Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 75003 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 375(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75003 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 375(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
“Oh, is that who Zayn was talking about?” Teddy asked. “He was spouting something about a commissioned art piece for Daniyal. Which seems like the last thing in the world the man would want.”
“Precisely why Zayn would get it for him, I think,” I said. “But yeah. We happened to run into her at the farmer’s market earlier. I bought this,” I said, producing the goldfish print and handing it to him.
“This is really well done.”
“It’s Swim Shady.”
“Excuse me?” he asked, brows raising.
“That’s her goldfish. His name is Swim Shady.”
“Does she exclusively do animals?” he asked.
“No. She does a little bit of everything,” I told him, finding her website, then passing him my phone.
“Hmm,” he said as he scrolled through the images.
“Hmm, what?” I asked, not realizing my tone was a little sharp until he shot me a knowing look.
“She’s very good,” he said. “I’ve been looking for art for that new hotel,” he said.
“I’m sure she’d be over the moon at the idea. It would be nice for her to be able to get out of the building she’s in.”
“Same one you, Seeley, and Cato grew up in, right?”
“And Ama,” I agreed.
“Yeah, that’s not an ideal place for a single woman to be living,” he said. “I’m going to have the designer reach out to her in the coming weeks if you want to tell her to be on the lookout.”
“I will,” I agreed. “So, do you know a good bagel place around here? Particularly if they have cinnamon raisin ones.”
“Already know her food preferences, huh? Maybe you didn’t need the pep talk after all,” he said as he handed me back my phone. “There’s a great place about five minutes down the street. Mo’s. But you have to get there early or there won’t be anything left. Now, I’ll trust you can see yourself to bed,” he said, putting his glass on the coffee table. “I have an obnoxiously early meeting.”
With that, he headed off.
And I did something very unusual for me. I got an early night of sleep.
So that when Teddy got up for his obnoxiously early meeting, I was already up with coffee ready.
By the time he headed out, I decided to as well, wanting to make sure I could get Jade’s bagels.
I did drop into my uncle’s place first, but he was still out cold on his recliner, so I just left a few bagels on the counter, then made my way across the hall.
There was a second of hesitation, worrying it was too early, but I decided that Jade struck me as a morning person, so I knocked.
I immediately second-guessed my decision a moment later when the door opened to reveal a very exhausted-looking Jade.
No. Not just exhausted. Sure, there were purple smudges under her bloodshot eyes. But it was more than that. Her eyelids looked swollen. She was still wearing the same outfit from the night before, but now the skirt was ripped and the whole front of her was dirty.
“Are you okay?” I asked, my smile falling as my mind raced with all of the possible things that could have happened to her after she drove herself home.
If there wasn’t a spot in the lot and she had to park on the street, making her walk past the local drug dealing crew amongst various other people who were likely up to no good.
Or, you know, even some of her neighbors.
“What? Sorry,” she said, shaking her head.
“Are you alright?” I asked again.
“Oh, uhm,” she started, looking down at herself, realizing what she looked like for the first time. “Sorry. I’m… behind today. Can you give me twenty minutes to throw myself together?” she asked.
“Yeah, sure,” I agreed.
“Ah, make yourself at home,” she said before rushing off, whacking her hip off of her kitchen counter she was walking so closely to it.
I heard the door close a moment before the water in the shower turned on.
“Huh,” I said, setting my bag down on the old formica counter, checking out the fresh sage-colored cabinets that made the space feel less dated than my uncle’s apartment or the one I’d grown up in.
Her apartment as a whole didn’t even seem like it was in the same building as anyone else’s.
Unsurprisingly, Jade was a fan of color. From the yellow and orange drapes on the windows to the green couch covered in a bright, multicolored crocheted throw and multiple mismatched pillows.
There were a ton of live plants scattered around, including around her little space in the apartment that acted as her studio. It faced the front windows to allow for good light, and the walls were lined in shelves full of brushes, paints, and sketchpads.
There was also an abundance of art on the walls. All different styles in lots of different types of frames.
The only other wall left in the apartment was dominated by a massive fish tank. Inside, there were a shitton of live plants. And four fancy goldfish moving around.