Total pages in book: 143
Estimated words: 136743 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 684(@200wpm)___ 547(@250wpm)___ 456(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136743 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 684(@200wpm)___ 547(@250wpm)___ 456(@300wpm)
“My wife,” Edward murmurs smoothly, placing his hand at my back and gently guiding me a little closer. “Soledad.”
There is no thaw in the cold eyes that flick between my husband and me. “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Barnes,” he says, the formality such a contrast to the easy warmth between us before.
“Nice to meet you too, Mr. Cross.” I glance up to meet his eyes briefly.
“Judah,” he replies, his gaze softening a fraction.
“I’m sorry,” I say. “What?”
“My name is Judah. Judah Cross.”
I offer a smile that feels like wax hardening on my face. “I’ve heard a lot about…” I let the words peter out because he probably knows that everything I’ve heard about him from Edward has been an insult.
“Let’s go sit down,” Edward says, clamping his fingers around my wrist, probably harder than he realizes because it makes me wince. I bite back a gasp but send a glare from his fingers tightened painfully around me up to his face. His hand falls away, and he rubs the sore spot on my wrist. “Sorry, babe, but we need to find our seats and eat. I’m starving.”
He guides us forward. I don’t look back, but I am supremely conscious of Cross… Judah… behind us. Before Edward has even finished loading his plate, I break away and stride swiftly toward the tables across the room, sit down without checking the place cards to see if it’s the right spot. Even conscious of Edward’s coworkers around us, I can’t wipe the scowl from my face.
“What’s your problem?” Edward mutters in a low voice for my ears only, smiling at a coworker across the table. “You’re the one who made me look like a fool in front of the very man I told you has been on my case. I should be the angry one.”
“You left me alone to skulk off with Amber,” I say hotly, stabbing the drumstick with a fork.
“I did not skulk off. I told you exactly where I was going and that I had something I had to address with my assistant. Judging by the way I saw Cross looking at you, I should be the one who’s suspicious.”
My hand freezes, suspending the fork between my plate and my mouth. “What do you mean?”
“He couldn’t take his eyes off your ass.” Edward smirks. “Didn’t know he had it in him. He’s always such a cold fish.”
The way his eyes held mine. The warm smile that slipped behind a cloud when Edward came. Judah hadn’t seemed cold to me. Focused. Intent. Imperturbable. Yes.
But cold?
When I recall the few moments we shared in the buffet line, my cheeks heat, but I shiver.
“It’s that skimpy dress,” Edward says around a mouthful of green beans.
“What?” I force myself to focus on his words.
“If you had worn the red dress I liked, you wouldn’t be cold now.”
Glancing down at my bare arm, I see the telltale goose bumps and clear my throat. “I’m not cold.”
“Well, I’m not gonna complain, because of the way Cross was looking at you in that dress.” He chuckles and reaches for a glass of wine from the table. “And then to realize you’re my wife. Priceless.”
The self-satisfied expression on his face steals what little is left of my appetite. I push my plate away and stand. He stares up at me, an unspoken question on his face.
“Bathroom.” I toss the linen napkin over my barely touched plate of tasteless food. “I’ll be right back.”
I leave the room, relief slumping my shoulders as soon as I’m out of view. A long hall stretches before me, which, if I remember correctly, leads to a powder room. Once inside, I stare at my reflection.
The way Cross was looking at you.
Edward’s words ring in my head. What did Judah see when he looked at me? I assess the woman in the mirror, turning this way and that to view myself in the gold dress from every angle. Not bad for a mother of three.
Rejuvenation, my ass.
Even though I see Edward’s hurtful comment for what it is, a tiny sliver of doubt pricks my heart. I’ve spent my whole adult life with one man. Slept with one man for nearly two decades. He wasn’t my first, but he’s been my last, and I’ve been his. And now I have to beg him to fuck me?
Would anyone else even want me? Maybe I’m… maybe I’m not…
I draw in a marshaling breath and fluff the hair around my shoulders. I will have my midlife breakdown just like every other self-respecting woman in Skyland—in the privacy of my home, with a good wine to drown my doubts, without fear of public humiliation.
I leave the bathroom and stand still in the hall, dreading returning to the table and to the fake smiles and sharp asides Edward and I have been exchanging all night. Hell, all week. A giggle somewhere close echoes in the hall. Curious, I follow the sound, cautiously poking my head around the corner. Amber stands in an alcove, almost hidden. A man with dark hair has his arms wrapped around her, one hand on her ass. She giggles up at him but catches sight of me over his shoulder.