Total pages in book: 36
Estimated words: 33298 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 166(@200wpm)___ 133(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33298 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 166(@200wpm)___ 133(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
“You’re not staying at a fuckin’ hostel. You’ll stay at my cabin.” The grumpy giant is scowling down at me like this whole thing is my fault. OK, so I made a bad decision buying from that used car salesman. But the radiator thing isn’t my fault. Neither is getting stranded in this ridiculously small town. Why hasn’t my book narrator found me yet? Can’t he sense that I’m nearby?
I put my hands on my hips and try to match the giant’s glare. “You can’t just make decisions for me, you bossy grump.”
He blinks, unaffected by my half-hearted insult. “Place isn’t safe. My cabin is. End of discussion.”
Gabby slams the hood. “You were right on the money about the radiator. It’ll be about two days before I can get a replacement. The good news is the engine likely isn’t damaged.”
She turns her attention to me. “The hostel can be kind of sketchy, sometimes. Depends on who’s there. Definitely not my favorite place.”
Sketchy isn’t my thing. Not after the day I’ve had. I drop my hands from my hips and scowl back at the mountain man. “Do you have space for my kitty?”
He smirks, and I realize too late what I said. “I’d love to meet your kitty.”
“What do you mean you’re about to go to the cabin of some guy you don’t know?” Zoey hisses into the phone.
I’m in the bathroom at the garage. I called her to let her know what was going on. She used to live in South Carolina too. We got started writing books about curvy women around the same time. Except that she went on vacation in Lake Tahoe and fell in love with Sheriff Brock. Now they live there together with the world’s most adorable baby.
“I’m telling Brock.”
Brock took away my bestie from me. But it’s kind of hard to hate him when he adores her so much. He’s always doting on her and loves to spoil her. All Zoey has to do is look at him, and he’ll do whatever she asks.
“He’ll check out the mountain man and make sure he’s not a religious weirdo or worse, one of those people who don’t eat sugar.” I can practically hear her shuddering. She has a major addiction to her sweet treats.
“It’s fine. He’s fine. I’ll only be here for two days,” I reassure her. I haven’t told her the real reason I’m in town yet. I didn’t want her thinking I’m crazy or feeling sorry for me.
“You’ll still make it to the taping, right?” She asks. In just a few days, I’m supposed to be featured on Mornings with Maddy. It’s the most popular daytime talk show in the country, and Maddy is going to be interviewing me about my books. I’ve written two dozen wolf shifter romances. They’re books about humans that can shift into wolves. Usually, it’s the hero that’s the shifter. But sometimes, the heroine is one too.
“I’ll make it to the taping,” I reassure her. I started self-publishing my books, just putting my books online for fun. Slowly, they became popular and last month, I signed a lucrative movie deal, one of the largest in recent history. There are already predictions my series is going to be the next big thing, and my agent is fielding calls for foreign rights, merchandising options, and more.
“And you have your pills,” she prompts.
“Yes, I do.” Thyroid disease means not only do I have a curvy figure, but also that I have to take daily medication to keep my hormone levels balanced. Zoey worries about me. She’s the one who noticed I was getting sluggish and acting moody all the time. She insisted I see an endocrinologist. Thanks to her prodding, I feel better than ever.
She sighs. “Alright, I want you to check-in by text every few hours. If you miss even one check-in, I’m having my big, sexy husband send in the FBI and CIA and maybe even the SWAT guys. They’re hunky too.”
I seriously doubt that a small-town sheriff holds any sway with the national agencies but before I can point this out to her, I hear a low growl in the background.
“Oops,” she murmurs, and I already know what happened. Brock overheard her describe the SWAT guys as hunky. He’s possessive in the best way and won’t even let another man glance in her direction. I love that about him, the way he’s so determined to keep my bestie safe. He lives for her and their daughter.
I wish her good luck and tell her I love her before ending the call. I use the bathroom then check my reflection in the mirror, grimacing. I look so damn disheveled. Good thing I’m not meeting Landon just yet.
I wonder if the owner of Hotel Grump knows who Landon is. Ooh, maybe he does. Maybe they’re good friends and he’ll introduce me to Landon in a totally not obvious way, so I don’t look like a crazed stalker.