Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 69063 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 345(@200wpm)___ 276(@250wpm)___ 230(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69063 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 345(@200wpm)___ 276(@250wpm)___ 230(@300wpm)
“You didn’t tell me why you’re here, though,” I said. “Aren’t you supposed to be overseas right now?”
He grimaced as he said, “I might or might not have had an issue.”
“What kind of an issue?” I asked, suddenly worried.
“I might have been hit in a friendly fire and crashed a multi-million-dollar airplane,” he said. “I’m fine, but they said that I have mandatory medical leave for the next month and a half.”
My mouth fell open, and I moved toward him, lifting up the t-shirt that was covering his chest.
That was when I saw bruises.
All. Over. Him.
“What the fuck, Dima!” I cried out. “How could you not have told us about crashing a damn airplane? And friendly fire? What the hell is friendly fire?”
“Friendly fire is when one of your own people hits you.” He sighed. “And it wasn’t a big deal. I’m fine. My plane, however, was not. There’s some investigation going on right now, and I bruised my liver and kidneys, so I’m expected to have some downtime while things are being investigated, and I can heal.”
I didn’t even know what to say.
“Get in the Jeep,” I grumbled as I unlocked it with the key fob.
He got in the car, and I started driving toward the boutique in downtown Dallas that I’d be visiting today.
As we drove, he told me exactly what happened and how he’d been floating in the Mediterranean Sea for a fuckin’ hour before he was fished out.
He had several broken ribs, which he apparently didn’t want to tell me about because that might make me feel bad because I’d hit him like a “bomber” earlier when I’d first seen him.
I didn’t necessarily feel bad, though.
Dima, Milena, Shasha, and I had a rough childhood. You could say we didn’t necessarily care if we hurt each other.
Did we feel bad when they were hurt when it wasn’t us doing it? Sure. But not that bad.
“Why are we here right now?” he asked as I pulled into the tiny ass parking lot with the boutique in front of us.
“I have a secret shopping thing going on here this morning. The owner is wondering if the lower-income clientele is being treated poorly based on their appearance by staff. There have been several complaints by customers, and I am to share my experiences with her when I’m done.”
“Do you want me to come in?” Dima asked.
“Yes, but only after I’ve been in there for a while,” I said. “And don’t come talk to me.”
He rolled his eyes but did as I said.
I got out and headed inside, finding a middle-aged woman behind the desk sorting through some large cow-print blankets.
“Hello.” She smiled at me. “Can I help you find anything?”
“Oh, I’m just looking.” I smiled back. “Those are adorable.”
“They are, we just got them in. Come feel them. They’re so soft!” She offered the blanket.
I went and felt the blanket, then we got to talking about new products that were set to come in the next week.
Dima came in, and she greeted him with a pinched smile but continued to talk to me.
In the end, I bought a blanket, some cute as hell Wranglers that had flowers on them, and a new set of Hey Dude dupes that were floral print.
Dima bought a blanket for Milena and Maven, and then met me in the parking lot fifteen minutes after I’d left.
I was on the phone with the owner when he got into the Jeep, and his face was sour.
My brows rose as he got in and said, “That bitch is a man hater. When I went to buy the blankets, she didn’t want to give me them because I was ‘clearly not going to use them.’ When I said I was buying them for my sisters, she said that I probably was trying to make up for how poorly I treated them. When I asked her to elaborate, she pretty much told me how all men were useless, and that we use gifts as a way of manipulation.”
The woman on the phone and I both paused as he went into his angry explanation of how the last fifteen minutes had gone for him.
Which completely didn’t align with everything I’d just told her about her warm welcome to me.
“So it’s men,” she mused. “This definitely makes more sense to me now. Thank you so much for doing this. I had no clue you had male staff working with you.”
“Oh, my brother was a happy addition,” I said. “I don’t have male staff, but I’m definitely going to use him more.”
After we hung up, we headed to the next boutique.
“Why did I have to buy my own blanket?” I frowned at him.
His eyes sparkled as he said, “Because you bought it before I could.”
I winked at him and said, “Why don’t you go in first.”