Total pages in book: 68
Estimated words: 64493 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 258(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64493 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 258(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
“Not recently. He’s probably in the kitchen, but I—where are you going?”
I set my empty glass on a table and strode inside where one of my new favorite waitresses was busy with the counter crew. I had two things going for me just then. A, Dierdre liked me and B, she was too distracted dealing with a posse of teenagers ordering complimentary shakes. Those were the only reasons I made it to the kitchen without getting yelled at.
And then I bumped into JC.
“Out,” he barked, chopping onions with a knife the size of a small machete. “You don’t belong in my kitchen.”
I held my hands up in surrender. “I’m looking for Nolan. Have you seen him?”
JC stilled his knife and met my gaze. “Maybe.”
“Great.” I huffed in exasperation. “Where is he?”
“Herb garden.” He inclined his head toward the kitchen door and resumed chopping. “Stop.”
I obeyed with a sigh. “What is it?”
Chop, chop, chop.
“I don’t care if you’re famous. Don’t fuck with him, Vinnie.” JC didn’t elaborate or look up from his onions.
My chest puffed up with righteous indignation. “What the hell does that mean?”
“No secret meaning.” Chop, chop, chop. “I like you, and I think you’re a good guy. But…I like Nolan better. That’s all.”
I bristled with misspent outrage, but I didn’t want to waste precious time sparring with my lover’s former lover. I rushed out the side door and—
“There you are.”
I spotted Nolan near the gate leading to the herb garden. He cocked his head and waved as he made his way to me along the narrow path.
“Yeah. We needed mint for the shamrock shakes Big Red and Kinney ordered.” He held up a sprig, a crooked smile on his gorgeous mug.
“Nothing screams celebration quite like a green milkshake.”
Nolan gave a polite half laugh. “It’s their party, so I figured I should make the effort.”
I nodded but couldn’t think of a light and breezy reply with my heart lodged in my throat. I was suddenly nervous and unsure why.
Not true. It was probably the combination of JC’s warning and having the wrong person glued to my side on a day that should have been ours alone.
I shoved my hands into my pockets and stepped off the porch. “Hey, I haven’t had a second to tell you how fucking proud I am of you. I’m stoked for the kids too, but I’m proud of us. Of you. I’ve had more fun this summer than I have in years, and…thank you.”
Nolan flinched as if I’d smacked him upside the head rather than complimented him. “Me too. I think Ronnie wants to offer you a job.”
I chuckled fondly. “Coach Kimbo has a nice ring to it.”
“It does,” he agreed, hooking his thumb at the side door. “We should probably get back to the party.”
“Wait up.” I held my arms open and wiggled my fingers. “C’mere. First, let’s sneak in a congratulations kiss…with tongue.”
“Vinnie…”
“The coast is clear,” I cajoled, stealing a playful glance behind me.
Nolan let out a strangled guttural noise that might have been a laugh and moved down the path to a private patch of lawn hidden by a high shrub. He dropped the mint on a wooden bench and licked his lips.
“I can’t. I thought we’d have more time, but…”
You know that feeling when you’re thrown into a tense situation out of the blue and you can’t seem to stop saying and doing all the wrong things? Yeah, that was me.
“We have plenty of time,” I hummed, setting my hand on his hip.
He pushed away from me. “I’m serious, Vin.”
“What’s wrong?”
Nolan rubbed his hand over his nose and took a deep breath. “I don’t know what will happen over the next week or two. I don’t want things to get weird and there’s no reason they have to be, but…I want to thank you for being here, for showing up and staying and—”
“Whoa.” I cocked my head, eyeing him cautiously. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“Miami?”
“Oh, well…yeah, I promised. It would be an asshole move to pull out now.”
“And then LA? Your agent has been trying to reach you, your ex is here.”
“I didn’t know she was coming, Nol. I swear I didn’t—”
He held a hand up. “I know. It’s okay. But your old life is calling, and summer is almost over. It’s time to move on.”
My mouth fell open. I glanced over his shoulder when a whoop of laughter from the other side of the hedge invaded our mini fortress. It felt like a sign—as if the real world were closing in on us.
“I don’t want to move on,” I choked out.
“Me either,” he whispered. “But I can’t…I can’t do this.”
“Do what?”
“Me and you. Us.” He gestured manically between us. “You don’t see it like I do, but it feels like history is repeating itself.”
“No. What are you talking about? No, this is different,” I argued, staving off a rogue wave of nausea when his distraction gave way to laser-sharp focus. “You know it is.”