Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 146666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 733(@200wpm)___ 587(@250wpm)___ 489(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 146666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 733(@200wpm)___ 587(@250wpm)___ 489(@300wpm)
That was enough to put her off her food.
Hack grasped hold of her chin, turning her face back to him. “You always have to be on alert.”
She guessed that was probably true. Bad things could happen at any time.
“But—”
“Hush, Prickly Pear,” he told her.
Really? Prickly pear? She wasn’t prickly. Or a pear. Obviously.
“What is with all the food names?” she muttered.
“Focus, Greer. This is important.”
Oops.
She turned her gaze back to his.
“You took the slippers?” he asked.
She cringed. Uh-oh. She couldn’t handle going to jail.
Aidan had to—because of you.
Stop it.
“Actually, wait,” he said. “I didn’t mean to say that. Shit. Now I’m blurting stuff out.”
It was an affliction. Or a disease. And she was infecting him.
“Don’t worry about taking the shampoo and shit. As long as you didn’t take a blanket, TV, lamp, or something like that, then you’re fine. They expect you to take the slippers.”
Whew.
She hadn’t really stayed somewhere that flash before, so she hadn’t been sure.
“Although, those slippers are little more than bits of cardboard, so not sure why you’d want them.” He moved his hand down, around the back of her neck.
“I don’t have any.”
He frowned slightly. “We’ll get you better ones.”
“There’s nothing wrong with those ones.”
“Yes, there is. But that’s not what I want to talk to you about. You know how earlier you said that when you’re in trouble, the universe tends to provide?”
“Oh yeah. Why? You need me to put a request out there for you? What do you need?”
“No. Nothing. But can you give me some examples?”
“Umm. Sure. Well, when the landlord put the rent up, I thought I was going to have to move because I couldn’t afford it. The only places that I could find were terrible. In bad areas of the city with no security.”
“Jesus. What happened with the rent?” He took her hand in his, and she didn’t have the strength to pull away.
“The landlord had a change of heart. I don’t know why. But he told me that I could stay in the apartment at the old rate as long as I wanted. And he put in extra security cameras around the building. Pretty good, huh?”
“Right. That’s a bit weird, though.”
She guessed so . . . but it worked in her favor.
“Is something wrong?” she asked.
“No. Not at all. Can you give me any other examples?”
“Oh. Well, like I said, I was running low on money because I had some unexpected bills and didn’t have much food in the cupboard. But I did this survey online and it paid a two-hundred-dollar food voucher. The survey only took me five minutes! I’ve done a few of those surveys since. They’re lifesavers. Wasn’t it good luck that I found them?”
“Good luck. Sure.”
“You look a bit pale. Are you all right?”
“I have a question that might sound a bit strange. But you’ve never received prize money or had anything turn up in relation to a Fox, right?”
“Um. Nope. That is a weird question. What would a Fox have to do with any of this?”
“Yeah. It is a weird question. But . . . you’d be surprised. I need to go to the bathroom. Come on.”
“Um, but I don’t have to go.” She gave him a confused look as he stood up and held out his hand to her.
“I don’t want you to stay here on your own.” He frowned.
“But it’s okay for me to linger outside the men’s bathroom?”
“Good point. I’ll wait.”
She rolled her eyes at him. “You’ll wait for what? Until you can find a place with a family bathroom, and then you’ll make me go in with you?”
His face turned thoughtful.
“What? No. No. That was not a suggestion.” She pointed at him. “Go to the bathroom, you insane lunatic.”
“Fine. But you stay here. Do you understand me? Move, and I’m gonna forget that I’m not supposed to spank you without consent. I’ll take you out to the truck, lie you over my lap in the backseat and wallop on your ass until I feel like stopping.”
Hot streaks of lightning raced through her body.
Why was his caveman speak so fucking arousing?
Although she was sure that being spanked was one of those things that sounded hotter than it would be in reality.
“And if that’s not a good deterrent, I will call the mechanic and ask him to do more work on your car and not allow you to pay for it, either.”
Right. Now he had her.
“Good,” he said. “I think we understand one another.”
Smug asshole had the nerve to tap her on the nose before he walked away, whistling.
Whistling!
And she was sure there was some more pep in his step.
Also . . . she was developing a real hate of the word allow. That word should be banned from all conversations.
Allow her to pay for something.
Rude.
She took a sip of coffee and nearly spurted it back out. Cream! She forgot the darn cream.