Total pages in book: 190
Estimated words: 181992 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 910(@200wpm)___ 728(@250wpm)___ 607(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 181992 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 910(@200wpm)___ 728(@250wpm)___ 607(@300wpm)
His face morphing into an almighty glower, Lowe jabbed a finger in his direction. “This isn’t over.”
“Then your marriage soon will be,” said Dax matter-of-factly.
Cursing a blue streak, Lowe stormed out.
Grayden cast me a tormented look and then turned to Mimi. “Come on, let’s go.”
Ignoring him, she nervously licked her lips and zeroed in on Dax. “I know about the pact.”
“Do you.” Dax didn’t phrase it as a question. It was more of a bored statement. He made his way to me, his eyes roaming over my face. “Are you all right?”
Removing my headset, I sighed. “Yeah. Just annoyed.”
“I have no idea why you acted all secretive instead of just telling me about the pact,” Mimi said to him. “We’re friends. Practically family.”
I snorted. If circumstances were different, Dax might have one day been her brother-in-law, but she did not think of him as family. We all knew it.
“Mimi,” Grayden clipped, “it’s time to go.”
Again, she completely ignored him. “You’ve done some crazy stuff, Dax,” she said with a smirk, shaking her head in incredulity, “but marrying a woman you basically put on reserve? That’s wacked.”
His eyes darkening to flint, he cast her a glare. “What’s wacked is that you would dare come here. You know you’re supposed to stay away from Addison. Yet, here you are.”
She rolled her eyes. “So she got her boo-boos hurt by what I said last time we talked. It ain’t a huge deal.”
Uh, like what she’d said was nothing? Unreal.
His gaze iced over. “Don’t try to trivialize what you did.” The words were quiet. Deep. Dripping with anger. “The things you said might have fucked up my marriage.”
“This isn’t a marriage,” she snarked. “You made a pact, you stuck to it. That’s it.” She looked away with a sniff. “I should have guessed it was something like that, really. An emotionless union would of course suit you just fine.”
“Mimi,” Grayden cut in, a plea in his eyes. “Don’t do this. Let’s you and me just walk on out of here.”
“Why?” she demanded, whirling on him. “Why should I have to stay quiet? Why would you want to leave when we both know you hate this situation as much as I do? You’d take her back in a fucking heartbeat if—”
“Enough,” Dax bit out, pinning her with a somewhat callous look. “Out. Both of you.”
Mimi turned back to him, clenching her fists. “But I—” She stopped speaking when he slashed an arm through the air.
“I don’t want to hear it,” Dax asserted. “I’m not interested in hearing what you have to say about anything. I have officially hit my limit where you’re concerned, and I want you gone from my life.”
Mimi blanched. “You don’t mean that,” she breathed.
“I gave you chances. Too many. It was my mistake, and you’ve been making Addison pay for that. No more. I’m done with you.”
She slowly shuffled back, her expression wounded. “How can you say that to me?”
“Very easily. You made it easy when you started fucking with my wife.”
“Like that ring she wears means anything,” Mimi scoffed, the words coated in pure scorn. “She’s nothing to you but a backup plan.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.”
“Bullshit,” she sneered.
“No bullshit,” he said, his voice grave. “Pure truth.”
Mimi gave him a Come on look. “If she left you tomorrow, it wouldn’t even be a ping on your radar.”
“Addison isn’t going anywhere. Ever. I wouldn’t allow it.”
“Oh, please. It never bothers you in the slightest when women walk away. You might have married this one, but you didn’t do it because you care for her.”
Yeah, ow. Not that she was wrong, unfortunately.
“The only woman you have, and will ever, truly give a crap about is Gracie,” Mimi added, bitterness lacing each syllable. “No one will come close to mattering to you the way she did.”
“Once upon a time,” began Dax, “I would have agreed with you. But not now.”
I tensed. Whoa, back up.
For a few beats, Mimi only stared at him. “You … What’d you just say?”
That was my question.
Dax didn’t repeat himself. He held her gaze, his own sober and unblinking. The resoluteness in the depths of those eyes had my pulse quickening.
A weak, nervous chuckle fluttered out of her. “Right,” she drawled, all skepticism.
Again, he said not one word, letting his unwavering expression speak for him.
The faint amusement began to drain from her face. She forced a mocking smile, but it withered fast. “I won’t buy that she means anything to you.”
“You should,” he told her. “Fact is she’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
I all but gawked at him, my heart slamming so hard against my ribs I was surprised the bones weren’t creaking in protest.
Dismay settling into the lines of her face, Mimi took another step back. “No,” she rasped, emphatic. “I don’t believe it.”
He gave an uncaring shrug. “That won’t make it untrue.”