Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 68810 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 344(@200wpm)___ 275(@250wpm)___ 229(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68810 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 344(@200wpm)___ 275(@250wpm)___ 229(@300wpm)
As for the women, all of them grated on his nerves, and it took all of Kyr’s patience not to have security remove them from his sight.
He was disgusted at the way all of them seemed to compete with each other. Why couldn’t they be more like Pollyanna? Her naïve assumption that everyone was destined to be her friend was dangerous, but it wasn’t irritating.
At the four-hour mark, Kyr could no longer take it, and he stood up, excusing himself abruptly. If he spent one more second with those airheads, he was certain he would end up killing them.
As he walked away, he was stunned to hear a familiar voice calling out to him. He turned, and it was Polly.
“What is it?” he demanded, not liking the seemingly desperate way she had rushed out of the pool and practically ran to him. “Did Chris do anything to you?”
Chris, who had been about to join them, immediately beat a hasty exit at the billionaire’s words. Used to being the object of hatred of jealous boyfriends, he knew when to make himself scarce. But he was grinning as he hurried to the employees’ quarters, thinking, who would have imagined that Master Kyr would end up falling for someone like Polly?
Pollyanna was already shaking her head even before he finished speaking. But instead of answering him, she said in a small voice, “I’m sorry you were bored waiting for me to finish my lesson.”
Kyr was stunned.
“If you’re going somewhere else, maybe I could go with you instead? I don’t really need the lessons, you know. Or I could take them when you’re at work. But if you’re free, we could do what you want and—-”
“Stop,” he said harshly. She looked at him in miserable silence, and his guilt flayed him. The entire time Pollyanna had spoken, the truth had hit him, and it wasn’t a pretty one. He had let his memories with her get to him, and he had ended up pushing Polly away, even punishing her, when she hadn’t done anything at all.
He looked at Pollyanna, saw the stars were still in her eyes, but this time they were also made hazy with tears. Without a word, he hauled her to him, his arms closing tightly around her small, curvy body. She hugged him back without a word, and when he felt the telltale shake of her shoulders, he said gruffly, “Don’t.”
“D-don’t want?”
“Don’t cry.” He rested his chin on top of her shoulders, oblivious to the way everyone was gaping at the mind-bogglingly sweet picture they made. “You don’t want those other girls to see your ugly cry face, do you?” Her shoulders shook again but of laughter this time.
She also surprised him by tightening her arms around his waist, prompting him to ask curiously, “What is it?”
“Just glad you chose me over them,” Pollyanna mumbled against his chest.
Ah.
He pulled away, and when she glanced up, he returned her surprised look with a scowl. Didn’t she know it was extremely unfair of her, saying the sweetest things out of the blue? Taking hold of her hand, he pulled her close to him again and led her out of the diving facility.
“Where are we going?” she stammered.
“Somewhere private, so I can kiss you.”
She stumbled over her feet.
“Also...what do you want to do tomorrow?” Kyr didn’t look at her as he spoke. “Anything you want, we’ll do it.” As an apology, he added silently because he knew she wouldn’t get it if he said sorry.
“Anything?” she repeated uncertainly.
He nodded.
“Then...” She whispered her request, which stunned and puzzled him.
“That’s it?”
“Uh huh.”
He said finally, “Then so be it. Come to my house at six in the morning, and don’t worry about the farm. I’ll have someone help out your godparents tomorrow.” He paused. “Are you really sure this is what you want?”
She answered him with just another shy, awkward look, but the stars in her eyes were shining even more brightly now, and Kyr thought, I’m going to be in deep shit tomorrow.
Chapter Seven
She was fifteen minutes earlier than the agreed time when she made it to the Greek billionaire’s manor, but the butler who opened the door didn’t seem surprised at all by her appearance. “H-hello,” Pollyanna stammered. “I’m here to see, umm, Master Kyr?” She didn’t think it was right to call the billionaire by his first name with other people.
The butler only nodded, his bland expression unchanging. “Follow me, miss.”
The manor was vast but surprisingly minimal in its design, almost stark in its simplicity. Ascending the grand staircase, she felt like she was touring a historic house or even a museum, and it didn’t help that the butler was still giving off I-don’t-like-you vibes. It was her first time to be hated, if she were to be honest, but Polly told herself it was probably because the butler and maybe even the rest of the staff thought of her as another gold digger out to fool their master.