Total pages in book: 151
Estimated words: 140874 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 704(@200wpm)___ 563(@250wpm)___ 470(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 140874 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 704(@200wpm)___ 563(@250wpm)___ 470(@300wpm)
As I drove us back to the trailer where I’d grown up, Neil’s mood improved greatly. And that was oddly touching; he trusted me enough to put his worries about his daughter, the single most important person in his life, aside at my reassurance.
“Home sweet home,” I announced as I navigated the rental car down the dirt two-track through the pines at the back of my grandma’s property. The road widened into a clearing, and in the center sat the trailer I’d grown up in.
I knew it was small, probably smaller than anything Neil had ever set foot in before. I didn’t think he would love me any less, but I did wonder if he might view me differently when he saw the reality of how we’d lived. He was too good a person to make it affect his opinion of me negatively; it just wasn’t how he operated. But I wondered if he would have some misplaced rich guy pity for me.
I wasn’t sure how I would feel about it if he did.
“It’s a bit like a fairy tale cottage, isn’t it?” he mused, leaning toward the windshield to gaze up at the tall pines. “This must have been an extraordinary place to play as a child.”
I frowned. I hadn’t thought of it that way, but I’d had plenty of happy hours pretending to be Belle rescuing the Beast from wolves, or chasing imaginary white rabbits into imaginary holes. “Yeah. It was, actually.”
“I used to love our family vacations to Austria. The forests were spectacular for pretending to be soldiers or hunters. Or bears.” He smiled at the memory, and I had to admit, the idea was cute. I’d seen photos of him as a child, and he’d been absolutely adorable. He and his sister would have looked like Hansel and Gretel playing in the woods.
Mom wasn’t back yet, so I retrieved the house key from the mouth of the frog fountain in the unused birdbath and let us in. I flicked on the light.
It’s amazing how home always smells like home, no matter how long you’ve been away.
Mom had made everything as neat as a pin. A stack of blankets, sheets, and pillows were on the sleeper sofa, waiting for us to make up our bed. Well, waiting for Sophie and the young, twenty-something Neil mom had pictured. I had no illusions about how the night would go when she got back.
“This is pretty much it,” I said as Neil stepped in behind me, carrying our bag. I took it from him and put it down in the space between the end of the couch and the entertainment center. Then I shrugged off my coat and gestured around. “Through there is the kitchen, beyond that is the dining room. Over that way is the bathroom, and my old bedroom. But that’s my mom’s now.”
“You and your mother shared a bedroom when you were growing up?” He sounded shocked at the idea.
“Nope.” I shrugged. “Mom slept on the couch out here, and I got the bedroom. She’s probably still got my posters up, if you want to see how embarrassing my life truly was.”
He took off his coat and laid it over the arm of my mom’s Lay-Z-Boy. “I don’t think it looks embarrassing at all. You were clearly raised by a very loving—if loud—protective family. You had a comfortable home, a caring parent, and you grew up to be a woman I love very much.”
“Awww!” I stepped into his arms and hugged him hard. His chest was so firm and warm under my wind-burned cheek. I tilted my head up to kiss him, but first I said, “My family is loud?”
“I could barely understand anything they were saying, with all the background noise.” He made a disgusted sound, but not at my family. I’d heard that huffy exhalation before. “I feel ancient.”
“You’re not ancient. Chemotherapy can damage your hearing. You know that,” I said, reaching up to touch his face. I cupped his jaw with my hand, and he leaned his cheek against my palm. “Besides I kind of like being able to mutter under my breath without you hearing.”
“What was that?” he asked, widening his eyes and leaning slightly forward so that I would take the bait. And, because I’m too nice and trustworthy a person, I began repeating what I’d said before. He grinned, I realized the joke, and I smacked his chest.
“How do you manage to fall for that every single time?” he laughed.
“I was trying to console you!” I rose on my tiptoes, and he bent his head to kiss me. I’d meant to give him a brief peck, but what I ended up getting was a thorough tongue-fucking that made me lose my balance and lean against him. His hands slipped down my back, over my ass, and he lifted his head and cursed softly.