Total pages in book: 138
Estimated words: 128260 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 641(@200wpm)___ 513(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128260 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 641(@200wpm)___ 513(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
I spotted Kate talking on her cell phone on a deep blue chaise lounge and walked toward her. She smiled and hung up her phone. “Ever been here?” she asked.
“No, it’s stunning.”
“Yeah, it really is. Each tower is slightly different but equally luxe. The water features outside are the most incredible I’ve ever seen. You should walk around for a few minutes after we finish this meeting.”
“I might,” I said, still looking, distracted by the opulence.
We walked up to the beautiful gold-adorned front desk, and I stood back as Kate talked to the desk clerk before returning to where I stood. “We can go on back. He has an office to the right of the casino. I was back there the last time I was here.”
I looked around as we walked through the casino. I had been to plenty of them since I had moved to Vegas, but they still managed to make my eyes go wide with all the sights and sounds. The people-watching was my favorite, some animated, some sitting stoically as they fed dollar bills into a machine.
We stepped out of the casino and Kate rounded a corner into a hallway. We took several turns and ended up in a hall that dead-ended, and Kate knocked on the first door to the right. I stood waiting with her for a couple seconds before the door opened and I looked up into the face of the very fine specimen of man that Kate had referred to. My heart gave a sudden slam and then began beating furiously as my bones turned to liquid. Oh. Oh, oh, oh. I almost sagged against the doorframe. I felt dizzy and yet adrenaline spiked through my veins, the only thing holding me up.
“Carson,” I breathed.
_________
Carson
I heard my name released as a whisper and when my eyes moved over to the little blond standing next to the detective in front of me, my muscles froze, shock pulsing through my body, time seeming to halt entirely as my eyes met with hers.
“Grace?” I said on a harsh exhale.
We all stood there, silent, me and Grace staring at each other with mouths hung open. I tried to gain my equilibrium as she blinked rapidly at me. I had been in a lot of unexpected situations through the years, and I had always managed to gather my shit quickly. As I stood staring at Grace, I did not gather my shit quickly.
Holy hell.
Grace.
In my office.
Is she real? My eyes did a quick survey of her from head to heels. Her blond hair was pulled up in a twist just like the first time we’d met and she was wearing a navy-blue skirt that showed off her slim figure and a pale gray blouse. She was beautiful. Beautiful and professional.
Grace.
“So, you two know each other?” the detective asked.
It broke the spell. I glanced at the detective to see she was looking back and forth between us, a small, curious smile on her face. I moved into my office, making room for them both to enter. I kept looking back at Grace though as though she might disappear into the ether at any moment. “Yes, I know Grace” is all I managed in answer to the detective’s question.
Grace remained silent, appearing shell-shocked as she followed us into the room. Okay, deep breath. This wasn’t the time to deal with the emotions currently assaulting my system at this unexpected turn of events. Grace. I needed to get the detective out of my office and get Grace alone. Questions were exploding through my brain that had nothing to do with why they were here.
I took a seat behind my desk as the detective and Grace took the two seats on the other side. “Thank you for meeting with me again, Mr. Stinger,” the detective said.
“Call me Carson, Detective.” I’d told her that the first time we’d met, but either she’d forgotten or preferred the formality. What was her name again? Kate? God, I couldn’t fucking think straight. And I needed to think straight.
I glanced over at Grace, who was still staring at me with the same bewildered expression. God, she was even more beautiful than I remembered her, and I had done a lot of remembering when it came to Grace Hamilton.
“Yes, right, Carson.” The detective laughed. “We established that, didn’t we? And again, call me Kate,” she said. “We won’t take much of your time. We just have some questions about Mr. Garner.”
“We?” I asked, glancing at Grace again.
“Yes, we. Ms. Hamilton is the prosecutor working on this case. I’m sorry, I thought you said you knew each other?”
I froze for a second, my eyes flying back to Grace and my stomach tightening. Prosecutor? Oh fuck. Oh no. This wasn’t good. Or was it? Could this be… a good thing for Josh? My brain was going a million miles a minute. “It’s been a while,” I said, my eyes remaining on Grace as my brain cartwheeled.