Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 82524 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 413(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82524 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 413(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
addison
I watch the clock turn to four before I get up from my desk, smoothing down my skirt. My hands are all clammy with nerves as I walk to the back of the house where I know everyone is in their office. Every single step toward the chattering of voices gets my heart beating faster and faster as it echoes in my ears. My hands nervously shake as I get closer and closer. I know they were supposed to have a little meeting this afternoon about possibly bringing in someone else to help. I stick my head into the conference room, seeing the four of them sitting around the table going through the applicants who have been applying all week long. “I’m headed out,” I say, avoiding eye contact with each of them, smiling quickly before hightailing it out of there.
“Okay,” Clarabella says, leaning back in her chair looking at me.
“Have a great night,” Presley calls, and I can hear her snicker right before she adds in, “On your date.”
“You guys know?” I shriek, walking into the room, putting my hands on my hips, and looking at all of them as they all roll their eyes at me. This last week has been me dodging them and their questions. Every single time they walked in the room, I picked up the phone and pretended I was talking to clients. It did help I was also very busy this week seeing new clients. I managed to book four of the five I saw, so deflecting was easy. But I guess I wasn’t that good at deflecting.
“How can we not know?” Sofia crosses her hands on the papers in front of her. “I’m babysitting.”
“Who said it’s a date?” I fold my arms over my chest. “It could be the two of us going out to discuss co-parenting.”
“Is it?” Clarabella asks, her eyebrows going up. “How did he phrase it?”
“Well,” I start to say, trying to think of a lie, but I’m the worst when it comes to lying. I can’t do it to save my life. “He said, let’s get together to talk.” I avoid looking at everyone as I glance at the ceiling and around.
“Did he?” Shelby asks, and when I look at her, I see her folding her lips. “Is that what he said?”
“Well, more or less,” I finally stutter and Clarabella shakes her head.
“So he didn’t ask you to go on a date with him?” Presley accuses as she taps her pen on the desk.
“Ugh,” I say, throwing up my hands. “Yes, yes, he did.”
The four of them clap their hands together to cheer. “So are you going to wear sexy panties, in case?”
Yes! my head screams, but I shake my head from side to side. “In case what?”
“Oh, come on,” Clarabella chides, “you have to ask yourself if it is as good as you thought it was.”
“I might have, maybe,” I admit to them, “but I just can’t sleep with him.”
“Why not?” Shelby asks me, her eyebrows pinching together. “You are both single adults.”
“Yes, but it’s more complicated now.” I spit out the words I’ve been telling myself since last week when he kissed me.
“You sleep over at his house almost every night,” Sofia states, shocked. “Are you telling me that you sleep in separate beds?”
I gasp. “How do you know?” The words are a whisper. Ever since my place lost power, we have been spending quite a few nights there. The next night, we somehow still didn’t have electricity because a tree fell in the middle of the road and knocked down a pole, so I took his offer up to sleep at his place. Then when the power did come back on, the house was an oven. Even being in it for a couple of minutes, we had sweat pouring down our faces, so again we slept over. I even did my class there last night in the office, and when I finished, Avery was already asleep, so I caved to staying again. But tonight, I am going back to my place.
“We live around the block,” Sofia reminds me. “We went out on a date two days ago, got home after one, and your car was in his driveway.”
“I didn’t have power,” I defend quickly, “and he offered.”
“What else did he offer?” Clarabella winks at me.
“I’m leaving.” I turn around. “I’ll see you when I drop off Avery.”
“Don’t forget to shave!” Clarabella hollers before she laughs.
“And wear panties you are okay being ripped off you,” Presley adds, and I turn to look over my shoulder at her. “What? If you have been sleeping at his house all week long and haven’t given him anything, that man is walking a fine line and he’s about to snap so… Poof.” Her two hands come up in fists and then open. “Gone.” She is not wrong. The two of us have been playing this game of cat and mouse, and I, for one, am ready to snap. At this point, I don’t even know who is the cat and who is the mouse, but something has to give. It’s the little touches while we prepare dinner; it’s the kisses right before I go to bed. It’s the fact I know he’s sleeping so close to me. It’s him getting up in the morning and coming down without a shirt on, showing me at least one thing has changed since the last time. His abs are so much more defined, which is saying something since he had an eight-pack the last time. It’s the way he’s with Avery. It’s the way that he slides his hand into mine when we walk out the door, even just to go to the backyard. It’s the way that he’ll sit on the couch and watch mindless television with me just to sit next to me. It’s the way he set up his office, so I can study, and keeps Avery busy. It’s everything that he’s done since he found out about her.