Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 88263 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88263 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
“Ready when you are,” Nolan says, once again dragging me behind him onto the plane.
The door shuts and I’m deposited into a luxurious seat. Nolan sits beside me, pinning me in as he leans over and buckles my belt.
“I can do that,” I say, finally snapping back into myself. I brush him away then wipe a sheen of nervous sweat from my forehead. “Stop it, okay? Can you just slow down?”
“Take off in five,” the stewardess says, a pretty blonde girl.
Nolan doesn’t look away from me. “You got this rolling. There’s no stopping now. But don’t worry, we have four hours to discuss what our happy marriage will look like.”
I close my eyes, taking deep breaths. “How much of this did you manipulate?”
“I don’t like that word, manipulate. I prefer to think of it as charming my way in your life.”
“Jamila said Roger came highly recommended by—” I groan, glancing at him.
He laughs. “By Ash, my sister-in-law.”
“God, I should’ve known.”
“She didn’t know, if it helps, only figured she’d give a family company some business.”
“Great. That doesn’t help.” I lean forward, feeling sick. “It’s too late to change my mind, isn’t it?”
“Much too late,” he says, sounding genuinely happy, the deranged maniac. “But don’t worry. I promise, you’re going to have a wonderful wedding.”
Chapter 15
Keely
Nolan seems distracted on the flight over. He’s on his phone most of the time. The friendly stewardess offers me headphones and a sleep mask. “The seat reclines if you want to get some rest,” she says.
I take her up on it, figuring I’m in for a long night. I can’t imagine I’ll actually manage to sleep, but I put on the mask and the headphones, drowning out the light and the hum of the plane.
My head’s a mess. This is happening too fast. I wanted some time to get my stuff in order, maybe make a plan about what I’ll do about the baby, except now I’m already on my way to Las Vegas about to become the latest Mrs. Crowley. The idea should repulse me, but for some reason, it doesn’t.
It’s exciting.
This is an adventure. A stupid, ill-advised adventure, but still. I’ve always been too afraid to break out of my little bubble, which is probably why I worked at Bottle of Smoke for so long.
Now it’s like I’m taking my own destiny into my hands.
By marrying this crazy guy.
I’m scared. Nervous how he’ll react to the baby. Afraid of what this relationship will become. But not disgusted.
No, I can’t deny the thrill I feel thinking about him making me his wife, thinking about how badly he must want me to go through all this effort. It’s strange, it’s bizarre—but it’s also flattering and exciting.
I’ve never been with a man that can command a private plane at a moment’s notice.
He startles me with a gentle shake. “We’re here.” I rip off the mask and the headphones, blinking at the dimly lit interior cabin, before turning to look out the window. We’re on the ground, taxiing toward an airport terminal.
“I slept?”
“The entire time,” he confirms. “Talked a little too.”
I shift uncomfortably. “What did I say?”
“You mostly went on about how much you want to be my wife,” he says, face completely neutral. “Mumbled about how much you want to fuck me tonight on our wedding night.”
“No, I definitely didn’t.” I glare at him, though some stupid part of me wonders if he’s not kidding. The remnants of a dream nags at my head.
“All right, folks,” the copilot says, leaning back into the cabin. “We’re going to park here in just a second. Hope you had a nice flight.”
“Thank you, Thomas,” Nolan says. “We’re heading back to Boston tomorrow afternoon. Please have the plane ready.”
“Roger that.” The copilot turns back to the cabin, shutting the door behind him.
Once we’re settled, Nolan whisks me through the private terminal. A car picks us up out front and drives us to the Strip. I stare out at the lights, at the crowds, shocked that so many people would be roaming around so late at night, except I shouldn’t be, it’s freaking Las Vegas. “I’ve never been here before,” I say, somewhat in awe.
“It’s like a playground for adults.” Nolan smiles with a tense cynicism. “Assuming all adults enjoy sex, drugs, and gambling.”
“Come on, that’s not all there is to do here.”
“And you know that how?”
“Jams and I used to talk about taking a trip.” I feel a pang of sorrow hit me, talking about Jamila. I miss her and hate the way we left things. “But that probably won’t ever happen now.”
He’s quiet for a moment. Then he leans closer. “Just because the two of you got into a disagreement doesn’t mean your friendship is over.”
“Feels like it is.”
“Business is complicated. So are relationships. Mixing the two is a bad idea, more often than not. She’ll get over what happened and you will too.”