Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 87756 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 293(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87756 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 293(@300wpm)
"Won't lie to you, sometimes it will be that boring. But he does other jobs too, ones that get more interesting, dangerous. It's not ideal, Enz, but it's a way out of here. You can start new there. No one will know your past unless you want them to."
"I'm feeling like there's a catch here."
"A small one."
"Spit it out, bro."
"I need to see your face at Ma's Sunday dinner. Once a month. It's not asking too much. Kenz and Re need you around. Ma too. And me. We got some mending bridges to do still."
Enzo looked toward the mirror behind the bar, both of us reflected, as he peeled the label off his beer. "Alright."
"Alright?"
"Yeah, alright. I think it will be good for me to get out of here."
"So long as you come back."
"Fucked up my life for a lot of years. It's about time I start fixing it. Starting with you and the girls. But to do that, I need to get my shit together, get my head in a better place. I appreciate the opportunity." He was quiet for a long minute before finally turning to me. "I owe you a..."
"You don't owe me shit," I said, shaking my head. "The only reason you got into that life in the first place was because I let you in. I could have turned my back, told you to keep yourself out of the streets. You ended up where you ended up because of me. If anyone should be apologizing, it's me."
"We both have done shit. We don't need to harp on it. Let's just move on. Sound good?"
"Sounds good," I agreed, tipping my beer to him.
For that Sunday and every Sunday dinner my mother held for the next fifteen years, he was always there.
Elsie - 3 Months
I got a sketch every morning. Every single morning for three months. Over a hundred pictures that I had finally started adding to a scrapbook. The one he had made me of his family was in a gorgeous silver frame on a shelf in our living room.
Yes, our.
He'd pretty much moved in. He still kept some of his stuff at his apartment in his store, but that was more for convenience in case he needed them when he was working. There was half a closet full of his clothes next to mine. There was a bathroom cabinet with his shaving cream and straight razor that butted up against my perfume and nail polish remover, and a nightstand covered in sketchpads and pencils that used to house my notepad that I really never needed to use in the first place.
See though, as I learned one night when I came home to Paine sitting at the dining room table with all my sealed bills spread across the surface, I realized something else about Paine. He might be willing to live in a house that technically did not have his name on it, sleep on sheets he didn't buy and put his feet up on a coffee table he didn't pick out, but he was not willing to do all those things without contributing.
"Don't even bother trying to argue about this," he said as I set my purse down. "You agree to letting me pay half or I'll pay all of them fully behind your back."
I had no doubt he would do just that so we sat down and we figured out what half of all the bills were. Every month, cash for half of each bill would appear on the kitchen counter.
"Now that's settled," Paine said, giving me a devilish little smile that made my sex clench in anticipation.
"Is there... other business to attend to?" I asked with a smirk as I lifted my ass up to sit on the edge of the table, crossing my legs in a way that made my skirt slide up my thigh.
Paine stood slowly, eyes trailing down my body. "Very serious matters, actually."
"Will we be in a good... position once we get it handled?" I asked, arching my head up as he came to stand in front of me.
"Great fucking position, but there's going to be a lot of handling first," he promised.
"We should probably get started then, huh?" I asked, making a show of wetting my lips. "What do you need from me?"
His hands went to the button of his pants, pushing it through. "First I need you on your knees."
"Hmm," I said as I slid off the table and moved to kneel in front of him. "This seems like an unusual way to conduct business," I mused as he reached inside his boxers and pulled out his hard cock.
"Are you questioning my methods, Miss. Bay?" he asked, stroking himself twice before settling his hand at the base.
I felt my lips twitch. "No... sir," I said, mostly keeping a straight face.