Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 23614 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 118(@200wpm)___ 94(@250wpm)___ 79(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 23614 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 118(@200wpm)___ 94(@250wpm)___ 79(@300wpm)
“Take a seat,” Dane says in a low voice, gesturing to a caramel-colored couch. “Can I get you something to drink?”
“Sure,” I nod. “Lemonade?”
He chuckles.
“Well, I was thinking something more along the lines of alcohol, but you’re not legal yet, are you?” he asks, lifting one black brow.
I shake my head.
“Nope. I’m nineteen so I still have two years before I’m legal to drink.”
A shadow crosses Dane’s handsome features for a moment.
“Damn,” he mutters under his breath before reaching for the fridge door. “Even younger than I thought.”
But when he passes me a glass of ice cold water, the shadow has passed and he shoots me his trademark cocky grin.
“So tell me, how do you like New York?” the huge man rumbles, taking a seat across from me. The handsome man’s so big that he seems to dwarf the furniture with his size, and I feel myself going hot with arousal inside. Why, oh why, am I so attracted to my dad’s friend? Yet I have to keep it together because Dane’s technically my boss. Okay, my boss’s boss’s boss’s boss, but that’s even more pressure to come off as normal and pleasant.
“It’s good,” I manage in an even tone. “I mean, I’m getting my ass handed to me at school, but otherwise, I love the city.”
Dane nods.
“And do you live here? Or in Manhattan.”
“Here,” I say quickly. “Manhattan’s really expensive, so I decided to leave the dorms after freshman year, and come out to Brooklyn where the rents are cheaper.”
Dane lets out a low laugh, his blue eyes sparkling.
“Honey, that’s something that I’ll never understand. Your dad’s loaded, Jamie. Ed’s got money pouring out of his ears, so why are you slumming it? When he told me you wanted a job as a barista, I almost fell out of my chair.”
I merely shrug, even as my heart races in my chest.
“I just want to fit in, that’s all. I mean, back in Hooper everyone knew I was Ed Ventura’s daughter. I couldn’t get away from being “the rich girl,” and I guess I wanted to try life without that for once,” I say. “It’d be nice to be regular, without people looking at me with dollar signs in their eyes.”
Dane stops me for a moment.
“Did you get that feeling back home?” he asks in a nonplussed voice. “Seriously?”
“Not exactly, but everyone knows everyone back in Hooper,” I confess. “You know how it is. It’s just a small town where everyone’s up in everyone else’s business, and that’s part of the reason why I like New York. Sure, my dad’s rich but no one here knows or cares. Plus, this city is one of extremes. There are folks here who have way more than my dad. They have so much that they own their own planes and vacation in St. Tropez every summer.”
Dane frowns a little.
“We could go to St. Tropez. Trust me, honey, I’ve been to the South of France and it’s not all that. There are so many tourists that it’s a little off-putting if you ask me. But if that’s where you want to go, why didn’t you just say?”
I giggle a little.
“No, I’m not complaining. I love Lake Hithitchee, Dane, and it was always fun to spend a week there with you in the summers. I’m just using St. Tropez as an example of what people out here do for vacation. There’s no “cabin by the woods,” or if there is a cabin, it’s actually a giant McMansion with a full staff who stays on the property year-round.”
“Wow,” Dane hums, his blue eyes thoughtful. “Maybe I should get myself one of those cabins. Could be interesting. Does it come with a private lake?”
I giggle again.
“You know what I mean! But I had fun with you at Lake Hithitchee, Dane. I wouldn’t trade those long, lingering summers for anything.”
He grins.
“I had fun too, sweetheart. Our families have been going a long time too, huh? I guess we missed last summer because your dad was expecting the baby, but we can pick up again. I still own the property.”
I giggle before asking in an arch tone.
“Will Marissa be there again? Or Katie? Or Angela?”
It’s a valid question because every summer, my dad would take me to the lake house to meet up with Dane and his date for a week. Dane and his lady love stayed in the main house, while Ed and I were given a guest cabin. But we all used the main house’s kitchen and laundry, and more often than not, Dane was banging his date at all hours. It’s crazy. I always thought that most people reserved sexy time for at night, after everyone else goes to sleep, but not my dad’s best friend. Dane’s date was always moaning with pleasure, whether it was 6 a.m. or 6 p.m. My father would tell me to put earmuffs over my ears, but by the time I knew what those wails meant, I was already fifteen or sixteen and it was far too late.