Total pages in book: 165
Estimated words: 154925 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 775(@200wpm)___ 620(@250wpm)___ 516(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 154925 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 775(@200wpm)___ 620(@250wpm)___ 516(@300wpm)
“How would you know?” Drake asked, a brow rising.
“Guys talk. A lot. There was a whole discussion about how much time Erin and Theo spend in there and who wears the tiara. I thought it was rude to suggest that because Erin is tough she doesn’t like being feminine and because Theo can be nurturing he’s the one in the princess crown, but guys are assholes. Bodyguards as a set of men do not rank high on the thoughtful scale, and now I realize I shouldn’t say men because my sister-in-law pretty much started the whole thing. And she’s a woman who dresses up as Queen Elizabeth from time to time and lets my brother make that whole virgin queen thing a moot point. Why am I in this family?”
He was so stinking cute sometimes. She needed to remember that he was a liar and a manipulator, and he’d fooled her for the last time. “The point is what started as a Big Tag prank ended in Sanctum history. And it’s memorial because Big Tag said Adam’s dignity died in there. Serena has some very specific fantasies, and they require costumes. And an unholy amount of glitter. Adam should have changed before he went out to get a drink. It’s Big Tag 101.”
“My uncle is an asshole.” Kyle hid a yawn behind his hand. “But he’s serious about a schedule. We should get going. He wants a debrief this morning. He’ll do whatever he can to help us, but this will go so much easier if we respect his wishes and bring him up to speed.”
She would also like to be brought up to speed.
She wasn’t sure how she was going to sit in that conference room with him. She’d been up half the night, and none of her tension was gone. Her gut was in a knot, and she was waiting for the next shoe to fall and likely hit her right in the head.
It was stupid but she was angry with him for admitting he’d tricked her again. Almost angrier about that than the actual manipulation. If he’d kept his damn sensual mouth shut, he likely would have been in bed with her this morning. They would have fucked all night, and she wouldn’t have this hollow place inside her.
“You said Noelle was bringing me clothes.” She was not going back to the office in mostly the same clothes she’d worn the day before. There was an actual code for Walk of Shame that would make its way through the office, and inevitably someone would bring by a box of condoms and she would want to kill them. It wasn’t her fault she’d had to flee her apartment two minutes after she’d gotten back into it.
It was Kyle’s.
Mostly. And the underwear was all his freaking fault, and she hadn’t gotten the barest hint of the pleasure those soaked undies had promised.
“I’ll go check and see if she dropped them off yet. Then we should talk. I know you’re upset with me, but Julia won’t care about your feelings, and last night proves you’re in danger.” Kyle gave her a grim look before he ran down the stairs.
The door to the castle room opened, and West stepped out. He was in what looked like clean clothes. Jeans and a plain black T, though it was slightly large on him and the belt was buckled tight. He yawned as he looked around, and then a flush went over his skin. “It’s actually pretty comfortable in there.”
“Sure it is, Princess,” Drake shot back.
Drake did not understand how Sanctum worked. “That is the plushest room of all. There’s a reason it’s still standing a year after it was supposed to become a seedy hotel playroom. Though I’ve had to clean some of those fuzzy blankets, and it can get gross.”
The idea of leaving Sanctum made her infinitely sad. Or at least it should. The emotion was there. She could sense it, but she couldn’t quite tap into it. Sanctum had become her home. Why couldn’t she panic at the thought of leaving it? Leaving her friends who were her only real family?
Was she starting to think it was better to be alone? To not risk getting hurt again? Was it better to not feel anything at all?
West’s hands came up. “Nothing got gross last night. I even snuck down to the locker room and took a shower before I slid between those satin sheets. Those are nice. And I like all the pillows. When the lights are out, it doesn’t matter that everything is some weird shade of pink. I don’t think that room is an accurate representation of royalty.”
She was pretty sure Big Tag had let Bella Rycroft point at her favorite things in a princess catalog. And then he’d dusted every surface with glitter, some of which clung to West’s well-trimmed beard.