Total pages in book: 27
Estimated words: 24983 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 83(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24983 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 125(@200wpm)___ 100(@250wpm)___ 83(@300wpm)
Juniper clenched her fist at her side and gritted out, “I didn’t have a date with him. You two conspired and sent the poor man to a lunch he wasn’t invited to, with a girl who didn’t know he was coming, with no regard to how either of us would feel about it.”
Her mother sniffed haughtily. “James was more than happy to go along with the plan.”
“Good for him,” Juniper snapped. “Now, I just came back to get a few things because I’m going to spend the rest of my vacation with Silas.”
“Absolutely not,” her father boomed. He pointed at Juniper and growled, “You will call James to apologize and pray he forgives you. He’s an excellent catch, Juniper, and I’d hate to see you waste an opportunity to have the life you deserve.”
“The life I deserve?” Juniper echoed, her brows drawing together.
“Yes, dear,” her mother answered, adopting a caring tone that was complete bullshit. “James will keep you in the lifestyle you are accustomed to. You two could be just like your father and me.” I was shocked she’d been able to say that with a straight face. From what Juniper had told me, their marriage was shallow and distant. Her father—and for all she knew, her mother—had been unfaithful multiple times. Honestly, it was a miracle that Juniper wasn’t jaded.
Juniper laughed without humor. “That is the last thing I want.”
“What is that supposed to mean, young lady?” her dad grunted, his expression livid.
“Are you two truly this oblivious, or are you just really good at ignoring reality?” I asked, finally stepping in to make sure they understood that I was there for my girl and they’d better tread carefully.
“Excuse me?” her mother gasped.
Before it went any further, Juniper sighed. “Let me be clear. I am not, nor will I ever be, interested in James.”
“Even if it means ruining your father’s business?”
“Dad never stops working, so I’m sure he’ll be just fine without this one deal. And why would you want to do business with someone who would basically sell their kid to seal the deal?”
“Irony,” I muttered.
Juniper’s mother glared at me as she gasped again. She should have been on Broadway with her level of overacting. “How dare you! We would never sell Juniper! We simply want her to know her place. We’d like her to respect everything we do for her and return the favor so that her actions don’t reflect poorly on us.”
“And what about what makes Juniper happy?” I queried.
“She’s very happy,” her dad stated. “And she doesn’t need the likes of you taking that away from her. Now, you need to leave. And Juniper, I expect you to call James as soon as—”
“I’m not calling James,” Juniper snapped, her tone brooking no argument and making me as hard as a rock.
“And I’m not going anywhere without Juniper,” I snarled. My temper had risen to a boiling point, and it wouldn’t take much to tip me over. The only thing holding me back at that point was knowing it would likely upset my girl.
The room filled with silence, a wordless standoff with no one willing to back down. They were sadly mistaken if they thought they had the upper hand. In their convoluted reality, they actually thought I gave a shit what they thought about me.
“I’m going to go pack a bag,” Juniper announced, breaking the tension.
“You will stay right here and do as you're told, Juniper Finch!” her mother screeched, her tone shrill again. “You’re being a selfish, spoiled—”
“Enough!” I roared, pissed the fuck off that they would talk to her like that. Electricity sparked from my hands, despite the thick leather gloves I was wearing. Juniper immediately turned to me and placed her hands on my biceps.
“It’s okay,” she soothed softly. “They aren’t worth getting upset over. Or showing them things they will never understand and don’t have a right to know.”
She was right, so I took a deep, calming breath and focused solely on my girl. “Go get your things.” I grabbed her chin so I could fall into the depths of her rich, whiskey-brown pools. “Get all of your stuff.”
12
Juniper
I ignored my parents’ squawking and focused on Silas’s demand. “What do you mean, get all my stuff?”
Silas glared at my mom when she echoed my question, and I wanted to giggle at how she snapped her lips shut. But I held back my laugh since it would probably come out sounding hysterical because I was stressed out from the confrontation with my parents. Plus, it would only make them angrier since they wouldn’t find anything about this situation even the tiniest bit funny.
“Grab all of your things and come back to my cabin,” Silas explained, releasing his grip on my chin.
“My daughter has spent more than enough time with you already,” my mom huffed. “She’s wasted practically our entire trip by disappearing with you, leaving us to wonder where she was.”