Total pages in book: 36
Estimated words: 33298 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 166(@200wpm)___ 133(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33298 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 166(@200wpm)___ 133(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
I turn and spot Roman.
“Can’t a guy take a piss?” My voice comes out belligerent and slow. My whole brain feels muddy, and my mouth is dry as cotton. Fuck, what did I do last night?
“Not when he’s trying to piss on my front porch. Bathroom is that way.” He points down his hallway. That’s when I realize I’m not in my house at all. I’m at Roman’s place.
I move to the bathroom and take care of my business before I splash cold water on my face. I press a hand to my forehead as the events of last night come back to me in pieces. When I stumble into Roman’s living room, he passes me a cup of coffee and pain relievers.
“Are you ready now to tell me why you showed up at my house at midnight screaming like a banshee, drunk off your ass?”
I try to remember if I actually did that as I swallow the pills. Fuck, I think I did. I think I was an asshole to him. “She found out. She left. You were right. You happy?”
“Fuck, you cared about her. I saw it on your face, and I knew it’d be a problem.” He moves to the stove to make scrambled eggs. He swears when he drops two of the eggs with his swollen hands. The steroid shots don’t work very well for him, and I hate that he’s in pain.
Of course, he knew it’d be a problem. Roman is the one that reads all the guys. Maybe it was prison that made him good at reading people. “You didn’t hear me. She left. I’m a disappointment. I’m always a disappointment.”
He stops cleaning up the messy eggs on the floor and raises to his full height. His voice is tinged with anger. Big brother bear wants to defend me. “She called you a disappointment?”
I down the hot coffee that burns like acid and set my mug on the counter. “Doesn’t matter. I disappointed her. Rain check on the eggs for me.”
He stops me before I can leave the kitchen, stepping into my path. “No, what did she say?”
“She said she was disappointed.” I swallow hard, not looking him in the eye. Why should I be surprised that my soulmate traveled hours to find me only to be disappointed by the guy she met? I’m no one’s first choice. Hell, I’m barely last choice. I’m just leftovers.
“She’s disappointed that you lied to her, Blade. She’s not disappointed by you. Do you have any idea how happy that woman looked when she was standing next to you? You’d think she won the fucking lottery her smile was so bright.”
Is that true? I think back over the last few days, over the smiles she gave me and the way she let me into her body. She held nothing back from me. The woman who was so scared of her parents’ rejection, who wanted nothing more than to be loved, showed more bravery than me. She showed up as her authentic self, and I was a coward. Just like she said.
“I need her in my life,” I say, the words settling over me. I know what I have to do. I have to get Gwen to give me another chance. I have to convince her that I want to be the hero in the love story of her life.
14
GWEN
“There’s not enough eye cream in the world,” I tell Zoey miserably. She’s here with me in Los Angeles for the taping of the segment. In an hour, a limo will be arriving to take me to the studio’s set so I can film my segment. I’ll show up looking like a zombie, thanks to a dark-haired mountain man whose name I won’t even speak.
Alvin meows from his place in my lap. He hasn’t left my side since I walked out of Blade’s cabin. Somehow, my kitty knows I need all the support I can get right now.
The shelter called early this morning. Simon had the last of his shots, and he received a clean bill of health. He’s ready to come home when I can get back to Charleston.
“Try this one,” Piper says. She’s Zoey’s sister-in-law, and she’s a romance writer too. Even though I’ve never met her before, Zoey brought her along. I’m glad she did. Piper is sweet and so supportive, just like Zoey.
“Maybe he’ll pull his head out of his ass,” Zoey suggests. She doesn’t know the whole story. I didn’t tell her. All she knows is that I fell in love with a mountain man and broke up with him in the space of a few days.
“Gray did,” Piper offers. She married her own mountain man after he saved her from a bear when she was on vacation. They had a whirlwind romance, and now they’re happily married with a baby. Just like Zoey. They’re both so lucky.