Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 146666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 733(@200wpm)___ 587(@250wpm)___ 489(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 146666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 733(@200wpm)___ 587(@250wpm)___ 489(@300wpm)
“I’d understand if I was your girlfriend. But you can’t go around paying for everything for me. That’s not what people do.”
“Isn’t it?”
“Am I ever going to win an argument with you?” she asked.
“Is that what we were doing? Arguing?” he mused.
“Hack!”
“All right. I’ll let you pay for something.”
Finally. “What? For breakfast? As well as for my car repairs?”
“Absolutely not.”
Their server returned with some water before she could ask him just what she was allowed to pay for. “What can I get you both to drink?”
Hack glanced down at her.
“Coffee, please.”
“Make that two,” he added. “We’ll be ready to order soon.”
Once the server was gone, she turned to him. “Well? What am I allowed to pay for?”
Honestly, he was worse than Aidan and she’d thought he was a bossy Neanderthal.
“Hmm, well, I was going to let you pay for your new jacket and boots. But I’m not sure I like your tone. I might have to punish you by not allowing you to pay for anything. At all.”
She gaped at him. “What? You can’t . . . you can’t use that as a punishment.”
“Why not? I think it works well. It’s certainly making you squirm like a naughty Little girl who got her butt spanked.”
He did not just say that.
And, of course, he said it right as their server brought over their coffee.
Shit. She knew her face was bright red. And yeah, she was squirming around on the seat. But that was because she was embarrassed and mad.
Right?
Well . . .
“You both ready to order?” the server asked.
“Give us a few more minutes,” Hack requested.
“Be back in two.” She moved away as Hack picked up his menu.
“This conversation isn’t over,” she warned.
“Oh, I think it is, Little girl. And I get the final say. At least until I hand you over to your brother.”
“I’m not a dog or a child.”
He moved his gaze over her. “You certainly are not.”
And there she went squirming again.
She opened her menu so she could hide for a moment. She really didn’t know what to say. Her punishment was that she had to let Hack pay for stuff?
That didn’t seem like a punishment.
At least not for her.
Urgh. He had her so confused. And it was hard to focus when she was so darn hungry.
She stared at the menu. Crap. Why did they make the writing so small? She moved it closer to her eyes.
“Greer? You okay?”
“Yes. Why?” she asked. Was that word cheese or spinach? No way anyone would have spinach for breakfast, right?
“Because if you had that menu any closer to your face, you’d be in it. Can you not read it?”
“Of course I can.”
Yeah. She really couldn’t. But she wasn’t admitting that to anyone. Not even Hack, regardless of their bubble.
The server returned.
“I’ll have poached eggs with wholegrain toast, thanks,” Hack said.
“I’ll have the omelet, please. Do you have fries?”
“Sure. It comes with homemade fries.”
“Awesome.”
“What do you want in the omelet?” the other woman asked.
Crap. “Oh, um. All of it.”
“All of it?”
“Yep.” This was going to be interesting, but she was not going to try and read that menu.
Although . . . maybe she should have just said cheese and ham. That was pretty standard, right?
Well . . . too late to go back now.
“That has an extra cost,” the woman said, looking uncertain.
“That’s fine,” Hack said. “Thanks.”
“Sheesh, you’d think she’d never had someone order all the fillings,” she said after the woman left.
“I don’t think she has,” he said with amusement. Then his face grew serious. “I have something to ask you.”
“I only took the shampoo and conditioner. Okay, and the shower gel. But they expect you to take that stuff! Right? If it’s not bolted down, isn’t it fair game? Oh no. Shit. I might have taken the slippers too. But come on, they can’t leave them for someone else. That’s a way to share toe fungus.” She put her face in her hands. “Fine. If they charge your credit card, then let me know. It’s my fault. You can’t go to jail for taking hotel slippers, can you?” Panic flooded her.
“All right. We seem to be talking about two different things here.”
They were?
“Look at me, please,” he said firmly.
He might have said please, but that didn’t mean it was a request.
She turned in her seat. “This would be easier if you were sitting across from me.”
Crap, why did she say that? Sometimes these things just came out of her mouth without permission.
He raised his eyebrows. “You don’t want me to sit next to you?”
“No. I want that! I do! I just . . . why are you sitting next to me?”
“Protection.”
That’s all he said. Protection.
“Uh. From what?” She looked around. Everything seemed perfectly fine to her. Well, other than the guy sitting at the counter who was showing off a seriously hairy butt crack.