for a second,” Bird replied. “Though we weren’t sure that you’d leave work early. I thought I’d have to ride my bike all the way home again.”
“I should’ve made you do that anyway,” I teased. “Hey, you care if we make a stop on the way home?”
There was only one person I wanted to tell my news.
“As long as we don’t stay forever,” Bird replied happily.
“Just a quick stop,” I replied, turning down Rumi’s street.
His truck and his bike were both in the driveway, so I parked along the sidewalk.
“Seriously, No,” Bird called as I climbed out of the car. “Cake! Don’t take forever!”
“I won’t,” I assured him, slamming the door and then automatically bumping it with my hip. I hurried through the patchy grass, practically dancing toward the front door. When I reached it, I knocked and let myself in.
And everything inside me turned to ice. I stopped breathing. Stopped moving. I don’t even think I blinked.
It was impossible to look away.
Rumi was naked, his entire backside on full display. In front of him, her ass on the back of the couch was a woman I didn’t know, one of her feet was braced almost impossibly next to her hip, her back was arched, and her hands were in Rumi’s hair.
Her nipple was in his mouth. His hands were gripping her waist. She was moaning. In the quiet house, I could hear his panting breaths as his hips thrust forward over and over.
Somehow, they hadn’t heard me come in.
I had to get the fuck out of there. I had to leave before they saw me. My mind raced and my heart felt like it was going to burst out of my chest and my hands started to shake, but I couldn’t make myself move. I just stood there, watching as his hands roamed and her fingers twisted in his hair and my heart, my stupid heart, broke into a million pieces all over the wood floor I’d spent hours helping him refinish.
I told myself to move. I even got one foot to slide back toward the door, but before I could get the rest of my body to cooperate, Bird laid on the horn in my car and Rumi’s head snapped up in surprise.
“Whoa,” the girl yelped when she saw me.
I kept my eyes on her. She was really beautiful.
“Sorry,” I said quickly, my voice coming out like a croak. Of course, she was beautiful. I’d never seen Rumi with anyone who wasn’t.
I jerked backward and accidentally met his wide eyes.
“Nova,” he breathed. Now he was the one frozen in place.
I was thankful for that. Thankful that he hadn’t pulled away from her and I hadn’t had to watch as he turned toward me, that I hadn’t had to see any further evidence of what he’d been doing. The thought of catching sight of his condom-covered dick as he pulled out of another woman made bile rise in my throat and I threw up a hand as if to keep him in place.
“Sorry,” I croaked again.
I turned and ran toward my car, slamming the door behind me. I didn’t even try to pretend like I wasn’t running away. I was beyond embarrassment or pride, I just wanted to get the fuck out of there as quickly as I possibly could.
“What happened?” Bird yelled as I threw myself in the car and turned on the engine.
“Nothing,” I spat, my hands shaking. I pulled away from the curb so fast that my tires squealed and Bird cursed.
“Something happened,” Bird argued demandingly. “What the hell, Nova?”
“He was busy,” I replied, the words tasting like sawdust in my mouth.
Oh, god. Oh, god, he’d been fucking someone else. He’d been fucking someone else on the couch that I’d gone with him to buy from some old lady.
“What do you mean, busy?” Bird asked in confusion. “Why would that—oh.”
“Yeah,” I muttered. I was driving too fast, and I knew it, but the urge to get as far away from Rumi’s house as possible was still running through my veins.
“I’m sorry, No,” Bird said sympathetically, gripping the door and the dash for dear life. “Slow down.”