Total pages in book: 160
Estimated words: 149137 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 746(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 497(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 149137 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 746(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 497(@300wpm)
How did he make her understand the world she was walking into? “Would a hundred thousand dollars help you out?”
She sat back. “I’m sure a hundred K would help almost anyone. Are you saying that’s what I could make if I was writing a story on you?”
“One where you could prove the rumors about my sexual proclivities, that would be the basement price. It could go much higher.”
“I don’t get it. I mean I do,” she replied. “You’re superhot. People are interested in how you get down and dirty, but I don’t see why it’s such a biggie.”
“In this day and age, a story like that would ruin my career. If the people at The Reef talked, I would be done.”
“But BDSM is consensual.”
“And Jared Johns didn’t kill anyone,” he pointed out. “The accusation is all that matters today. He didn’t do anything wrong, but that scandal has deeply affected his career. The show got canceled. Oh, it lasted another two seasons, but as popular as it was, it should have gone on for ten years. Now Jared’s a free agent and he’s struggling to find work, and it’s all about the stain on him. Perception is everything, and the truth, well, the truth changes from one person to another until all that matters is opinion.”
She thought about it for a moment and seemed to come to some decision. “That’s rough, but I understand. I’ll write down my phone password. You should feel free to check it whenever you like.”
“And what will I find? Anything interesting?” He wasn’t going to be a bastard and demand it right then.
“I play a lot of Angry Birds. Way too much. I like to take pictures of food because I always tell myself that someday I’ll start a food blog, but I never do. I read a god-awful amount of romance novels. If you make fun of me, we’ll have trouble because I sometimes get overly involved and it’s almost like they’re real people. I text with my friend Tucker all the time. He sends pictures of things he finds fascinating or weird. He finds a lot of things fascinating.”
There it was again. A nasty twist hit his gut like it had when he’d walked out and caught her hugging the broody bodyguard. Jealousy. Possessiveness. He told himself it was because he was signing a contract with her, but he hadn’t felt this caveman-like in years. It wasn’t a pretty look on him.
“He’s a friend, Joshua,” she said quietly, as though she could read him like a book. “I think of Tucker as a little brother. A real little brother. He’s a bit like a toddler, except he wants sex instead of food. Nah. Along with food. He eats a lot. They all do.”
“Sounds like an interesting man.” The fact that this Tucker wanted sex didn’t help. Of course the kid wanted sex. That was probably what all the texting was about. Josh was absolutely certain that Tucker found Kayla fascinating.
God knows he did.
“He doesn’t remember either,” she explained. “My company was involved in a case a while back. We were tracking a woman, a doctor who developed a drug that erased the memories of soldiers. Once they were free of their pasts, she would retrain them, almost imprinting them on herself. Like ducklings, except with high-powered weaponry.”
That was interesting. That would make an excellent movie. He leaned in. “Super soldiers. She was trying to make soldiers free of conscience and loyal only to her. I take it since we haven’t been overrun by these guys that she failed?”
“We took her out,” she replied. “But we found a whole group of men whose memories she wiped. They had been her experiments, and without her around, well, ducklings need someone to lead them. One of those ducklings was Tucker. We call them the Lost Boys. It’s odd how their brains work. They remember things like what a toothbrush is, and a couple of them easily remembered how to drive a car, but they don’t know what their names are or whether or not they left someone behind. They don’t know if they’ve ever been in love or what sex feels like. Well, Dante knows because he snuck out one night. It’s okay. We had him tested and everything. But that’s why I won’t stop texting with Tucker. I’m one of the few people he knows.”
“You’re his anchor.” When her brows rose, he shook his head because she’d obviously misunderstood. “I didn’t mean that in a bad way. You’re a touchstone for him, a landmark. He doesn’t understand much, but when he knows you’re around, he can handle it.”
“I guess so,” she agreed. “I like that. I’ve been a person in need of a landmark once or twice in my life. Anyway, I suppose what I’m trying to say is you can freely read my text conversations with Tucker. And hey, if you want to call him, he’s a big fan. He loved that movie with you and the talking baby where you solve crimes.”