Total pages in book: 143
Estimated words: 138844 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 694(@200wpm)___ 555(@250wpm)___ 463(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 138844 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 694(@200wpm)___ 555(@250wpm)___ 463(@300wpm)
Cam snorted softly. “Yeah, she’s a piece of work. You know, she’s always liked me? Like, a lot. Our first Christmas together, she gave us a couple gift, but it was clearly bought with me in mind. Meanwhile, Noa had saved up for months to buy her a…I don’t remember if it was a purse or a bracelet, but he’d worked so hard for it.”
I frowned and shook my head. This was what KC felt whenever he said that his “Daddy heart took a hit.” I just knew. Goddammit. It was incredibly painful.
I sighed and gave Cam’s neck a gentle squeeze. “Looks like we’re definitely buying him a lizard after the cruise.”
“It’ll make him so happy.” He reached up and popped a kiss to my jaw. “I’ll get started on breakfast. Don’t take too long, Master. You need to eat and take your medication.”
I nodded and brushed a hand down his back. “I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
We parted ways for now, I made my way over to the porch. Greer, Penelope, and definitely Reese. It wasn’t easy to tell them apart when they wore similar clothes, but now I saw Reese’s ink.
Greer spotted my approach first, so I tossed him Corey’s car key.
“Please thank your boy from us,” I said. “Noa didn’t use it.”
“No problem,” he replied. “He okay? We were talkin’ to KC when Cam got the text.”
Ah. Made sense. I blew out a breath and draped an arm around Penelope’s shoulders. “He’ll recover. He’s Noa,” I said. “But Jesus Christ, his mother is…” I shook my head.
“A bitch?” Penelope pressed. “A cunt? A hag?”
Reese smirked.
I chuckled and winced. “I try not to use those words, but yes.”
She shrugged. “I call ’em like I see ’em. You’ve told me about her before, so fuck it. I hate seeing that kid upset.”
I pressed a kiss to her temple. “Speaking of…not that. Did you talk to River?”
She nodded. “That’s why I’m here. You saw Ella too?”
“Yes.” I retrieved Ella’s heartfelt love letter from my pocket and handed it to Penelope. “I asked if she had plans to return to Mclean, and she said it depended on your response to her letter.”
She unfolded the note and lifted her brows. “What the fuck? What’s there to respond to?”
Reese and Greer peered closer.
“I’m surprised she didn’t scribble it on a napkin.” Penelope rolled her eyes and pocketed the note. But she wasn’t entirely unaffected. And whatever changes she was going through were still in effect. All Stars instead of heels, ratty skinny jeans, and a hoodie under her open leather trench coat. The latter, I was used to seeing, though usually accompanied by corsets and latex pants.
“It’s up to you if she resubmits an application,” Reese said. “I can’t ban her based on relationship problems, but I can forward the email to you and let you handle it.”
Penelope sighed. “I’m bound by the same policy. If she reapplies, let her. I don’t care. She’s…” She shook her head. “She’s not the same person to me anymore. The way she tried to minimize what she did—she called it a lapse in judgment. Besides, the moment it became clear to her that I wasn’t about to let this go, she could not get out of the house fast enough.”
Greer shook his head too. “I fuckin’ hate cheating. You stand your ground, hon.”
“That part doesn’t take any effort. I don’t miss her anymore,” Penelope answered. “I don’t know—maybe it’s karma. We met under similar circumstances.”
That was news to me. To Reese and Greer too, judging by their expressions.
“Oh yeah, she was still with her ex,” she said. “She broke up with her the day after we hooked up.”
Greer and I let out breaths that spoke of similar experiences, and we exchanged a wry smirk. I knew Archie had traveled down that road with Greer. Archie and Cam were close, so I’d gotten their “story.” How Archie had been with his ex, on the verge of breakup, and then Greer had come along, and Archie hadn’t been able to resist.
Given my own history with men, and having been there for KC, I did my best not to judge, all while I had sympathy for those who got betrayed. I’d felt a pinch of that with Robert. I just hadn’t been as emotionally invested as I should have, so his unwillingness to commit hadn’t hurt as deeply.
“Well, this was fun,” Reese said.
I chuckled. “Yeah, we should do it again sometime.”
Penelope reached over and pinched Reese’s cheek. “Maybe when you’ve found the guts to shave off the beard like your little friends Greer and Colt?”
“Woman, I swear.” Reese batted her away and scowled, much to my amusement. “Blame River. He doesn’t want me with a mustache.”
“Little friends, squirt?” Greer stared down at Penelope.
I laughed.
“Calm down, rancher,” she replied. “Don’t you have to get back to the set of Yellowstone?”