Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 85565 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85565 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
“A lottery you no doubt have to work your ass off for first,” he countered. “That’s hardly a lottery. It’s a job.”
“A very lucrative job,” I pointed out.
“But do you love it?”
I thought about the joy that Sawyer took in working at the Sea Sprite. Even the day before, when he’d been crouching in two inches of toilet water trying to tame a wild leak, there’d still been the hint of a smile on his face. He loved this place, he truly did.
Then I thought of what a law professor had once told me about working in BigLaw, how becoming an equity partner was like winning a pie-eating contest where the prize was more pie. I’d thought him wrong at the time. Now I wasn’t so sure. But it was still the path I’d chosen.
“I love the paycheck,” I told him truthfully.
“From a job that’s sucking your soul away,” he said in a fake monster growl. He leaned in and sucked up a mark on my neck, low enough to be hidden by a shirt. I dragged in a breath, losing my train of thought quickly and happy to leave the conversation about my job satisfaction behind.
We tumbled around on the bed, copping feels and kissing every exposed inch of each other’s skin until somehow we found ourselves under the shower spray with soapy dicks clasped in Sawyer’s strong grip. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d had this much sexual action in a twenty-four-hour period. Even with Richard, I didn’t remember this feeling of never being able to get enough of him.
“I have to go take over for poor Karlie,” Sawyer said after we were dried off and dressing again. “Do you want to order something for lunch and go through those boxes of old paperwork together?”
I glanced over at him, surprised by the offer. Only a few hours before, he’d have only let me near those boxes over his cold, dead body. Now, however, he seemed much calmer about the situation. Was it the sex that had stripped away his stress, or had our conversation somehow reminded him I wasn’t out to ruin his life? Regardless, I was relieved there was no longer animosity between us, and more than that, I was happy to see him looking more relaxed in general.
“I’ll head into town pick something up for us to eat and bring it back here,” I offered.
Sawyer began listing off the various places around McBride where I could find us something to eat. “But not Stoler’s because their fish isn’t always fresh. Jem sometimes uses frozen cod which is just… yeah, no. And then there’s Bedwicks which has amazing salads if you’re in the mood for that. If you go there, get me anything with the mustard vinaigrette dressing. If you’re in the mood for a killer sandwich, you can swing by the Nifty Crunch. It’s new and a little trendy, but they have great BLTs and a tasty pasta salad. Tell Katie to throw in some peanut butter cookies, though, because you can’t go to Nifty and not get them.” He continued babbling on about all of the little lunch places in his small town, and it was a bit like watching an unbelievable sitcom or something. At one point, I started laughing.
“What?” he asked in confusion.
“Do you know everyone in McBride by name?”
He seemed genuinely surprised by the question. “Pretty much. Why? Don’t you know everyone in Manhattan?” He winked and grinned, and it took all of my self-control not to tackle him onto the bed and strip his clothes off again. But we both had jobs to do, and it was time to finally get on with the rest of our day.
14
Sawyer
We entered the lobby and found Karlie exactly where we’d left her a few hours before, nose down in a paperback. The only difference was the giant flower arrangement on the counter in front of her. I couldn’t bring myself to ask her if we’d gotten any reservation calls or had any existing guests extend their stay. I’d bartered for some advertising in several Cape visitor guides during the off-season in hopes of helping drive up reservations this summer, but nothing could overcome old, run-down facilities. We’d been slapping Band-Aids on this place too long to continue on this way.
“All right. Tagging you out, cuz. Thanks for sparing me some extra sleep.” I moved behind the counter and pressed a kiss to her forehead. She looked up at me with a squint.
Her eyes narrowed ever farther. “What’s different about you?”
She made a big deal out of looking between James and me before snapping her fingers and smirking. But before she could say something to totally embarrass me, I helped her up and ushered her out the door and into the sunshine.
“Go enjoy your day. Maybe give the little guy in there some vitamin D,” I said, pointing to her belly and imagining her lounging on the beach with her book.