Total pages in book: 43
Estimated words: 40206 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 201(@200wpm)___ 161(@250wpm)___ 134(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 40206 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 201(@200wpm)___ 161(@250wpm)___ 134(@300wpm)
“Umm, the eggs. They’re making me sick.” Her hand slaps over her mouth and nose, eyes darting here and there until they land on the sliding glass door. I watch as she runs toward it, getting there only to fumble with the latch. I’d help her, except I’m stuck where I am, caught between a rock and a hard spot. Wondering what the hell is going on and how I’m going to get her to actually talk to me, or am I going to have to fuck the answer out of her? She gets through the door, runs down the deck, and I’m still standing here, watching like a damn schmuck.
“Juni.” I start to go after her, but I’ve got food on the stove. Food that is genuinely making her lose what little appetite she did have. And as I keep my eyes on Juniper, I’m also turning off the stove. Her stomach meets the railing, and she’s sick a-fuckin-gain. There’s not much I can do about the smell of eggs except toss ‘em in the trash. Truth be told, I never thought they had much of a scent. Shows what I know. For the time being, all I can do is move the pans away from the burners and check on Juniper. Food will have to wait, which doesn’t make me happy. There’s no telling how long ago she’s eaten a full meal.
“Goddamn it.” With us being out here in the middle of nowhere, trash is harder to get rid of. You can’t leave it anywhere because of the animals. The last thing you want is to leave shit out in the open, which means even composting is out of the question. First, I’m going to check on Juniper, then I’ll take care of the rest.
“Oh god, this is going to be the longest six weeks of my life.” My walk toward her slows to a halt. I do the calculations in my head. She’s been sick for a few days, and I’m calculating when Juni really started to ignore me. It’s been over a month, and when I tried to thank her for the ride home, she blatantly shut me down. Told me it won’t happen again and to find someone else to take my drunk ass home next time. I dropped the subject. She became even more annoyed with me. It didn’t matter if I uttered hello, I might as well have been scum on the bottom of her shoe. Even still, it would have been treated better than me.
I walk out the door, leaving it open. Closing it would help keep the smell away from Juni, but the second she goes back inside, she’ll be running out the door again.
“I think you’ve got some explaining to do, and I’m thinking the specialist Doctor Jimenez concocted is a pile of shit.” Luckily, she is recovering from her bout of sickness, and as much as it burns my chaps not to comfort her, I don’t. I’ve been in the dark long enough. I’m pretty sure I know where this is going, but I’d like the words to come directly from her mouth.
Juniper turns around, eyes watering, cheeks flush, and still just as beautiful as ever. I watch as she blinks away the tears gathering in her eyes, trying to stop them from pouring down her cheeks. Her ass meets the railing, her hands going behind her to steady herself, and we’re locked in an impasse. I hold back any more words and bide my time, propping myself up on the doorjamb, crossing my ankles over one another, and doing similar with my arms over my chest.
“Law.” My name slides off her lips, stopping as she tries to regain her composure. “I’m, well…” Another deep breath, gray eyes dropping to the ground. My gaze moves to her foot. The one she’s dragging along the wood decking that needs to be replaced. I hold back from telling her to quit for fear of a splinter snagging her soft, delicate skin. Even though I'm mad as hell at her, I still want to protect what’s mine.
I move from the place I’m leaning against. Maybe if I’m closer, she’ll be able to get this out. Hell, I’m not even mad about the situation. I only want to hear the words from her lips.
“Tell me, Juniper, say the words.” My hand cups her cheek. She lifts her head up, and I see her, really see her. The woman who usually has brass balls is scared. She’s shaking in her boots scared.
“Where do I even begin?” She closes her eyes. My hands cup her cheeks, thumbs sweeping the tears away.
“At the beginning.” Ever since last night, a few memories have come back to me, her lying on my chest like she was this morning. Her scent surrounding the room whenever she’s near me. I also remember swaying Juniper, helping me to the truck, and then drove to my place, why she helped me into the house to begin with I have no idea. I know now, I’m damn happy she did. From there, I’m left with bits and pieces, like the softness of her hair tickling my thighs while her back was arched, and she was naked. I swear there are times I can still feel the way her body quivered on one upward thrust before she flew apart.