Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 83401 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 417(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83401 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 417(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
“You’ll always have me.” I smiled after she spoke. “But needless to say, I didn’t find out much more than that. And with it being Sunday tomorrow, they won’t be open. And there are so many possible hits I could get if I have enough time to weed through all the documents and files.”
I shifted on the mattress, letting my back slide down so I was flush with the bed, my head pounding something fierce from lack of sleep and the full weeknight I’d had. I held the phone propped on my chest and scrunched up my nose.
“Good Lord, this angle makes me have three chins,” I mumbled and sat up again, my head promptly pounding once more and cursing at me. I held the phone away from me, but it didn’t help the chin party I currently had going on. Finally I said, “Fuck it,” and just let the phone sit on my chest. I focused on Darragh again and grinned. “Before you say it, because I can see it on your face, yes, I’m listening, and yes, I heard everything.”
She grinned broadly, and the phone image of her shook slightly as she adjusted herself on the bed.
“So what are you doing the rest of the day? It's only, what…?” My mind was mush, so I actually had to count the hours off on my fingers. “Five?”
“Yeah, dinnertime. I guess on Saturdays, businesses here close early, if they even open at all. Pretty sure bars are open until calling hour, which is like sunrise,” she joked.
I started laughing, which pissed my headache off, but again, fuck it. “Wish I was there. We could have hit up the pubs. Wait, there are pubs there, aren’t there?” I knew the town she was in was tiny and a good distance from any major part of Scotland.
“A few, which should be weird, because the town is so small, but they are more like family-owned restaurants where people go to get trashed regardless.”
“Any cute guys? Maybe you’ll fall in love there.” Even I heard how whimsical I sounded and promptly gagged, which had Darragh snorting in amusement.
“Hardly. The average age of the population here is like sixty. Although you’d probably think the B-and-B owner is cute. He looks around our age. Blond hair, blue eyes, and a Michael Phelps-type body.”
Well, that right there had me perking up. Living vicariously through her and all that. “You don’t say?” I felt my slow grin start to stretch across my face. But the truth was it was all for show. I was pretty sure there was something physically wrong with me, as in my arousal switch had never kicked on.
Sure, I’d noticed plenty of attractive people, but I’d never felt any inkling of desire, no need to ever go out, to let a man touch me, kiss me. And I’d never told Darragh that. It was this secret I harbored, not because I was embarrassed, but because I really did think there had to be something wrong with me. What twenty-three-year-old had never felt the slightest flare of need and lust? What woman my age had never even kissed a man?
So yeah, I was good at acting like I was interested and wanting more details, but it was all very lackluster for me.
“Maybe I should make a trip to Scotland and put on my charm with the bed-and-breakfast boy. He’ll fall for my witty sense of humor and stunning good looks,” I teased.
Darragh snorted again, but then it turned into a laugh. “Yeah, he’s nice and all, but…” She shifted slightly and looked over at something out of the camera's view.
“What?”
She focused back on me and shrugged. “I don’t know. He just comes off as a little bit weird.”
I felt my brows pull low. “What do you mean ‘weird’? Like how?”
“I don’t know. I’m being stupid. He’s really nice. He’s not Scottish, but I’m not sure where he’s from. I can’t place his accent.”
“I’d comment on him being a sexy foreigner, but if he’s making your weird-radar go off…”
“No, no. He’s harmless. I’m sure it’s just different cultures, a language barrier, and me being in another country for the first time that things just seem weird. I’m probably the one who seems strange to him.”
I felt the worry that had been clawing up my back start to dissipate. I could imagine the culture shock Darragh was facing right now.
“But I’m actually going to brave socialization and eat dinner at one of those pubs.”
I sighed in mock jealousy. “Eat something exotic. Like haggis. Is that considered exotic?”
I furrowed my brow as I thought about the Scottish cuisine. “I don’t know, but try it anyway and report back to me.” I laughed when Darragh wrinkled her nose.
“I don’t know if I’m brave enough to jump right into the whole Scottish meals thing right now. I was thinking—hoping—I could get some fries and a cheeseburger first.”