Total pages in book: 22
Estimated words: 20136 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 101(@200wpm)___ 81(@250wpm)___ 67(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 20136 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 101(@200wpm)___ 81(@250wpm)___ 67(@300wpm)
The man stared at me for several long moments, making me squirm; partly from discomfort, but partly from the excitement of having his attention. I couldn't help it; the man was gorgeous.
He finally stepped aside, allowing me to pass. I delivered the breakfast to grateful customers and when I turned from the table, I face-planted right into someone's chest; a firm chest which I momentarily noticed smelled fantastic…until I couldn't smell anything at all.
I touched my nose and pulled back bloody fingers. "What the hell?" I grumped, scowling up at the man. "First you tried to cut in line and then you smashed up my nose!"
"I'm so sorry!" he exclaimed, and his expression morphed from intensity to empathy, and he became even more handsome. "And I wasn't trying to cut in line; I was just trying to get close to you."
"You got close, alright," I grumbled, wiping my nose again before fully realizing what he'd said. Then I felt blood rush to my cheeks, and I quickly looked away from him. "I need to grab a napkin."
I rushed over to the countertop with the man on my heels. We both grappled at the dispenser, gathering paper cloths. He got a fistful first, and pressed the crumpled wipes to my face.
"Ah, dammit!" I cried out when my vision went blurry.
“I’m sorry,” he said again. “I forget my strength sometimes. I don’t mean to keep hurting you!”
Just then, another man stepped up beside him. He was quite a bit shorter and had fluffy hair, glasses, and a sweater that looked like it was straight out of the nineties. “Give him a second to breathe,” sweater man suggested as he grabbed the first guy’s wrist. “I swear, you’re as bad at this as Talon was.”
I had no idea what he was talking about, or why I suddenly had a pang of jealousy in my gut as the shorter man dragged Mr. Gorgeous away. I didn’t like that he was being touched by someone else, but why the hell should I care? The only thing I knew about the guy was that he had smashed the crap out of my nose.
I hustled to the back room and dabbed the blood away from my nostrils before pinching my nose shut to stanch the flow. Once I was convinced that the bleeding had stopped, I cleaned myself up at the sink before stepping back into the cafe behind the counter.
I did a quick scan of the dining room and found Mr. Gorgeous sitting at a circular table. He was joined by the guy in the sweater, and a third man who was as big as Mr. Gorgeous was; maybe even more so.
At the sight of me, Mr. Gorgeous sat up straighter, and had a quick but animated discussion with his companions. He pointed in my direction, but I didn’t have time to figure out what they were talking about; a line was forming in front of the cash register.
Some people enjoyed their morning coffee and pastry as they sat in the cafe’s dining room, but many others got their cups to go, and got grumpy if the line took too long. So, I hurried through the orders, making sure all of the to-go patrons were taken care of while Josie hobbled through the dining room, waiting tables.
When I reached the end of the line, I looked back to the corner where the three men had been sitting, but my heart dropped when I found empty seats. The wait must have been too long for them and they left. But why did it bother me so much?
I didn't know them. Sure, the one who crunched my nose was nice - very nice - to look at, but that shouldn't matter. I made a promise to myself long ago that I wouldn't get involved with or even become interested in any man. I should be glad that the temptation was gone. But I wasn't.
Movement to my right caught my eye and when I looked in that direction, my heart fluttered at the sight of the three men, now sitting on barstools at the counter. Mr. Gorgeous enthusiastically waved me over, and although irritation flitted through me at being rushed, my feet moved quickly, drawing me close to him.
When I stood in front of him, he lifted his hand and I flinched when it moved toward me. He stopped within an inch of my face and said, “I promise I’ll be gentle this time.”
He brushed his fingers down the length of my nose with a featherlight touch. “It’s not broken,” he assured while my eyes fluttered shut. “Everything feels great.” It sure did; it had been so long since I had felt the touch of a man. I never knew the nose was an erogenous zone, but damn if I didn’t have a tingle in my groin.