Total pages in book: 17
Estimated words: 15962 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 80(@200wpm)___ 64(@250wpm)___ 53(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 15962 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 80(@200wpm)___ 64(@250wpm)___ 53(@300wpm)
“Does this have something to do with you leaving the bar with a certain mechanic?” Elliot asked.
She stopped and then laughed. “Wow, gossip sure does travel fast, doesn’t it?”
He chuckled. “Well, they wanted to know if I was aware of my daughter’s choices.”
There were only two options here: deny it, and become a liar to her father, or admit to it.
“Are you mad?”
“No, not at all.”
“What about … you know, the fact that he dated Adele?”
“That feels like a lifetime ago, and besides, they were kids back then. Admittedly all of them were going through their rebellious phase, and I’d have panicked if he was like his younger self. Maverick changed.”
“Yeah,” Freya said.
“Losing a parent will do that to you, and, well, he’s taken on his father’s business, and has stayed true to the name Lavin. He’s a good guy.”
“But what about Adele?”
“Your sister? There was no love between the two, and besides, you should probably ask her yourself.”
This was the only problem she had with finally caving to her ginormous crush on Maverick. She’d always had a thing for him, even when he was dating her sister as well. Now that he’d taken her virginity, and they’d enjoyed sex last night, Freya didn’t have a clue what this meant for the two of them.
She didn’t know if they were going steady or just having fun. Then of course, there were the potential problems it could evoke with her sister. Even though Adele had moved on, gotten married and divorced, it didn’t mean anything.
Several customers came in, and Freya got back to work on counting stock. She tried to do this at least once a week, but it tended to be a monthly thing. So far, they were still thriving in their small town and she knew it was because of her father’s persistent work ethic—one she’d also adopted.
By lunchtime, she was starving, and she’d been counting through so many nuts and bolts, her fingers had that metallic smell she’d come to associate with metal. She used to go to the diner for her lunch, but now she packed herself a small lunchbox and headed over to the park.
It was always busy, but no one ever seemed to bother her. She sat beneath a tree, enjoying the shade as well as the sunshine, sticking her legs out to get nice and tan, while the rest of her was in shadow.
She tried not to think about what was on her mind. Knowing her father’s views on Maverick made it a little easier, but it didn’t mean Adele would be the same. Her sister was always a little … unpredictable. She loved Adele and they had a close friendship, but that didn’t mean her sister was always quite so open and willing to listen to her.
It was why Adele had taken her out drinking to celebrate her divorce. She knew it was her sister’s way of saying sorry, without saying the words, which did kind of suck.
Then, of course, there was the fact Maverick was so … him.
He was the only guy that made her question everything. Who even made her think of breaking the sister code. No dating ex-boyfriends. Now, this wasn’t really a code, and it wasn’t something she and Adele had ever agreed on.
Before Adele had settled down in marriage, she’d had a different boyfriend every month.
“You’re deep in thought.”
Freya jolted at the whisper against her ear. She turned to see Maverick, the man himself, sitting close to her.
“Maverick,” she said. “I, uh, I wasn’t expecting you.”
He chuckled. “Saw you heading to the park for your usual lunch. Figured I’d join you. What did you have?” he asked, pointing toward her half-eaten sandwich.
“Cheese and pickle. You?”
“Bacon, cheese, and egg.”
“Right,” she said.
“Wait until I tell you about my everything sandwich,” Maverick said.
“Your everything sandwich?”
“Yep, I take all of my leftovers, dump them between bread, and eat.”
“That sounds pretty disgusting.”
“It can be. Do not mix mashed potatoes and pasta.” He wrinkled his nose. “Bad combination.”
She couldn’t help but laugh. “What about tomato sauce and gravy?”
“Done that.”
Again, she couldn’t help but giggle. Now, she felt better.
She looked into Maverick’s blue eyes, and it was kind of scary to her, because she knew she had loved this man for a long time, since she was a little girl. It didn’t matter to her that he was older by a few years.
He’d been her only crush back then, and now, well, he certainly lived up to the expectations she had of him.
****
Maverick couldn’t stand to see Freya looking so sad, and since they had unprotected sex a couple of times now, it seemed only right to make everything work. Which was why before lunch, he went to the DIY store to speak to Elliot.
Back when he was a punk-ass kid who thought he knew all the answers, he and Elliot didn’t quite get along. It didn’t matter seeing as he and Adele didn’t exactly last. Adele was not known for being committed. He’d been shocked to learn it was the husband who had cheated, not Adele.