Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 89121 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 446(@200wpm)___ 356(@250wpm)___ 297(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89121 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 446(@200wpm)___ 356(@250wpm)___ 297(@300wpm)
Parking his bike, he jerked his helmet off as he strode to where she pulled up beside him.
“Have you lost your fucking mind? Didn’t you see the semi?” he yelled.
Unfazed, she pushed her sunglasses onto the top of her head. “Of course I saw him. I thought when you went across the lane that you were telling me I had enough time to make it too.”
His jaw dropped at the asinine excuse. “Did I motion for you to go?”
“No.”
“Then why would you think that?”
“I don’t know.”
He rubbed the bridge of his nose to keep from jerking her out of the car as he counted to thirty before dropping his hand and going to the passenger side to get his dog.
Opening it, he had to fiddle for several minutes before figuring how to get the dog harness off the seatbelt.
“Where did you get this contraption?” he snarled, finally figuring out how to unbuckle the metal clasp.
“At the pet store.”
He ignored her wobbly voice, too intent on getting rid of the aggravating female.
“Come, Hannibal.”
The traitor refused to budge.
“Come, Hannibal.”
“Show him the dog bone I gave you, and he’ll come.”
“I threw it away.”
“You threw it away?”
“I just said so, didn’t I?” Stump refused to tug on the leash when his dog didn’t obey. Instead, he scooped the tiny dog up in one large hand, shutting the car door with the other one.
“Why did you throw it away? Hannibal played with that bone all night.”
“If I wanted my dog to have a bone, I’d give him a real one. And I damn sure won’t be giving him a pink dinosaur one.”
“What kind would you give him? A real one that he could choke on?”
He took a step back when she appeared ready to get out of the car and snatch Hannibal out of his grasp.
Striding across to her side of the car, he leaned down, putting his face within an inch of hers. “Lady, how many dogs have you owned?”
Her lips tightened in a firm line. “One.”
“I’ve had three; four including Hannibal. I think I’m more knowledgeable of which bones to pick for my dog, don’t you?”
“Depends on what happened to the first three.”
He tucked Hannibal tighter into his side. “That’s none of your business, any more than Hannibal is.” Straightening, he moved away from the car. “You’re a piece of work, you know that? Get your ass out of here before I lose what little patience I have left, or I’ll get one of the brothers to help me crush this car into a lump of chrome that you’ll have to carry around in your fucking pocket.”
“That is unnecessarily harsh. I was just trying to be helpful—”
“I don’t need your help now or in the future. I’ve had my ass chewed out twice by Penni, Grace is threatening to take my dog, I was fired because of you, and someone the size of a linebacker just threatened to fuck me up. And yesterday, a car almost rear-ended me, which I’m thinking was another one of your crazy followers. If you were older, I would swear you were on the Titanic.”
He felt like a heel when she raised a shaking hand to lower her sunglasses, concealing tear-filled eyes.
He watched as she backed out of the parking spot without saying anything else.
“Fuck me,” Stump muttered out loud when he saw Zoey’s bottom lip tremble as she pulled out onto the road. Looking down at the dog that started growling at him, he warned, “Don’t you start with me, too. You’re lucky you’re a dog. Take it from me, we don’t need that type of crazy in our lives.”
5
Dear Mom,
I wish you and Dad were together again. I miss you.
xoxoxoxoxooxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo
LOVE,
Zoey
“Are you sure your husbands are okay with you being out with me tonight?” Zoey looked around the table at the women who had convinced her to go out to the busy nightclub. It was the same question she asked twice before, but none of the married women had yet to answer her.
Penni asked her to go out that evening when she had returned to her office, and she agreed. However, she hadn’t really thought they would have been able to find a table without a reservation.
“What can I get you ladies to drink?”
“I’ll take a lime daiquiri.” Grace hadn’t found her voice to answer Zoey’s question, yet she had no problem being the first to order her drink.
“A strawberry margarita for me,” Casey requested next.
“Cranberry juice,” Zoey added when the waitress looked at her.
“Vida and I will both have amaretto sours,” Sawyer spoke for her and her best friend.
“How about you, Ginny?” Penni prompted.
“I’ll take a diet soda,” she ordered before looking at Penni. “The only reason I’m here and not in bed is because you said I needed to be the designated driver.”
“I told you that to get you out. Girl, that’s what Lyft is for,” Gianna told her before turning to the waitress. “I’ll take a rum and coke, and bring my girl one, too.”