Total pages in book: 177
Estimated words: 163387 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 817(@200wpm)___ 654(@250wpm)___ 545(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 163387 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 817(@200wpm)___ 654(@250wpm)___ 545(@300wpm)
“I don’t wanna!” So freaking cute.
“Behave!”
“Hey Captain, why are you wearing that silly grin again? Share!” I threw a piece of bread at Steve, who was still on my shit list for spilling the beans to her and the others joined in until the whole table turned into a kindergarten break room. At least Lisa was laughing like a lunatic and not at all aware of Susie’s venomous looks from across the room.
LISA
I’m almost scaring myself at how good I am at this. I knew when Steve asked me a couple of days ago if I’d told Cody what he’d told me that somehow word had gotten back to Cody. I’d played it off then as if I’d barely remembered having heard, and the fact that Cody never mentioned it to me told me all I needed to know. As expected, he was protecting me.
So, I had to sit there feeling the hate in Susie’s glare from across the room while pretending not to notice. I didn’t have to pretend to laugh or feign delight when Cody fed me a fry from his plate; I’d made up my mind not to let her existence control every aspect of our relationship, which would only be a losing game.
Instead, I really did pretend like she wasn’t there as I enjoyed my time with Cody and our friends, which seemed to work too well since she was breathing fire. And then he asked me if anyone was bothering me, and I thought the game was up. I didn’t exactly lie when I told him no, though I feel a bit icky at the half-truth. In the end, she’s not bothering me; I’m the one who’s dead set on bothering the life out of her.
I wasn’t expecting the kiss right on the heels of the question, but for those few seconds it lasted, I was swept away again. I wasn’t thinking about Susie or the fact that I knew she had a front-row seat to this spectacle, I just enjoyed the pleasure of being touched by him, and as usual, I got carried away until the noise at our table and Jess admonishing us to get a room pulled me back to the here and now.
I wish I could put into words what that look in his eyes made me feel. I’d long given up feeling embarrassed by my reaction to his kisses; they’re well worth the headache of Susie and then some. While he was distracted by the others, I took a quick glance across the room, and my eyes met hers. I was tempted to wave at her, but that was a bit too crass even for the new and improved me, so I smiled sweetly instead.
I felt Cody’s hand in mine beneath the table and turned my head to look at him. He’d seen…something, maybe not my part, but the way he looked at her told me that he’d seen her furious glare and the harsh set to her lips as she stared at us. “You okay, Lisa?” The hint of concern in his voice almost made me cave and tell him everything, but I didn’t.
“Sure, why wouldn’t I be?” Poor Cody, my innocent little girl lost in the woods look suckered him again, and I felt just a little bit guilty at my subterfuge, but it couldn’t be helped. Just a little bit longer, I thought to myself, and I’ll have her out of our hair. I have to do this; I’m even more sure of it now that I’ve heard some of what she’s been saying and the fact that she’s actively trying to find out all she can about me.
I’m not stupid, and like I said, I’ve seen her kind before. She’s the sort to cry foul when she’s the instigator. I have no doubt that I could withstand anything she throws my way, but Cody may not fare as well. And since I already know she plays dirty, there’s no way I can stop now.
His reaction did make me think of something else that I’d overlooked, however. Since he thinks he has to protect me from her, wouldn’t that mean that he’d spend way too much time dwelling on her and what she’s up to? I can’t have that, but how do I avoid it?
This being an ass is a lot of work. How do so many people do it for so long? My other worry is what would happen if Cody ever found out? I have a strong suspicion that he’d be pissed, but I’m almost certain I could work around that as well.
“What’re you thinking about so hard, baby?” Oops, here comes another problem, how not to lie to him when he asks me leading questions like that. Instead of a lie, I asked a question of my own to distract him, promising myself not to go too far over to the dark side.