Total pages in book: 119
Estimated words: 112762 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 564(@200wpm)___ 451(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 112762 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 564(@200wpm)___ 451(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
Aria considered this. “We all say things we don’t mean when we’re hurt. It’s called being human. We’re not perfect. And you said you were sorry two seconds after it. Walker will get over it.” She frowned. “He really takes his job seriously if he’s willing to put aside what you guys have to protect you.”
“Well, we didn’t have much but great sex.” Longing gutted me. “Awesome, amazing, life-affirming sex.”
Aria raised an eyebrow. “Wow.”
“Yeah.” Renewed annoyance flooded me. “And okay, I shouldn’t have said what I said and I feel bad about it, but it’s kind of crappy that I thought the sex was incredible while he would prefer to treat me like a job.”
“Men suck.” Aria threw back the wine and then poured more into each of our glasses. “They really suck.”
My nosiness got the best of me. “Did I sense a little friction between you and North Hunter?”
Aria rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. That asshole wishes. He’s just … he reminds me of someone I don’t like very much. It tends to make me act a little unprofessional around North.” She grimaced. “Thankfully, he hasn’t complained about me. I think the sick bastard gets off on it.”
I smothered a laugh because I’d gotten that impression too. “Does he remind you of an ex?”
She tilted her head in thought. “Maybe a few exes. I don’t have a great track record in that department. The last betrayal was a doozy, and I decided to take a break from dating. A long break. In the Scottish Highlands.” She raised her glass in the air. “To long breaks in the Scottish Highlands.”
“You came here to get away from a guy? Huh. We have more in common than I thought.”
“Well, partly.” Aria heaved a sigh. “I told you before that LA is not a place that makes me happy.”
“Then this isn’t really a break, right? You’re living here.”
She smiled. “Yeah, I live here now.”
I lifted my glass toward her. “Then to starting over in the Highlands.”
Aria clinked her glass against mine. “And to not letting men control our choices.”
I repeated those words to myself, hoping I could make them stick.
Twenty-Four
SLOANE
Walker being Walker, he got out of the SUV early the next morning to round the hood and take from me the bakery boxes I couldn’t see over. He laid them carefully in the back seat and then opened my door for me. I tried to meet his eyes as I brushed past him to get in, but he stared stonily ahead. It was just like him to open my freaking door like a gentleman even when he was pissed at me.
It made me want to kiss him.
And it didn’t seem possible that the last time I kissed him was the last time.
When he got into the driver’s side, I opened my mouth to speak, to clear the air, but he spoke first.
“I had someone talk to one of Andros’s friends. Kyle Brixton.”
Startled, I nodded as Walker pulled away from Aria’s. “I remember Brix.”
“They got Andros’s whereabouts out of him.”
My heart raced. “And?”
Finally, Walker shot me a look before returning his eyes to the road. “He’s in Scotland, Sloane. On a fake passport that cost him thousands of dollars.”
Fear thrummed through me. Nathan had dropped a ton of cash for his revenge. My stomach churned. “This is for real?”
“Well, we can’t know for certain, but my guys put the fear of God into Brixton. He didn’t have any more details other than Andros bought a fake passport to come find you. If he’s telling the truth, and we’re going on the belief that he is, we know now. We can cross Hoffman off the list of suspects and focus on finding Andros.”
I let loose a shaky exhale. “I guess that’s good.”
“I won’t let anything happen to you,” he promised again.
That pricked my pride. He was so set on protecting me, above all else, that he’d forgotten one crucial bit of information. “Neither will I. I beat him last time, Walker. I did. And I will beat him again.”
Walker’s hands tightened around the steering wheel, but he said nothing. We lapsed into a tense silence as we drove off the estate and into the village.
Walker pulled up outside Flora’s, and she spotted us and walked across the café to open the door. Walker insisted on carrying in the boxes of baked goods. Then he strode away to stand guard at the door. I moved to the counter to explain all the treats to Flora as she unboxed. Pride cut through my fear as she oohed and aahed over my fall cupcakes and decorated biscuits. She smelled one of the cinnamon swirls, and I swear her eyelashes fluttered.
“These will go in the first two hours,” she said, gesturing to the baked goods. “Sloane, they’re proving to be such a hit with my customers.”