Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 94313 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 472(@200wpm)___ 377(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94313 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 472(@200wpm)___ 377(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
I’d recklessly and deliberately tied my life with his.
“You okay?” he whispered, pressing his lips against my temple.
“Yes,” I lied.
The choice had been made. I beat back the panic that flared in my chest. I’d gone through with it. This was our house. He was my husband. I wasn’t ever going back to the cabin and my family was lost to me.
“You sure?” he asked, leaning back to meet my eyes. I wasn’t sure what he saw there, but his brows furrowed in concern. “Come on,” he ordered softly.
I followed numbly as he pulled me out of the kitchen and up the stairs, my slippers squeaking a little on the floor. Guilt settled like a rock in my chest as we made our way down the hallway. He’d been happy and the kitchen had been charged with excitement until I’d ruined it.
“Of course,” he muttered with a huff as we reached his bedroom. The bed was covered in flower petals and there were unlit candles all over the dresser. I only had a few moments to wonder who’d done it—because Otto clearly hadn’t—before he was pulling a white T-shirt over my head.
I slid my arms into it as he strode toward the bed and threw the quilt back, making the petals fly all over the room.
“Climb in, baby.”
I looked at him in confusion, wondering why in the world he’d given me a T-shirt if we were getting into bed.
“Been a long day,” he said, gesturing.
I climbed onto the bed and lay down, still staring at him.
Otto laughed.
“Scoot over,” he ordered gruffly. “I sleep by the door.”
“Why do you get to be closer to the door?” I asked, inching back to the other side of the bed.
“Ah, she speaks,” he joked, climbing in next to me. “I wondered if you’d gone mute.”
“I get up to pee all the time,” I warned, ignoring him. “I should be closer to the door.”
He laughed and turned on his side to face me, curling one arm under his head. “I sleep closest to the door,” he replied firmly. “Someone comes through it, they get to me first.”
I jolted in surprise. Who did he think would be coming into our bedroom?
“You’ll just have to walk the three extra steps around the bed when you have to pee.”
“I’ll just climb over you,” I said easily, shrugging.
“Go ahead.” He grinned. “I’ll enjoy that.”
We lay there for a while, quiet.
“What’s goin’ on in your head?” he asked softly. “You checked out.”
“Nothing.”
“Come on, Esther,” he cajoled. “Where’s the woman that put her foot down about sleepin’ arrangements before we were married? Didn’t have a problem tellin’ me what was up then.”
“We’re married,” I blurted, widening my eyes.
Otto chuckled. “Yeah, we are.”
“My parents don’t even know.”
The smile left his face instantly. “I know, baby. I’m sorry they weren’t there today.”
I swallowed hard and gave him the truth. “Even if they’d known about it, they wouldn’t have come.”
“Doubt your dad would show his face around the clubhouse,” he agreed darkly.
“No,” I corrected, shaking my head. “Even if—” I searched for the right words. “Even if none of the other stuff was going on. The stuff about the guns, you know?”
“Yeah, I know.”
“They still wouldn’t have come.”
“Well, that’s bullshit.”
“I didn’t marry in the church.”
“If you wanted a church weddin’, why didn’t you say somethin’?”
“No, not a church. Our church. I married someone who isn’t a member.”
“Ah,” he said with a sigh. “Can’t help that, sugar.”
“I know.”
“Havin’ regrets?”
Even though he was watching me, waiting for my answer, I thought about it for a moment.
“No,” I said finally, taking in the wide expanse of his chest, the bicep under his cheek, the eyes that mine in understanding. “There are a lot of things I wish were different, but not you. I’m glad it was you.”
“Coulda been worse,” he mused, reaching out to brush my hair off my cheek. “You coulda hooked up with Rumi.”
“Ew,” I blurted without thought.
Otto burst out laughing.
“I mean, your brother is nice,” I backpedaled. “I just don’t see him that way—”
Otto kept laughing. “It’s all good,” he said between chuckles. “I wouldn’t wish Rumi on anyone.”
“He’s with Nova. It’s not like he would’ve hooked up with someone else anyway,” I pointed out over his laughter.
“Poor Nova,” Otto said, grinning.
I shifted on the bed, trying to get more comfortable.
“Come here.” He leaned up on one elbow and reached under the sheet, his hand wrapping around the front of my thigh. “Let’s take these off.”
I widened my legs a little, my breath catching as he peeled the stocking down my leg. When the first one was off, his fingers traced over the tiny divots the elastic had made on my skin.
“Itchy?” he asked softly.
“Not really.”
“My socks leave marks on my ankles sometimes,” he murmured, smiling almost boyishly as he reached for the top of my other thigh. “I end up scratchin’ like a maniac because they itch so bad.”