Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 86710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 434(@200wpm)___ 347(@250wpm)___ 289(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 434(@200wpm)___ 347(@250wpm)___ 289(@300wpm)
“My own question has come back to bite me,” I say, trying to think of something. Olivia really does know everything about me. “I cried for the first time as an adult when you told me that you stopped eating a lot because foster parents didn’t want a kid who was always asking for food.”
Olivia stares at me for a moment. “You cried? But you were so cool about it when I told you.”
I nod. “Nobody likes sympathy. So I kept it to myself but later when I went home, I cried.”
Olivia stares at me solemnly. “You’re a good man, Jace Anderson.”
We eat silently for a few minutes. “I’m going to miss you tonight,” I tell her. “I wish I hadn’t said yes to going to Alec’s for dinner. You sure you don’t want to come?”
“A hundred percent. Go and have fun with your brother and his family. Besides, I have some work I want to do and you’ll just be a distraction. A very sexy distraction mind you, but a distraction nonetheless,” Olivia says.
“And we can’t meet tomorrow?” I can’t imagine a whole day without seeing Olivia. I have a conference out of town tomorrow. I’ll come back on Sunday at lunch time. Olivia and I agreed to meet then. She’ll be waiting for me in her apartment and she promised to cook dinner.
“Unless you can clone yourself…” Olivia teases.
“I’ll speak to my doctor brothers about that,” I say.
Time goes too fast and we have to return to the office. Still, it was worth it getting away to spend that time with Olivia. The afternoon is busy as usual with appointments, emails, and calls to return. Nothing to complain about as long as nobody goes to the press with another allegation.
In the evening, Olivia and I leave way later than we usually do. She to go home and me to go to Alec’s for dinner. I walk her to her car and remembering the photographer in the parking lot, I don’t kiss her goodbye and explain why.
It feels lonely when she goes. I get in my car, glad that I’m not going straight home to an empty apartment. I make a stop at a mall to get a gift for Ryder at the toy shop. I settle on a megaphone with eight different sound effects that Ryder will love and his parents will hate. It makes me grin and cheers me up to no end.
I pay and when I go back to my car I removed the megaphone from the shopping bag, take a picture of it and send it to Olivia with laughing emojis. She texts me back immediately.
Olivia: *laughing emojis* You won’t get invited for dinner again.
Me: I suspect so but Ryder will be my saving grace. He’ll pester his parents to invite me.
Olivia: You realize that one day all this will come back to bite you, right? When you have your own child?
Me: You mean when we have our own child??
Olivia takes so long to answer it makes me worry that I’ve fucked up again. I’m tired of being careful. Watching my words. It’s what I think about when I’m alone. The family that Olivia and I will make together.
Olivia: Sorry, that kind of left me speechless for a moment.
Me: Why? Don’t you ever think about us in that way? Married, with a family of our own?
Olivia: I don’t allow myself to.
It’s an odd comment and before I can ask her what she means, another text comes in but it’s from my brother.
Alec: I suggest you haul your ass this way if you don’t want to piss off my wife. You know she’s fussy like mom.
I glance at the time. I’ve stayed chatting with Olivia for too long. Still, I check if there’s anything more from Olivia and swallow my disappointment when I see that there’s nothing.
Traffic is a bitch and there’s another text from Alec by the time I get to their house. I don’t bother reading it, instead, I grab the shopping bag and hurry out. Alec must be hovering by the door because he opens it as soon as I knock.
“You’re late and don’t give me that bullshit that you were in the hospital,” Alec says.
I grin at him. “I wasn’t going to. I lost track of time at the mall parking lot texting with Olivia.”
“Uncle Jace,” Ryder calls from the direction of the kitchen.
I step into the house as Ryder and his mom appear. “Hey, buddy.” I pull him into a hug and hand him the shopping bag then I hug and kiss Ivy.
“I was hoping you’d come with Olivia,” she says. “No worries but I still want an update on how things are going.”
Ryder pulls the megaphone out of the bag and both his parents groan and stare at me horror-stricken. I can’t resist the chuckle that escapes my mouth.