Total pages in book: 132
Estimated words: 124923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 416(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 416(@300wpm)
Valen
When I blink awake, I can tell Holden’s already been up for a while. He doesn’t notice me watching him at first, apparently lost in his thoughts, staring at the ceiling with his hands folded behind his head. Whatever he’s thinking about has his eyebrows pulled together in a frown and his jaw set hard.
I climb on top of him, straddling his stomach. My hair falls forward, brushing his chest. His hands immediately leave their position under his head to slide beneath the hem of my shorts, grabbing two handfuls. His frown melts away instantly, and the knowledge that I could be the reason sets off the butterflies in my stomach.
“Your hands are so warm,” I say, flattening my palms against his chest. His hands move from my butt to the tops of my thighs, rubbing up and down. “What?” I ask when I notice the smirk on his face.
“Are you cuddling with me, Sweet Valentine?”
“Never,” I scoff, leaning forward until our chests are pressed together, my face in the crook of his neck. “I’m stealing your warmth.”
“I like it when you touch me.” His hands slip underneath the back of my shirt, one curling around my shoulder, the other one at the small of my back.
“Don’t tell anyone,” I mumble into his neck. “You’ll ruin my ice princess reputation.”
“Well, what does the ice princess want to do today?” he surprises me by asking.
“Unless you can teleport us to a beach somewhere tropical, I’m not leaving this bed. It’s too cold to be alive.”
“As much as I’d like to spend all day in this bed and in you, I have a better idea.”
I pull back, looking down at him and raise a brow, feigning offense. “Better?”
“Okay, not better.” He slaps my ass, rolling me off him.
“Where are you going?”
“Be ready in an hour.”
I puff out a breath, blowing a lock of hair from my face. I hear my door close a second later. “What the hell am I doing?” I ask myself, pressing my palms into my eyes. I don’t know what Holden has up his sleeve, and I can guarantee that spending time with him outside of the bedroom and in the light of day is a bad idea. Curiosity overrides my better judgment, and I force myself to leave the warmth of my bed and get ready for whatever the hell he has planned.
Once I’ve brushed my teeth, put on some makeup, and thrown my hair into a ponytail, I stand in front of my pathetic excuse for a closet, which is really just a rolling garment rack with a couple of fabric drawers on one side, not having any idea what to wear without knowing what we’re doing. Aiming for comfort, I settle on a pair of loose-fitting jeans and throw a thick, light gray zip-up jacket over a tight white seamless tank that doubles as a bra.
My phone lights up on my desk with a picture of Shayne’s smiling face and I answer it quickly, wanting to know how it’s going with her dad.
“You’re alive,” I say, sitting on the edge of my bed. “So is it safe to assume he isn’t an axe murderer?”
“Jury’s still out,” she says quietly. I can see that she’s outside, but her face takes up most of the screen.
“Well? How’s it going?”
“It’s fine. He’s fine.”
Thayer’s face pops in front of hers. “She’s lying,” he says before Shayne shushes him, slapping her hand over his mouth.
“He can probably hear you,” she whisper-yells. “He’s trying,” she explains. “It’s just…”
“A little weird?” I guess.
“Yeah. I mean, we’re practically strangers, but I thought there’d be some…built-in connection or bond or something.”
“I’m sure he’s just nervous.” I try to assure her.
“What are you up to today?” She changes the subject. “I feel like we haven’t talked in forever.”
“I know.” I flop backward, collapsing onto my mattress, holding the phone above my face. “Come home already.” She’s only been gone for a couple days, but so much has happened.
“Soon,” she promises. “Is everything okay?” Her best friend senses must be tingling. When it comes to my own problems, I’m a professional at keeping things to myself. But this involves her, and I feel guilty. Guilty that her privacy was invaded because of me. Guilty for keeping things from her.
“Yeah, I’m good.” I try to sound convincing. I don’t want to lie to her, but I also don’t want her to worry about Samuel right now. She has enough to deal with.
We talk for a few more minutes about nothing and everything, but my heart stops when I hear Holden come back in. He’s changed into his usual uniform of a black hoodie and gray sweats, his hair covered by a backward hat. I hold up a finger, not wanting to explain what he’s doing here. He hears Shayne’s voice and smirks, clearly not feeling conflicted in the slightest, walking over to the bed. Shayne continues talking about her new schedule when classes start back up in a few days as Holden bends over, pushing my jacket up and kissing his way up my stomach. I shove my free hand into his hair, knocking his hat off in the process, to stop him from venturing any farther. Not that he lets it deter him.