Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 55765 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 279(@200wpm)___ 223(@250wpm)___ 186(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 55765 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 279(@200wpm)___ 223(@250wpm)___ 186(@300wpm)
“You don’t have to be nice,” Kayla says. “He’s all business, business, business. It’s hard for him to take an interest sometimes.”
“It’s fine,” I tell her. “I understand. It’s not like he needs to be friends with your friends or anything like that.”
Kayla nods as she starts taking swathes of fabric from a large suitcase. “He’s going through a lot. He might hide it well, but his business means the world to him. Well, more accurately, the employees who might lose their jobs.”
“Yeah, he seems like he cares,” I say in the most this isn’t a big deal voice I can muster considering the circumstances. All those thoughts I had before—those little whispers at the edge of my mind about Lukas and a possible crush—are impossible to push down now since I’ve seen him naked. Then my leg brushed against his, and the heat burned between us.
“Are you okay?” Kayla looks up from a big red piece of fabric. “It’s not weird, Dad being here, is it?”
“What? No? Why would it be weird?”
My defense is probably harmed by two things. The first is how quickly and over-the-top I respond, acting too suspiciously. The second is that I phrase no as a question.
Kayla frowns. “It’s nothing.”
“No, go on.”
Now, my best-friend instincts are working against me. I can tell something’s on her mind. Even if I should let it stay in her mind, I’ll just torture myself. I’ll imagine she’s somehow guessed what I’m thinking about her dad. It’s better to get it out there, whatever it is.
“I just don’t want to go on and on about Dad, that’s all.”
It takes me a moment to realize what she’s driving at. When I do, a weird sort of relief touches me. It’s tinged with sadness, sure, shaded with pain, but it’s better than the alternative. “Kay, just because life decided to take my dad too soon, it doesn’t mean you can’t talk about yours. That’s like saying I’m never allowed to talk about Mom. Don’t beat yourself up.”
“I’d just never want to hurt you,” she says.
“You never have,” I tell her.
But I could hurt you, I almost add. I could tell you all the thoughts going through my head. I could tell her that, even now, as we’re talking, I’m remembering the sun glistening off her dad’s naked body. I’m thinking about his soft, big manhood turning hard. Instead of leaping back into the water in this oh-so-inappropriate fantasy, he turns and spots me. He starts stroking himself, fueling his passion, his hunger.
“Get in here with me,” he growls. “But first, take off your clothes. It’s not fair, me being the only one naked.”
“Maci?” Kayla says, jolting me from my thoughts.
“Yeah?”
“I asked how the research is going?”
I look at my laptop. It’s facing away from her. She can’t see the screen. I’ve been sitting here for thirty minutes, and I’m still on page one. The words seem to shimmer and change shape, becoming an outline of Lukas.
“Yeah, good,” I tell her.
Later, Kayla and I are playing Scrabble in the living room. I haven’t seen Lukas all day. I could finally work on the essay and put up some defenses in my mind again. However, they crumble when he walks by us, heading for the kitchen. Why does this place have such a fricking open plan?
He’s changed into faded blue jeans and a baggy T-shirt that hides his muscles. Maybe he’s doing it on purpose, tired of me ogling him. My heart picks up its pace as he walks by.
“Got time for a game, Dad?” Kayla calls over.
I squeeze my hand into a fist to relieve some tension. Being close to him is agonizing. It’s like just seeing him ignites a whole slideshow of inappropriateness in my mind. As he pours a glass of water from the kitchen, he replies, “Uh…”
“Oh, come on. It’ll only take twenty minutes. Then you can get back to saving your company.” When he still hesitates, Kayla goes on, “Remember what you’re always saying about recharging your mental units. You said it’s like directing an army. The units need leave, time to recover, or they won’t be able to fight as well.”
“Maybe that was me using a bunch of fancy talk to justify slacking off,” he says in a dark tone.
Kayla flinches. “Oh, uh, okay.”
Lukas walks into the living room, looking down at his daughter. His features soften as much as a man like Lukas’ features can. “I’m sorry, Kayla. Yeah, I’ll play a game.”
“You don’t have to.”
He sits on the couch next to his daughter, both of them opposite me, which is how it will always be. Even if, somehow, Lukas wanted me as badly as I wanted him, he’d never let it show. He’d never betray his daughter.
We clear the board and start again. Lukas stares down at the board with a glint in his eyes, seeming intense, like this is a board meeting rather than a board game. Kayla gets the first word—love.