Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 85593 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85593 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Dominic smirked. “I’ve never pretended to like someone and I’m not about to start now. Fuck pretending. It’s a waste of time, and time is one thing I never waste.”
Everything about him was always so intense. Maybe it should’ve been off-putting, but it sort of made me feel like I was seeing life in higher resolution when I talked to him. “Was it really so wrong of my dad to push me to write? I can never completely decide. I mean, couldn’t you say he just wanted what was best for me?“
“It was your dad wanting what was best for him, from the sounds of it. That’s why Eloise does art, right? Your dad pushed it on her.”
“Sort of, but sort of not. He pushed her to try it, but she loved it once she started. She always had a talent for it. He brags about her all the time to his old college teacher friends. He had to quit teaching and take up real estate when money got tight and the journals stopped showing interest in his submissions. I know he’s super ashamed about it because it’s not the kind of thing he sees as ‘meaningful.’”
“So he tries to get his daughters to do what he couldn’t. That’s why he looks down on you working for The Squawker? Because of his own insecurities?”
I chuckled, but there wasn’t much humor in the sound. “I didn’t realize it was so obvious. But yeah, I think you’ve pretty much figured out why my childhood was so fucked up after hearing my dad speak for about fifteen seconds. That’s impressive.”
He took a bite of his ice cream, nodding thoughtfully. “I meant what I said, Darcy. About wanting to fire you and not being able to. Yet,” he added with a rare grin. “With the headaches you caused me, you would’ve been gone if I had the slightest excuse. But you’re good at what you do, and that’s not a compliment. It’s a grudging acknowledgment of the state of things.”
I smiled, chewing my lip. “It sounded a lot like a compliment, and you can’t stop me from taking it as one.”
“Sounds like I need to bruise that ego of yours now before it gets too big. Like mine.”
I remembered calling him out in front of the staff that first day and cupped my hands around my eyes, ducking my head a little. “Maybe I should apologize for saying you needed a bigger office to fit an ego your size.”
“Don’t apologize,” he said seriously. “People have always avoided speaking their mind to me. I mean, there’s Marcus and Tristan, but everybody else…” he pursed his lips and shook his head, as if he didn’t know why he’d even brought it up.
I was tempted to press him to continue, but I didn’t think I needed to hear the rest to know what he meant. A guy who looked like him coming from the family he came from probably had to deal with either flattery or fear. People probably always wanted something from him. I could see how me being a smartass might actually feel like a refreshing change.
I felt my ice cream drip on my hand and realized I’d been too absorbed in the conversation to touch it for several minutes. I took a quick bite, and decided to change the subject. “Well, I did want to say it meant a lot to me. The way you stood up for me back there. I’ve never really tried to tell my dad how I feel about him dismissing what I do, but it felt good to know he heard it. Maybe he’ll realize what a dick he’s been after that.”
“Yeah, well… don’t start getting emotional.”
I grinned behind my ice cream, then my attention drifted to a group of teen girls who came to sit outside at one of the other tables. They immediately started giggling and whispering to each other when they saw Dominic. I couldn’t say I really blamed them. As a teen, I probably would’ve had a hormonal meltdown if I saw him. Adult me wasn’t faring much better, actually. It was a constant battle with my body around him. Every bone in my body wanted to jump over the table and mount him. My brain was like a chaperone at a pre-K field trip trying to tell the kids not to jump the fence of the gorilla enclosure to get a closer look. It was a constant, mostly losing battle.
It wasn’t completely physical, either. His straight-to-the-point no-nonsense manner made me feel like I’d been plugged straight into some kind of energy source. My body and brain were buzzing with stimulation, and I wanted more of that feeling. And all of those were very dangerous thoughts. Dominic was only here because I’d convinced him to let me do these interviews, and I needed to make sure I didn’t start complicating things. There was also the fact that his family was the main reason my life was upended two years ago. I was starting to wonder if I had read the situation wrong, though, and decided I could subtly start the interview there.