Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 146666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 733(@200wpm)___ 587(@250wpm)___ 489(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 146666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 733(@200wpm)___ 587(@250wpm)___ 489(@300wpm)
He scowled as though he didn’t like that reminder. And as much as she wished they could be more . . . Greer wasn’t what he needed.
She wanted to be. These past few days, she’d felt safer than she had in years.
However, there were so many reasons why she wasn’t the right person for him.
They lived in different cities. And even though she’d love to move home, she wasn’t sure that she could.
Then there was the fact that she hadn’t had sex since she was raped.
Hack was a caregiver. He saw a problem and he wanted to fix it. Which is probably what he saw when he looked at her. A big-ass problem to fix.
“Thanks for the offer, Hack. Thank you for everything. Really. You went above and beyond. I’m going to tell Aidan that he’s so lucky to have an amazing friend. But I am not your responsibility.”
“Until I hand you off to your brother, you are. Which means I make the decisions. And I am paying for your car bill.”
You cannot kick him in the balls.
You. Cannot.
Oh, but it was tempting.
Deep breaths. A woman needed patience when dealing with cavemen.
“I get that you think that. But looking out for me does not include paying for things.” She held up her hand as he opened his mouth to no doubt protest. “I mean it, Hack. No. It’s a step too far. I’ve interrupted your life enough as it is.”
The poor guy had already had deal with her panic attacks and nightmares.
Oh, and let’s not forget having to carry her around while she clung to him like a baby monkey.
Yeah . . . no way was she taking his money on top of all that.
From now on, she was paying her own way.
And that would be that.
16
Surprisingly, that was not that.
They pulled up outside a small diner. It was no longer snowing and the day was surprisingly bright and clear.
“How long are you planning on staying mad at me?” he asked, sounding amused.
She huffed. Forever.
“What about if I make a funny face? You can’t stay mad if I do that, can you?”
Don’t look. Don’t look.
Oh, drat. She couldn’t resist.
He had his tongue out and his fingers in his ears. Okay, that was pretty ridiculous. A smile twitched on her lips as she forced herself to look away.
Well, all right, maybe she couldn’t stay mad at him forever. But at least a week.
“What about this face?”
Urgh. Don’t look.
But it was like her brain and eyes weren’t connected as she snuck a peek.
This time he was cross-eyed and had pressed the tip of his nose up. His tongue was off to the side.
Silly.
Uh-oh. That was definitely a smile on her lips. No! She could make it an hour staying mad at him, right?
“Tough nut to crack. Hmm. How about if I sing that grumpiness out of you?” he asked.
Sing? Wait, no!
He started.
Oh. My. God.
She tried to block the awful noise, but it didn’t stop. There was no blocking it.
“No! No!” she cried out as she started giggling. “Stop! Mercy!”
“Are you going to stop being mad at me?” He kept singing.
“Yes! Yes, all right! I’ll stop!”
The horrid noise stopped, and she glared at his smug face. “You play dirty.”
He grinned. “I sure do, baby girl. Come on, time to eat. You get hangry when you haven’t eaten for a while.”
“I do not!” she snapped.
“You sure? Because you seem pretty hangry right now.” He winked at her before jumping out and moving around the front of the truck.
How rude.
She was not hangry.
She was slightly hungry, but that had nothing to do with being angry at him.
He opened the door as she was trying to undo the buckle of her seatbelt.
“It’s broken! It won’t undo.”
“Shh. I’ve got it.” He undid it in one go. Of course. Women’s bras probably undid themselves with one look from him.
“I’m sure there was something wrong with it. You must have fixed it,” she muttered.
“I’m sure that’s exactly what happened.”
Grr. Why was he placating her?
Well, what would you rather? That he argue with you?
Hm. Crap. Maybe she was hangry. She usually hated an argument. Conflict wasn’t her thing. She’d rather run than go up against someone.
With a sigh, she took the hand he held out. He led her toward the diner, then opened the door to let her in. She had a strange feeling as they entered the restaurant but shook it off.
“Are you all right?” he asked as their server showed them to a booth. She slid in on one side.
To her surprise, he sat on the same side rather than across from her.
“Yeah. Just feeling a bit bad for being so grouchy. Sorry.”
He reached out to take her hand again, squeezing it. “I know you’re upset with me for paying the hotel bill. But that’s something I need to do.”