Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 79932 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79932 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
I sat on my bed, gaping at my phone and shaking my head as I tried to gather my thoughts. It was like Crossland had a direct insight into my over-analyzing brain. He’d just as easily erased the concerns of control and intention in a few sentences as he had when handling other things about me.
Where did he come from? And how did he understand me so damn well already?
“I've never had any hesitation about traveling with you, Cross,” I said on a released breath. “But I feel like I should be angry with you on principle.”
Crossland laughed, and the rich sound of it loosened the tension in my chest. “I respect that,” he said. “It's okay if you're angry with me, kitten. I'll have fun making it up to you.”
Heat spiraled down my core at the seductive tone his voice dipped into, easily switching from businessman to playboy in a matter of seconds.
I could barely bite back my smile, and I was thankful he couldn't see me grinning at the phone. Though he could likely hear it in my voice. “Fine,” I said, doing my best to sound as aggravated as possible. “Then I'm angry with you. The next time you decide to buy one of my places of business, you should consult me first.”
Crossland laughed again, and I shook my head, chiding myself for how much I enjoyed the sound.
“Okay, kitten,” he said. “I'll be sure to do that next time. In the meantime? Can you be ready to fly out tomorrow at eight a.m.?”
“I don't know,” I said playfully. “I guess you'll just have to show up and see.”
“One thing about me you should know by now, Aspen,” he said. “I always show up.”
“Goodnight, Crossland,” I said.
“Goodnight, Aspen,” he echoed back before we hung up.
I fell back against my pillows, still in a state of shock as I set my alarm for a totally different reason.
He’d altered my world in a matter of hours, taking off the undue stress that had been weighing on me since we entered our agreement. Hell, I was certain that if I’d told him three weeks ago he would’ve rushed to solve it then. And it wasn't in a malicious way or a controlling way, but in a genuinely helpful and healthy way.
It was something I was entirely unused to.
I'd been used to doing things on my own and only depending on myself for years. Allowing somebody else to take some of the burden? That was unheard of for me. And I wasn't exactly sure how to handle it.
Luckily, I didn't have to sink too deep into it. Because Crossland and I were held together by a string of ruses and games and banter. Sure, we had some electrical chemistry, but that was it. His eagerness to help was absolutely and understandably also for his benefit.
All I needed to do was remember that and not fall into whatever fairy-tale world he lived in on a daily basis.
Because I only had a temporary pass, and the last thing I needed was to pretend like this was going to be my forever.
CHAPTER 10
Crossland
The past week had been one of those fast-paced weeks where the days blurred together, and I wasn’t exactly sure what day it was by the end of it.
Aspen had made the India trip more enjoyable, but it had been a non-stop string of events, business meetings, and negotiations. In the end, I’d managed to successfully invest in a growing company in the energy research and development industry. It was another asset to add to my arsenal, but something about this trip just hit different. I’d never spent so much time with one woman before, and I never knew how nice it could be to have someone to talk to throughout the ups and downs of an endless string of meetings.
And Aspen never yawned during the events, never rolled her eyes, or begged to be taken for a ride on the jet or the yacht. She engaged in the conversations with the power players in the room, not so much as flinching when speaking to some of the country’s wealthiest entrepreneurs. She was fun as hell to watch, not to mention drop-dead gorgeous, but the combination was nothing compared to the way she’d check in with me between meetings.
I’d never had that before.
Never had a partner who was invested enough to ask if I was emotionally drained or angry due to a deal going sideways. It was refreshing, and it made a little piece of me wonder if there was something to this whole monogamy epidemic that had afflicted my friends recently.
Not that Aspen and I were an official couple. On the outside? We looked like the perfect pairing—laughing, flirting, and sharing little moments of intimacy for the whole world to see. On the inside, we were simply business partners.