Total pages in book: 156
Estimated words: 158829 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 794(@200wpm)___ 635(@250wpm)___ 529(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 158829 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 794(@200wpm)___ 635(@250wpm)___ 529(@300wpm)
“I’m sorry.”
“Oh, it’s not your fault. It’s a good job with cool benefits and a halfway decent boss.” The look she beams over makes me want to eat her alive. “I can’t complain. And if this treatment works, she might even squeeze in a few more extracurriculars next year. That’s huge.”
“Yeah. Go change and clean up. We’re taking the yacht out tonight,” I say, refusing to peel my eyes off her.
“The yacht? Why?”
“Because I haven’t seen that smile nearly enough today,” I tell her.
She closes the space between us and rests her hands on my biceps. “Brock?”
“Yes?”
“When you’re not making that stabby face or yelling at people...you’re the best.” She leans in and kisses me.
Fuck.
I drink her in like a fine wine.
The flavor of her cherry lip gloss, the gentle pressure of her tongue on mine, the hot desire of her little body against mine.
Every bit of it hammers me apart and puts me back together, turning me into a man I don’t recognize—but dammit, I want to.
When she pulls away and blows me a parting kiss, I watch her go upstairs.
Is it just the moment?
Am I really the best?
Somehow, I fucking doubt it.
She deserves—no, she needs—to be lavished with love and attention after what she’s been through. A man married to his company with enemies is never going to provide that.
The really fucked up part is, I know it, but I’m too selfish to walk away.
Summer evenings in the Puget Sound are like pieces of heaven.
We park the yacht in a spot where the captain says a couple rare orcas were spotted earlier this week.
It looks like we’re in luck.
The huge black whales breach the waters from a safe distance. Close enough to enjoy their graceful movements, but far enough away to conform to environmental protection laws.
“So cool!” Piper says. “I’ve seen them plenty of times but not like this. It’s so private here.”
She gives me a smitten look.
The fact that I’m not taking her over the railing right now tells me how fucked in the head I truly am.
I knew Piper Renee would become an obsession.
What I never expected was to enjoy spending so much time with her.
I pull her in for a lingering kiss. “I figured you’d appreciate whale watching.”
“How did you know?”
“The day you came home. When you saw the seal outside, you looked like a kid waiting for the ice cream truck,” I say, pressing my mouth to hers again.
When I pull away, she goes quiet, staring peacefully at the whales blowing puffs of water.
The tension in her muscles is gone.
That alone feels like cause for celebration.
“Aside from a few ferry trips, I haven’t been on a boat since Dad gave up fishing,” she says softly.
“Damn shame. We put up with half a year of grey skies and a premium on real estate for this ocean.”
I’m such an idiot.
The words are out of my mouth before I realize why she hasn’t had a chance.
“It was harder on Dad, honestly. He fell in love with the ocean after growing up in Montana. I wasn’t sure he’d survive when he had to hang up his sea legs for good. Fishing was his life...and the whole reason we kept the house when Mom skipped out.”
Goddamn, she makes my heart bleed. This poor, vulnerable creature has lost so much.
Years of her life to her mother’s abandonment and her father’s chronic illness.
For the next chapter, she needs a man fully devoted to her needs.
And I know that’s not me.
Not when I’ve had to stare death in the face once and came away realizing I’m only fit to be a cog in a very large machine.
I’ll never be the man she needs and I fucking hate it.
If I wasn’t a total asshole, I’d break it off right here and spare her future grief.
My phone pings then, tearing me from my melancholy.
Speaking of years lost—or lives—I sigh when I see the name on the screen.
Vanessa.
I swipe the notification away and put the phone on silent before dropping it back in my pocket.
“Anything important?” she asks, staring up at me.
“Nah. I’ll call back later. I’m with my girl right now.”
She backs in closer to me, moving the peach roundness of her ass against my hard shaft.
Fuck.
Lust floods my brain, this animal need blotting out all emotion, turning my blood molten.
“No quip about calling you mine this time?” I growl in her hair, sweeping blond locks back from her neck and exposing her skin for a kiss.
“I’m starting to get used to it. But I’ll keep sassing just for fun if you promise to use it more.”
Okay.
She has to know what the fuck she’s doing to me, and she delights in it.
My grip around her turns possessive.
Too many dark, impossible thoughts flick through my head.
I turn her to face me, framing her glowing face with my hand as we kiss. Her leg glides up mine and her hands roam my body intently.