Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 83461 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 417(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83461 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 417(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
“You need to tell her, Cannon.” She means the truth—that I’m in a vastly different place than she is with regards to Melissa. “It’s not fair for her to pull on you like this.”
“She doesn’t have anyone else. Andrew’s pretty much checked out of the marriage.”
My mom sighs. “You’re such a good man.”
“You raised me right, and you’re the best mom. You always give the best advice.” And that gives me an idea. “Mom… I’ve got to go.”
“Okay, baby. Good luck tonight, and we love you.”
“I love you too.”
Pocketing my phone, I head back to my office where I grab my car keys. On the way out, I see Gage in his office and stick my head in. “I’m leaving the arena for about an hour… maybe an hour and a half. I might be late to the video meeting, so don’t wait for me.”
Gage blinks in surprise. “Sure thing. We got you covered.”
“I know you do.”
♦
Armed with a box of chocolates and a lush bouquet, I slip my key in the lock and open the door to my condo. My eyes immediately land on Ava sitting at my kitchen table, working on her laptop. She lifts her head, eyes rounding when she sees what’s in my hand.
I kick the door closed behind me and move to her.
Tipping her head back, she asks, “What are you doing here?”
I hand her the flowers and put the chocolates on the table next to her laptop. Bending down, I give her a soft kiss. “It’s lunchtime, so I decided to take a break and eat with you.”
Ava’s mouth hangs open, and I put my knuckles under her chin to close it. “What would you like to eat?”
“I think all we have is peanut butter and jelly. You remembered to get peanut butter.”
I laugh and coax her up from the chair, giving her a longer, deeper kiss. My body reacts to her scent and taste, but I step away. I’m here to have lunch with my girl and then I need to head back to work.
“Come on.” I grab her hand and pull her toward the door. “We’ll run down to the deli.”
“Okay,” she says, sounding discombobulated. “You have time to do this?”
I stop with my hand on the knob and look back at her. “I’m making the time.”
Ava’s eyes glow with affection. I expect her to tell me it’s not necessary, as she always does, and I’m prepared to clap my hand over her mouth.
Instead, she smiles and grabs her coat. “Well, let’s hurry, then. I know you’ve got to get back.”
I open the door, but she tugs against my hand. I raise an eyebrow in question.
She steps into me, lifts her mouth, and I bend down to kiss her.
“Thank you for the flowers and chocolate. No one has ever done that for me before.”
“Well, it’s a first for me too,” I assure her, and because of that look of wonder and delight on her face, I know it won’t be the last.
CHAPTER 27
Cannon
“I don’t get it,” I say, pointing at the TV. “There’s enough room on the door.”
“Ssh.” Ava reaches out and pushes my hand down.
I glance over at her, the glow of the TV highlighting a slight mistiness in her eyes. My other arm, around her shoulders, pulls her closer to my side. I want to argue with her because I don’t fucking understand why Jack doesn’t get on that door with Rose.
We’re watching Titanic, one of Ava’s favorite movies. I saw it a long time ago but don’t remember much about it. I certainly don’t remember what is, a stupid decision by both of them not to figure a way to get him out of the water and onto the door. But I hold my tongue until after Jack freezes to death and Rose lets him slip under the icy water.
“So tragic,” Ava whispers as she blinks away tears.
I’m alarmed she’s actually on the verge of crying, so I grab the remote and pause the movie.
She twists her head to look at me. “It’s not about there being enough room. It’s that Jack didn’t want to risk it capsizing and putting Rose in danger. He knew she was safe, and that’s all that mattered. His entire mission since that ship hit the iceberg was to save her, and he did.”
“Oh,” I murmur, looking back at the screen paused on a close-up of Rose crying as she stares into the water. “That makes sense.”
Ava laughs, and I look back at her. While her eyes are still a bit shiny, she’s clearly amused by me.
“What’s so funny?” I ask, my hand on her ribs for a tickle.
She yelps and squirms away, pushing against my chest and grabbing my hand. “It’s just… you were analyzing all that through a coach’s eyes. Up until the end, you were trying to figure out how to win the game.”