Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 78149 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 391(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78149 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 391(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
“And your dad is sweet too.”
“Yeah.” His voice dropped for a moment. “He’s a good guy.”
“When am I going to meet your brother and sister?”
“Not sure. Dex is busier than all of us right now. Daisy is busy too.”
“What does your brother do?”
“He’s in residency right now.”
“Residency?” I asked.
“He’s a surgeon.”
“Oh wow.”
“Heart surgeon, to be specific.”
“You guys are close in age, then?”
“Not really. We’re six years apart.”
“And he’s already in residency?” I asked blankly, unsure how that added up.
“He graduated college at eighteen.” He looked down at me with a smirk. “You think I’m smart? Dex is something else…”
“What’s he like?”
“He’s a good guy. A little stiff. But I think that’s just because he’s been so focused on his education.”
“And you aren’t stiff?” I teased.
He chuckled.
“What’s Daisy like?”
“She looks just like my mom. She’s sweet…but stings like a scorpion.”
I chuckled. “I can’t see her being anything less than warm like her mother.”
“She’s got an edge to her. But I’m glad she’s like that. She’s always been headstrong and ambitious, and since she’s always competing with the boys, she’s kinda a tomboy.”
“Then she and I will get along just fine.”
“Well, anyone can get along with you because you’re perfect.”
“I don’t know about perfect…”
“I do.” He opened the door to the lobby for me, giving me an affectionate look as he did. Then we got into the elevator and headed to his penthouse.
My mom was watching Lizzie for the night, so there was no rush to head home. I had a few hours before I had to run back to my responsibilities. It would be easier if I took Derek to my apartment so we could sleep together in my bedroom. I could take care of my daughter and have him at the same time. But I couldn’t even imagine how that would go… Lizzie watching me bring a man into my bedroom when she’d never witnessed anything like that. Despite my single status, I’d given her a really stable life, full of love from me and her grandparents. She never asked about her father, probably because she never felt like there was anyone missing.
That was how I knew I’d done my job right.
The moment we were in his penthouse, his hand slid into my hair, and he brought me close, like he’d been thinking of this moment since we’d left the restaurant. He finally had me behind closed doors, just the two of us, his eyes on my lips.
One of the things I liked most about his parents was their reaction to Lizzie. Most parents would not approve of their perfect son dating a woman who’d made a stupid mistake and got knocked up at sixteen, but they didn’t care at all. They seemed truly interested in her, like they were hopeful they would meet her someday, that Derek would meet her.
That made me want this to work out even more.
I wanted this man.
I wanted his family.
I wanted everything.
He studied my face, his powerful arms around me. “What is it?” He could read me better and better as time passed, as he became more acquainted with my intimate reactions, the vulnerability I showed.
“I just…really like your family.”
“They really like you too…as do I.”
Twenty
Derek
I stepped inside the sports bar and found Ryan sitting alone at a table in the back. I walked over to him and fell into the chair across from him, ordering a beer from the waitress the second she appeared.
Ryan stared at me, his eyebrow slightly cocked.
“What?” I turned to the waitress when she came back and grabbed the beer from her hand, immediately taking a drink and washing away the taste of the coffee that I’d been drinking all day at the lab.
“You just…I dunno…look different.”
“I got a haircut.”
“No…”
I shrugged. “This is a new sweater.”
He shook his head. “Nope. Not that either.”
“Then I have no idea. So, what’s your news?”
“I know what it is.” He snapped his fingers. “You’re happy.”
“I’m always happy.”
“Ha.” He rolled his eyes. “You’ve always had that sexy, brooding, miserable vibe going. Now, you’re sunshine on a clear day. What’s the deal?”
I knew exactly what the deal was. “I wanted you to tell me your news first, but since you’re putting me on the spot… I’m seeing someone.” I wasn’t just seeing someone, but I’d found a woman who’d changed my life. I found someone who gave me life, gave me meaning. I could be myself completely, trust her implicitly, so yeah, I was fucking happy.
“Yeah?” Ryan grinned. “Like, seeing-seeing someone?”
“As in, a monogamous, committed, meaningful relationship.”
“So, you’re her boyfriend?”
I shrugged. “I feel like that’s a really lame term at thirty. But fine, if that’s easier for you.”
“Wow.” He nodded, still grinning. “That’s awesome, man. Is she a model or…?”
“No. I mean, she looks like one, but no. And she’s my age.”
His eyes widened. “No way.”