Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 86596 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 433(@200wpm)___ 346(@250wpm)___ 289(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86596 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 433(@200wpm)___ 346(@250wpm)___ 289(@300wpm)
“Posey, no!” I laugh, hunched over a plate of egg-white omelet and turkey sausage with a small glass of orange juice on the side.
Sometime in the wee hours of the morning, Eli had made a stealth-like exit, not sneaking but…definitely not making his exit known.
“Okay but…why?”
“What do you mean, why? We were tired when we went upstairs. We’re friends, Pose.”
She rolls her eyes heavenward and takes a bite of toast. “That is so boring. I thought for sure when I came home last night I’d interrupted something. You both looked pretty darn cozy.”
“We were. We were chatting and rehashing the shitty night we’d had.”
“That’s not what I mean. I think he was giving you a look.”
A look? “He was not.”
“He was.”
“How?”
Posey pulls my chair closer to her so we’re staring straight at each other, her eyes wide as she looks into mine, mouth pulled into a serious line. “Like this.”
She wiggles her brows, and I shove her away. “Oh my god, knock it off. A, he wasn’t giving me a look. B, that was lecherous. C, we’re just friends.”
“I ask you again: why. Why are you just friends?”
I shrug. “Because we are? If he wanted to ask me on a date, he would have in the beginning. Instead, he asked me for a favor, and I’m not going to be like all the other girls and fawn all over him because he’s some eligible bachelor.”
“Literally one of the most eligible bachelors in the Midwest, according to Chicago Magazine.”
“Eh? Where did you see that article?”
“When I googled him, sheesh. It was written last summer. He’s been in it three times, even when he was in a serious relationship with some attorney.”
Lauren, the cheater.
“So I ask you again, why are the two of you just friends? Why were you wearing clothes when I walked into the room last night?”
“Are you serious?” I laugh. “First of all, I’d never get naked in the living room because I have a roommate. You would have died. Secondly, Eli isn’t interested in me like that. He wants to kill a bet, and that’s all.”
Posey scoffs. “Who are you trying to kid right now? That man is not defenseless. He did just fine fending them off before he met you, and he’d do just fine without you getting drinks poured on your dress. Give me a break. It’s an excuse.”
“He doesn’t even know me.”
“Then why would he ask you for a favor?”
“Because. He came upstairs to hide from Claire and found my office. He didn’t purposely come upstairs specifically seeking me out. Don’t be ridiculous.”
“Are you being serious right now?” Posey is giving me an incredulous look as if she can’t believe what she’s hearing. “You’re a catch, Molly. A real catch. He had to have known it when he saw you in the dining room when your eyes met over the charcuterie board…”
I roll my eyes. “I didn’t even speak to him.”
“Oh my god, you’re acting like it’s not humanly possible for him to have invented a reason to go find you.”
“Eli would have come out and said he was interested, okay? He’s a straight shooter, the same way I am.”
Posey pokes at the breakfast on her plate, stabbing the fork in my direction. “Did you or did you not try to slam the door in his face?”
“I might have?”
“Did you or did you not call him a creep?”
“I did not call him a creep. I said he was being creepy.”
My roommate laughs, finally eating her eggs. “See? You made his dick shrivel and crawl back into his body. You came off as defensive and mean, so he invented another reason to get to know you.”
“I also had him fetch me more food.”
Posey and I eat for a few moments in silence before she swallows and bestows more wisdom on me. “You know why you’re like this?”
I know exactly what she’s going to say, but don’t stop her from saying it.
“Rob. He mind fucked you for so long you have trust issues.” She eats more eggs. “Which I don’t understand since it was only three dates.”
It wasn’t the three dates that had my heart and mind all in a twist. It was the seven months that followed—the popping in and out. The video chats, the texts. Him watching my social media stories but never wanting to see me that fucked with my head.
“You cannot let one bad experience sour the whole bunch, Molly. Unless you have no interest in a relationship?”
“I have no interest in a relationship with someone who has no interest in a relationship with me. There’s a difference.”
She’s quiet as she considers this information. “So what I’m hearing is, you would date Eli if you thought he might want to be serious?”
My shrug is noncommittal. “Not sure.”
“Are you attracted to him?”
Duh. “Sure.”
“Let me rephrase that.” Posey is visibly annoyed by this response. “Does he give you a lady boner?”