Total pages in book: 36
Estimated words: 34140 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 171(@200wpm)___ 137(@250wpm)___ 114(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34140 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 171(@200wpm)___ 137(@250wpm)___ 114(@300wpm)
Willow didn’t even know what to say or do. He had never come into her shop to just kiss her and then leave to get lunch.
She touched her lips, and was sure she still felt him. Pulling her hand away, she focused on the shop. One of the women smiled at her.
“That man is fine,” she said.
Willow chuckled. “Thank you.”
“If a guy like that told me he was going to be my future husband, I’d ask for the ring and a trip to Vegas. He could be mine within the hour.”
Willow smiled but she wasn’t about to tell the woman who he was or what he was capable of. How he instilled fear into many men and even women. This woman was happy with Carson. The next had a disapproving stare, which she took care of and served.
They left as Carson returned with a small bag.
Willow frowned. “What is all this?”
“Food. You’re not taking care of yourself, so I have to.”
“I can’t close the shop.”
“Ah, I’ve always wondered what it would be like behind the counter.”
She had to have stepped into an alternate universe. Carson Dexter was a scary man, and yet he was talking normally to her, and he even sounded playful.
“You’ve never worked in retail?” she asked.
“Never.”
“How is that even possible?”
He shrugged. “When you need money, and you don’t have a lot going for you but the ability to use your fists, that’s what you work with.”
“Your fists?”
“Yeah, I was a fighter.”
“Okay.” She told herself she didn’t want to know more, but that was a lie. “Chinese food?”
“Yep, I know a place on the corner, does amazing noodles. You’ve got to try them.”
Willow had a vague memory of when they first met, Carson suggesting they go out for noodles.
“You’re not fooling me, you know?”
“Fooling you about what?”
“This, the noodles, all of it.”
Carson snorted. “I’m not trying to fool you.”
“I … I know what you do.”
Carson held out a pot of noodles to her as well as chopsticks. “And I know what I do.”
“Why are you being so nice to me?”
“You’re going to be my wife and last time I checked, getting a woman to be comfortable with me doesn’t involve going all killer on her ass.”
Willow knew she shouldn’t have found that funny. There was nothing funny in what he did, but she couldn’t help but laugh.
Shaking her head at what he said, she opened the pot and sniffed. It smelled amazing. Garlic, ginger, chili, along with other flavors she wasn’t sure of, but her mouth watered. She was so hungry.
The steak he’d cooked last night had been so good. Breakfast had been boiled eggs and toast, also good.
Willow hadn’t taken care of herself the past few months. The truth was, she didn’t feel like she could, nor was there a point.
“How does it taste?” Carson asked.
She used the chopsticks, scooped up a bunch of noodles, and started to eat. For Willow, there was no ladylike or delicate way of eating noodles, not when you were so hungry, and she was starving. They tasted so good. The instant hit of hot, sweet, salty, and spicy met her tongue, did a magical dance, and she chewed, closing her eyes in Heaven.
“How do you find these places?” she asked.
“I eat a lot of food and I know good food when I taste it. Also, how do you feel about dancing?”
“I don’t dance.”
“Tonight, I’m taking you dancing.”
“Carson, you don’t have to do that.”
“I’ve got some business to handle, and I want to take you out. You need to learn to relax and enjoy yourself.”
She rolled her eyes.
“You know I find that sexy when you do that.”
She did it again, but this time overly exaggerated, and she couldn’t quite keep the smile off her face. He was a goofball. Which was so odd, calling Carson Dexter a goofball.
He was deadly.
Scary.
But oddly, charming.
She finished her noodles, and he had also taken a trip to a bakery where they served mousse.
“Where did you find all of this?” she asked.
“Well, as a kid, when you’re starving, you learn to appreciate what you find. You also discover the best places that way.”
“Starving?” Willow asked. “You were hungry as a child?”
“Yes.” Carson finished his mousse and Willow could only stare at him.
“I can’t imagine … I’m so sorry.”
“Willow, it has taken me a long time to get to where I am, it hasn’t been easy and most of the time, it’s been filled with a lot of pain and suffering. It takes one to completely experience to truly understand it, and I do. I know what it’s like to have no money, to be on the streets, to fight for scraps. I’ve lived it. I’ve done it. I won’t do it again.” He picked up their trash and then kissed her lips. “I’ll pick you up tonight.”
“I’ve got all these orders to do,” she said.