Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 72897 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 364(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72897 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 364(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
The book was splayed out on the bed near me and the bedside table lamp was still on. I sat up, massaging the stiff tension out of my neck. I checked the time on my phone and saw that it was five-thirty.
Five fucking thirty in the morning. There was a weather alert on my phone, too, warning that a snowstorm was moving through the area this morning.
Sebastian had never showed.
I stood up, all of my muscles tense because of the strange position I’d fallen asleep in. I noticed a small slip of paper underneath the door and I went to pick it up, opening it.
It was a mistake, earlier. We probably both know this. Stay long enough to eat something and then you can be on your way. I apologize for wasting your time.
The note was written on paper that was emblazoned with Sebastian’s royal seal, with his full name written out in silver lettering at the top.
He hadn’t even bothered to sign it.
I let out a sigh, tearing off the fancy shirt and trousers that I’d crumpled as I slept. My flannel and jeans were in the corner and I tugged them on, pulling my boots on afterward.
I was silent as I opened the door, making my way down the long hallway that led to the great room. All of the hallways in this place were lit with chandeliers and sconces and candlelight, like everyone in the castle had decided to make it look as eerie as possible. At this hour, nobody seemed to be awake. Probably only the kitchen staff and some other service members were up, toiling away in the basements.
I needed to get the fuck out.
As I made my way through the great room, I stopped when I saw a figure on one of the sofas, reading by candlelight.
“Genoveve,” I said when she looked up.
“Sir!” she said, sitting up straight immediately. “I mean, Henry. Goodness, I should have known you’d be an early riser after your time in the mountains.”
“I’m not usually an early riser these days,” I said. “Wind woke me up.”
“It woke me an hour ago, too,” she said, nodding as she stood up. “Couldn’t fall back asleep, so I wanted to read before I got started with the day.”
“You actually read by candlelight?” I asked. “I know we’re in a castle, but you do have the internet and cell phones and electricity here, Genoveve.”
She smiled. “I know. I just enjoy it. There’s nothing like candlelight.”
“I relied on it all the time back in the mountains,” I said. “I understand.”
“Are you—would you like me to see about finding you a breakfast? The scones won’t be baked yet, but perhaps eggs and bacon—”
“No, no,” I said quickly. “I’m leaving.”
She cocked her head to one side. “But I thought Sebastian said you would stay for breakfast.”
“Can’t,” I said. I was flustered trying to think of some possible made-up reason why I’d be fleeing in the early morning.
This was why I hated secrets. I didn’t want to lie to her. But I couldn’t exactly say the truth, that I was bolting because her boss had broken his promise to come up to my bedroom and fuck.
“I’m sorry to hear it,” she said. “Well. I can get a car ready for you right away. It’s really started snowing out there, are you sure you don’t need a warmer jacket?”
“I’ll be fine. A car would be perfect.”
She nodded once. “Of course.”
In another ten minutes I was warm and situated in the back of some black Rolls Royce, heading down to the village as snow swirled outside the windows.
I didn’t let myself look back at the castle as we drove away.
“I don’t exactly think this place needs granite countertops,” I said to the renovation contractor, Norm, as he paced around the kitchen. He’d showed up at my mom’s house an hour late for our appointment, finishing a burger as he had walked into the house.
Norm was a contractor I’d found advertised in the back of the Bugle. He lived a couple villages away, and I could already tell that I wasn’t going to hire him. It would have been easier if Sebastian and Genoveve had tracked down the best contractors in the area like he’d promised, but it seemed like Sebastian and I wouldn’t be talking again anytime soon.
“You’re gonna want the granite,” Norm said, completely ignoring what I’d told him. “And maybe some copper fixtures.”
“And how exactly do you think I could pay for that kind of thing?”
He shrugged. “We have plenty of payment options. One of ‘em is a ten-year plan.”
“Ten years to pay off a countertop?” I asked.
“We have a twenty-year, too,” he said.
“All right,” I told him. “I have some things to take care of for the rest of the day, but thank you for stopping in, Norm.”