Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 93425 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 467(@200wpm)___ 374(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93425 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 467(@200wpm)___ 374(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Of my father’s lawyers, he’s always been the most cool-headed. Calm and collected. For the past couple of weeks, he’s been on edge. He gets angry easily, and he drinks during work hours. It isn’t unusual among our employees, and as long as they’re someone who doesn’t handle a gun, we don’t mind. The fact that Eric has been has caught my attention.
Maybe I’m just paying more attention to him now I know my future wife lives in his home.
I can barely suppress my grimace. My agreement with my father is that I will allow four years for university before I claim her. This throws a wrench into the plan. Four years is a long enough time, I’m not sure I am going to be willing to do five.
Wednesday lunch has been a longtime tradition with my father and his inner circle, the people he trusts the most. It includes me, Andy, my uncles, and a few others. This is my father’s way of keeping us connected, not only in business but personally.
My father catches my eye. It’s as if he can read my mind because he shoots me a warning glance not to say anything. I shove a fork full of food into my mouth to keep myself from speaking. He gives me an approving nod before he turns to Eric.
“A gap year? And Brown is allowing it? What is she planning on doing for a year?” my father asks.
“Yeah, they’ve approved it. I didn’t think they would. It's ridiculous to me to take a year off from such a prestigious school, but I don’t know what’s going through her mind lately."
Hopefully me. She’s spent a hell of a lot of time in my mind recently. I can’t escape my thoughts of her even when I sleep because she lives in my dreams. My memory of the night is the only thing I have to work with since she doesn’t have much of a social media presence, which is helpful in the long run but is currently infuriating.
Eric has my undivided attention, although several other conversations are happening at the table, a few of which are much closer to me than Eric is. Andy is running deflections for me anytime someone tries to get my attention about something. Outside my father, he’s the only one I’ve spoken to about my newfound obsession. He listens intently as it serves as a distraction from his disaster of a marriage.
“And I think she plans on traveling or something. You know, the kinds of things 18-year-old girls with their first taste of freedom do.”
I swear Eric glances at me as he talks. I wonder if Emma told him anything. While I don’t think most girls are eager to tell their father about losing their virginity, Eric has always given the impression he and Emma are closer than most. It makes sense. Emma’s mother dying when she was so young meant Eric had to take point on a lot of things. Awkward conversations, first crushes, and anything else a mother might do.
“It was an utter delight to meet Emma at the wedding. If she’s not going to school right away, bring her around more,” my father suggests. I pull my drink up to my mouth to hide my smile. If Emma hasn’t told her father, and he suspects something, I don’t want to give him any more reason to believe something happened between the two of us. Eric has worked for my family for a long time. He knows the intricacies of mafia life as well as anyone. I doubt the wife of the Don is the life he imagined for his daughter.
“She already has tickets booked to go visit her aunt and then I don’t know where she’ll go afterwards. I doubt she’ll be spending too much time at home.” Eric downs his drink. I watch him pour himself another. I glance at my father, who is frowning at the drink in Eric's hand. So it isn't my imagination that he's been drinking more lately.
Eric might not be much use this afternoon at this rate. We'll most likely find him passed out on a couch somewhere.
“Shame,” my father says. He might be talking about Emma's absence, or Eric's newfound drinking habits.
Andy nudges me at my side and I turn to see a few pairs of expectant eyes on me. I clear my throat. “Sorry, didn’t get much sleep last night. What was the question?”
Boisterous laughs surround us. “You at it again? Oh, to be young and unwed again.”
My stomach sours at their implications. I have no desire to be spending the night in anyone else's bed besides Emma's. I haven’t so much as looked at another woman since meeting Emma. No one holds her appeal. Correcting them would look suspicious, so I let it go.