Total pages in book: 64
Estimated words: 60905 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 305(@200wpm)___ 244(@250wpm)___ 203(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 60905 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 305(@200wpm)___ 244(@250wpm)___ 203(@300wpm)
“We want to replace your tech. We want to prove to you that we’re better,” Brady said.
“Better than what?” My voice was faint again, damn it.
“Than all of it,” Cole answered. “Lila James, you’ve said some very unpleasant things about us, and about men in general, so we’re calling you out. Technology has its place, but it can never replace a human being, or at least it shouldn’t.”
He stood so tall over me that I wished I was wearing five-inch heels. “We challenge you to do without all your high-tech toys. Leave your tech behind and let us show you that you don’t need it. In fact, we’ll replace all your damn tech. Stay with us for a week. If, at the end of it, you’re not convinced that real people are better than your devices, we’ll issue a full and very public apology.”
“Stay with you?” These guys were fucking nuts if they thought I was going to move in with one, or any, of them.
“At the inn that Cole and I own. Did you do any research on us before you attacked us?” Brady sounded vaguely disappointed in me, which was absurd. If he had any regard for me at all, he wouldn’t have been a part of this.
“I’m not going out to the middle of nowhere for a week.”
“Told you,” Gideon said. “She’s addicted.”
“To tech?” Exasperation tinged my voice. They kept changing the narrative and keeping me off balance—something that had never happened before. “I use what makes my life better and discard the rest, the same as anyone else. Same as you, I’m sure. Unless your inn is straight out of the 1850s.”
“We use technology, too, but in reasonable amounts,” Cole insisted.
“We’re not slaves to it,” Gideon added.
“Neither am I.”
“Prove it,” Gideon snapped. “Unless you’re afraid your followers will see that our way is better?”
“Right. Because you’re Down to Earth and I’m, what—a woman who doesn’t know what’s best for her? That’s always a good look, when a man tells a woman how she should live her life.”
“That’s not what we’re doing,” Brady said smoothly. “We’re challenging you to try things a different way.”
Gideon jumped in. “If you’re confident that your tech outshines a man, you shouldn’t be afraid to let us put it to the test.”
I couldn’t help rising to his rather obvious bait. “I’m not afraid.”
“You definitely don’t look like a woman who shies away from a challenge,” Brady said with a nod.
Try as I might, I couldn’t keep my righteous anger at the same level when I looked at him.
Frantically, I tried to think of a way out of this without backing down. “I have multiple social media accounts to juggle. And a very tight recording schedule.”
“And you can keep making videos and streaming. So will we,” Gideon replied. Easy for him to say; their channel was small potatoes compared to mine. “I bet your fans are on board.”
Almost involuntarily, I glanced over at Penny and the phone she was holding. Cole noticed. “What are they saying?”
Penny caught my eye, and reluctantly, I nodded. It wouldn't do any good to hide what they were seeing; everyone on the livestream could see it anyway. Penny started reading off the phone. “Do it. Show them you’re not afraid. Wipe the floor with them, Lila.”
“Guess that answers that question,” Brady said softly.
I wanted to close my eyes. I wanted to take some time. I needed to think—but I didn’t have that luxury. Not during a livestream. “If you pull me out of the real world to play pioneer girl for a week, I need more than a public apology when I prove you wrong.”
“What do you want?” Cole asked.
“A week’s stay in real comfort.” I named one of Chicago’s best hotels. “I’ll need it after my time out in the sticks.”
Brady and Cole exchanged glances. They didn’t look happy, but it was Gideon who answered. “Deal.”
Fire ran through my veins. At the very least, I’d get a lot of good footage of me wiping the floor with these boundary-crossing jerks. The thought of taking my revenge on this trio made me almost look forward to it. I stared directly into the camera and gave my viewers what I hoped was a determined smile. “Looks like I’m taking a trip. Their little inn may never be the same after my visit.”
“Or you might not be,” Brady said.
Guess time would tell which one of us was right. Spoiler alert: I’d make damn sure it was me.
7
LILA
The moment I stepped onto the small platform of the Elburn station and looked around, my heart sank. A few people were waiting to board the train back to Chicago, but not many. It was clear this was the end of the line.
I’d never taken the Metra this far west of Chicago, but it already felt like I was light years from home—and this wasn’t even my final destination. Brady and Colton—no, his name was Cole—were supposed to pick me up and take me on to Smallville, or whatever it was called.